Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-02-28
ABOUT THE CITY CROP
Mr.. e. w. Dabbs Tells How Cotton u
TO be Financed.

Mr.. e. w. Dabbs Tells How Cotton 10
to be Financed. a..
Mr.. E. w. Dabbs, president Of the
South Carolina Farmers Union, has
sent to the press the following commu-
nication in reply to the objections to
his proposition to finance the state
warehouse system by taxing cotton
sold in this state 25 cents bale: ..-
an answer to ~ in regard to his
question concerning the city crop Of
cotton, would say that 1t is not sur
prising that he does not know what is
meant by this, or that he has not seen
any cotton grown in cities. No, sir, the
city crop Of cotton does not mean cot
ton grown in cities, 1t means samples
of cotton taken from the bales by the
cotton buyers when they are buying
the cotton. When farmer takes his
cotton to the market, 1t Is always
sampled by the cotton buyer-in some
cases by three or four different cotton
buyers-and the samples are almost
invariably retained by him. This
means, of course, that during the cot
ton season a cotton buyer has obtained
a large number of samples which he
bales and sells. These samples have
not cost him anything 30 that this cot
ton, although 1t does not grow In the
city, is evidently a city product as far
as 1t represents anything to the farm
er.
when 1t it considered that sample
Of cotton will weigh at least twelve
ounces, or three quarters OF pound, 1t
will readily be seen how much the
city crop Of cotton amounts to In the
course Of q season.
(Signed crop.
81 Inspection Fee.
Some of the friends of the farmers
in the legislature and elsewhere and
some farmers were up in arms about
the inspection fee on cotton by which
I hoped to make the cotton crop finance
it's own warehouse system without any
charge Of class legislation. The above
short letter in one Of the leading jour
na,s throws some light on this subject
Ask any we'll informed person in any
market Of any consequence, especially
where there Is a compress, how mucn
city crop cotton Is sold each year and
the reply will astound some Of these
farmers friends. In selling ten bales
Of extra staple cotton within the past
month more than twenty-five cents on
each bale went to swell the city crop
In four cities in the samples that
submitted, and none OF my samples
were full size.
why, II my memory serves me cor
rectly, one Of the most persistent ana
rantankerous' opponents Of this Vicl.
ous' feature, as he was pleased to call
the inspection fee, some years ago
wanted the Farmers Union to get be-
hind a move to have all cotton sam
pies turned over to the anti tubercu-
losis league, or the society for the
amelioration of the condition OF the ma
tives of Timbuctoo, or some such equal
ly worthy object. There was nothing
vicious about such legislation because
it would take from the helpless 90 cot
ton buyer one of his sources OF income.
This bill would, when properly work
ed out, have provided what cotton
buyer told me recently he had tried 20
have put into effect: The sampling OF
cotton, and these samples properly
numbered and kept in the office OF the
warehouse where 1t could be properly
protected from dust and light and be
wanted to see the grade Of any lot OF
cotton on storage. His reason was that
when the warehouse is full Of cotton 1t
is some times almost impossible to get
samples of every bale and he had
bought lots Of cotton Of which ten or
fifteen bales he could not sample until
after the deal was closed and the cot
ton was taken out for delivery. At the
end of the season the cotton samples
could be sold for the benefit Of the per-
sons whose cotton was sampled, or In
the case of a warehouse for the eX-
penses of the same, thereby enabling II
to do business at less cost. This feature
alone would reimburse the farmer for
the inspection fee Of 25 cents, II there
were no others.
Another feature would save on the
calculation of a Liverpool export of
many years experience in the cotton
trade, $1.83 per bale. This would be
Just as soon as the cotton bale and the
covering could be standardized. Now
this saving would not be in increased
price, but in more economical covering
and in the saving in freight and insur-
ance Does any one suppose Tor
minute that such a reform Will come
about voluntarily, when every farmer
and ginner Is law unto himself as to
the size of his bale, and whether he
puts guano sacks, sugar sacks, old or
new jute covering on the bale? Not In
million years when the sample from
one bale sells the bale at the same price
that the sample from another of like
grade brings on the open market
II want the legislators and the farm
ers of the state to study these two fea-
lures, and not worry about how 1t Is to
be done or who will pay for 1t, or who
will use the warehouses, or what finan-
cial reforms may result.
"E. w. Dabbs,