Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1914-10-20
The Extra Session.

OF course the politician is always
busy. and he may get in his work
during the present extra session of
the general assembly; but as matters
now stand we think the work that is
being done by this body is the most
creditable that the representatives of
the state have done in her behalf for
years.
Ordinary sessions of the general as
sembly are -politics-nothing
but politics. 1t has been so for years
and years-almost since 1876; but
this year the members are evidently
in real earnest.
All of the members of this extra
session are interested in cotton, and
most of them are interested from the
standpoint Of the producer. There
are some also. who are interested
from the standpoint of the banker
and the manufacturer, more than
from the standpoint of the producer;
but from whatever standpoint any Of
them is interested all realize that the
situation is scriOus-very serious.
One of the most important cOnsid-
erations is acreage reduction. Some
stand for entire elimination and they
make remarkably strong showing in
favor of that eXpedient; but whether
they favor total elimination or not, all
recognize the necessity for very mate
r.al reduction, and the sentiment is
strongly in that direction.
The people of the state have all
kinds Of views, rs they have right
TO have, and it is a common thing to
hear men object to compulsory elimi-
nation or even reduction on the
ground that the state has no right to
interfere with the personal privileges
Of the individual. Among the people
who use this argument are many who
claim to be in favor of voluntary re-
duCtiOn.
Now while we believe that total
elimination is fully sustained by the
logic OF the whole situation; we rec
ogniZe that there are many exception
al cases where this eXpedient cannot
y TO the case of those people who
have all along been raising their own
supplies and cotton only as surplus.
and who right now are able to finance
themselves, regardless of the deSper-
ate straits in which the entire cotton
producing industry finds itself. These
people may justly point their finger
at the all cotton producer and say: IF
it had not been for the silly short
sighted policy YOU have been pursuing
all along. we would never have been
IN this fix and now you should take
your medicine"
Put we do not think this would be
right, charitable or even creditable.
While it is IL fact that no such predic-
ament as now exists would have been
encountered if cotton growers Sener-
ally had been wiser in the conduct of
their business still the situation is
one for which they cannot properly
be blamed.
The half Il dozen or more complete
failures or efforts at voluntary reduc-
tiun during the past twenty years.
nave convinced everybody of the fu-
t,l:ty Of such an undertaking. In at
least TWO cases after majority of
the farmers of The entire south had
entered into written obligations 10 re-
ducc. the acreage planted the next
year WAS larger than before.
The reason for such development is
easy To- understand. but il cannot be
justified. However. every cotton farm
er in the south knows that voluntary
reduction is impossible.
Nnd every cotton farmer in South
Carolina knows that the only way of
securing reduction is hy Legislative
Cumpulsiun. and we believe that most
of them want just that.
AS to what the legislature is going