Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1914-09-09
TO REDUCE THE ACRE.
AGE BY LEGISLATION?
Commissioner Watson Sees No Relief Except by
Legally Curtailing Acreage of Cotton in the South
States-Texas is Appealed To-

Columbia, Sept. 3.-That legal
prohibition against the "over-acre-
age" OF cotton is a necessity. is the
opinion of Col. E. J. Watson, State
Commissioner of Agriculture, Com
merce and Industries, given to-day
officially as the president of the
Southern Cotton Congress. Col. Wat
son says the Cotton Congress has
taken up the fight for curtailing the
acreage Of cotton, and the Governors
and Legislatures of the various cot
ton States will be petitioned to pass
a planting prohibition law. Such
law, he says, is the only way negro
cotton planters of the South can be
forced to curtail their cotton produc-
ton. Their participation in a reduced
acreage movement is necessary, as
they produce the bulk of the crop,
5 at Col. Watson. In speaking of
the cotton situation to-day, Col. Wat
son said:
Reduced Acreage OF Cotton.
LAS president of the Southern Cot
ton Congress, | desire to state
manifestly that now the cruX Of the
whole cotton situation depends on re-
straining the people of the South
from planting an over-acreage Of an
other crop of cotton, and because of
the fact the bulk of the crop is raised
by negroes working on their own ac-
count who cannot be restrained in
any other way than r. law. The ma
tional organization is paying more
attention light now to that question
than to any other.
Last night the Southern Cotton
Congress took the first step towards
securing legarl prohibition against
planting cotton by passing resolu
tion asking the Governors and Legis
latures to take the matter up. Only
one Legislature is now in session,
and that is the extraordinary session
called in Texas to consider the cotton
situation. All cotton troubles begin
with Texas, as it Is the largest cot
ton-producing State. If Texas will
assist in taking care of a portion
of the four or five million bales pro-
duced in the Lone Star State, there
will be no trouble to make the other
States follow, FOR there will be no
trouble in calling the Legislatures Of
the other States together to consider
the Question cf legal prohibition Of
planting.
Writes Governor COlquItt.
81 am to-day requesting Governor
Colquitt, of Texas, to Immediately
resent the question squarely to the
extraordinary session Of the Legisla-
ture meeting in his State, and get
them to pass on it one way or the
other. 1t will be a waste Of time and
other States to act unless it is known
what Texas is going to do. If Texas
passes such planting prohibition
law the other States will follow.
The best lawyers say such law
is perfectly constitutional, and it is
absolutely vital to anything that can
he done in any way, shape or form
N having an extensive curtailment in
the acreage planted to cotton in
1915. The acuteness Of this neces-
sity is apparent now more than ever
before, for, within the last three
days, the fact that we have a fifteen
and-a-quarter million crop is evident,
and we have not only got to fight the
total loss of the years export CON
sumption, the caring for a debt OF
$3.50, 100000 against the crop of
1914 for supplies and fertilizers, etc,
but also the realistic nightmare Of
verproduction--a condition that has
not been figured on even as late as
week ago"
FARMERS APPEAL FEDERAL AID.
Ask Appropriation to Meet Emer-