The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1913-04-23

government.
The State is not to buy my cot
ton, it is merely to provide a
warehouse where my cotton is
stored and charges me so much
per bale for storage
The State is not to loan money,
it merely gives me a receipt
which will enable me to borrow
money in the regular way. The
State is not holding cotton, she
is providing storage. l am hold
ing for my own benefit.
The State in her sovereign ca
pacity, SAYS in this receipt, thai
John Doe, has one hundred bales
in my warehouse, and gives the
number, weight and grade OF
each with the marks so that the
Identical cotton named will be
delivered on presentation of this
receipt. Certainly there could be
no finer collateral in any Of the
money markets of the world, be
cause cotton properly cared for
never deteriorates. 1t is also the
one farm crop, easily convertible
into gold at a moments notice.
A bill embodying these gener'
al principles passed the South
Carolina legislature in 1911. and
received the signature Of the
governor. 1t waS carried before
the supreme court and declared
unconstitutional on account Of a
provision for bond issue. Tue
court. however. emphatlcally ad'
mitted the right of the State
within the exercise of her police
powers to build, equip and oper
ate a warehouse system such as
l have described. And why not:
In South Carolina cotton is the
basis Of our civiliz ltion.
If trusts and combinations.
many of which have been declar-
ed by the Federal courts to be
''conspiracles in restraint Of
trade" fix the price of what l
consume, is it not the duty Of the
government TO protect me in a
fair return for the products of
my labor?
Certainly the cotton crop of
the South. supporting directly
one fifth of our population. and
affording employment in its man
ufacture to as many more. be-
sides being the chief factor in
maintaining the nations balance
of foreign trade, is worthy OF
governmental protection, and the
conservation Of its profits de.
mands the consideration of wise
craftsmanship and true without
regard to sectlou.
We have solved the problem
of production Lands planted by
NV grand father, making about
one half a bale, are now produc'
ing nearly two bales to the acre.
We DO not need government
experts to teach US how to grow
the proverbial ''two blades OF
grass, wh-re one grew before. y
let then keep the other fellow
from getting our gl ass as well as
his own, and the problem is solv
ed. 1t is a problem Of dlstrlou
ton, not of production. / do nol
hesitate to say, that if l could be
assured of fifteen cents for five
years. that at the end of that pc
riod. | would have my land MAX
ing so per cent more than it does
nov. The mechanical cotton
picker renders the harvesting
possible, if only my profits were
sufficient to justify the invest
ment.
The attempt of the Federal
government to settle the trus'
question by prosecutions under
the Sherman act was failure.
because they sought TO destroy,
not to regulate. The reading i'll
to the act by the supreme court
of the qualifying words in reas
enable restraint of trade" Was,
suppose, d piece of judicial leg
islatiou, absolutely necessary tc
keep the business Of the Natlor
from being destroyed by putting
all Of our great captains of in
Iustry IN prison.
So far as the production of cot.
ton is concerned, the failure OF
The Grange, the Alliance and
kindred organizations, sho" that
co operation can only be effec
tive through legislation. Ger,
tainly it is function of govern
ment to do for the people what
ever they are not able to do for
themselves. Nay, more than
that, it is d sacred duty.
In the fall of 1911, tue October
report of the government lndl
Gated a crop of IA, ,800,0 900 and i'm
mediatelv the price fell $50 per
bale. In the spring when it was
determined by actual count that
the crop was sixteen million
bales, tue price went back tc
where it started from. That is
what the inexorable law of sup
ply and demand does for US.
Cotton is made on-credit. Start
a big scare and knock the price
down in October, and the lower
it goes the more of our cotton ii
takes to pay back advances.
If the crop had been ten mil