The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-08-15
COTTON CONGRESS NAMES COMMITTEE
 ID WORK FOR RELIEF
Urge Cooperation With Au- thorities to Enable Far mer to Get Fair Price
 For Staple
Fly c. E. STEWART.


 Washington. August 14.-(Special. Outlines of legislation for financine the cotton crop of the country through the period of the great war were ten tatively adopted today by Senator Hoke Smith of Georgia and Representative A. F. Lever. chairman of the com mittee of agriculture Representative Underwood will be asked to pass or the plan before 1t is perfected and adopted
 The foundation of the plan will be the issue of currency on warehouse receipts for cotton and other staple crops as provided in q bill already in- troduced by Senator Ransdell of Louis jana. Beyond this the proposed scheme will provide that the value of ware house receipts shall be based on 80 per cent of the average price of staple crop for the last five years. In other words. if the price of cotton for the past five years has averaged 10 cents pound, currency may be issued against warehouse receipts on basis of cents a pound
 To Mention Price
 Without this provision. say cotton men. cotton might be figured by bank CTS at say, cents a pound, and crops be financed at only 50 per cent of this valuation, or cents pound. Under the proposed plan the government will carry the crop through this crucial period and will maintain the price till the crop can be market through ces- sation of the war and resumption of marine transportation.
 This provision possibly may be pre- scented in the form Of an amendment to the Ransdell bill. unless action may be obtained more quickly by introduce ing it in some other fashion.
 Unless the congressman from Ken lucky succeeds in having tobacco into this legislation on the same terms with cotton. they intimate that they may conduct a filibuster in the House to obstruct the protection of cotton Name Committees Washington, August 14.-The South ern Cotton congress. after indorsing various plans for relief in the cotton market crisis resulting from the Euro pean war. today authorized committees to cooperate with federal and state authorities in their efforts to enable planters to secure a fair price for the present crop.
 After indorsing the work so far done by southern representatives in Congress in the matter of furnishing transportation for the export trade, and providing cur rercy to finance the crop, the Congress ndorsed a bill introduced in the House of Representative Wingo. Arkansas, au- thorizing the issuance of federal reserve notes on cotton.
 Later the report from the resolution committee was adopted outlining a plan to meet the entire situation. This pro- vided for the appointment of a committed of five members to cooperate with Con gress the treasury department and the federal reserve board to seek means of Financing and marketing the crop, with out unnecessary loss to the farmer"
 The report recommended that all grow CTS hold cotton of the present crop fer the price of 121s cents a pound, based on middling cotton.
 Ask for Money
 It urged the fede, al reserve board and the Secretary of the Treasury to place s30e, 900 in the banks of the south, on the basis of the cotton produced in each state. It then recommended that every farmer should have the right to go tc his bank and secure a loan on notso ma turing in six months but renewable foi six months, secured by his cotton on one. half of the crop he raised to 80 per cent of the value of the cotton based on the average price TOT the last live years These notes, the report recommended should be made rediscountable in tie fed eral reserve banks.
 As originally presented the report rec commended that the notes contain siipu. lation that the farmer would raise only half of normal crop in 1915, and if the war was still in progress on April should raise only one quarter Of his crop thus holding down the 1915 productio, to prevent glut caused by carrying over this years surplus.
 Vigorous Discussion | After vigorous discussion ocurred il striking out this provision and recon mcnded only that the farmer be rrget | to cut down his crop without stipulation l in the proposed notes.
 | The report recommended that tobacc, and other crops should be handled in tn | same way, in the discretion of the reserv l board.
 | President E. J. Watson was authorize, i to appoint committee to take up th | question of providing warelouses to ,.tor | such of the crop as will be held owe until next year. He also was authorize, | to name a committee of member iron each cotton state, to call state conven | ton of nine delegates from each count, epresenting farmers, merchants an, bankers to urge governors to call specia sessions of state legislatures to immedi ately take up the question of installing | of state warehouse systems. The Con gress adjourned tonight.
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