The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1914-12-17
WAR SHAT
TIERS KING COTTON'S
THRONE
FLEEcY STAPLE MUST PAY RAN.
SOM INTO THE GOLFERS or
WAR.
Nation Rlnss With Cries Of Stricken
industry.
Ry peter Radford

Lecturer National Farmers Union.
King Cotton has suffered more from
the European war than any other ag-
ricultural product on the American
continent. The shells of the belliger-
ents have bursted over his throne.
frightening his subjects and shatter.
ing his markets, and. panic.stricken,
the nation cries out God save the
king!"
People from every walk Of life have
contributed their mite toward rescue
work. Society has danced before the
king; milady has decreed that the
family wardrobe shall contain only
cotton goods; the press has plead
with che public to buy bale;
bankers have been formulating hold
ing plans, congress and legislative
bodies have deliberated over relief
measures; statesmen and writer's
have grown eloquent expounding the
inalienable rights of His Majesty"
and presenting schemes for preserv-
ing the financial integrity of the
stricken staple. but the sword of Eu-
rope has proved mightier than the pen
of America in fixing value upon this
product of the sunny south. Prices
have been bayoneted. values rtddled
and markets decimated by the battling
hosts of the eastern hemisphere until
the American farmer has suffered a
x.,o, Io., 80 cam mn nm "a = Aovn
of cotton brave enough to enter q
European port must pay a ransom Of
half its value or go to prison unfit the
war is over.
Hope Of the Future Lies In co-opera-
ton.
The Farmers Union, through the
columns of the press. wants to thank
the American people for the friend
ship, sympathy and assistance given
the cotton farmers In the hour of dis
tress and to direct attention to CO.
operative methods necessary to per-
manently assist the marketing of all
farm products.
The present emergency presents as
grave a situation as ever confronted
the American farmer ard from the
viewpoint of the producer. would seem
to Justify extraordinary relief meas.
ures. even to the point Of bending the
and straining business
rules in order to lift portion of the
burden of the backs of the farmer,
for unless something is done to check
the invasion of the war forces upon
the cotton fields, the pathway Of the
European pestilence on this continent
will be strewn with mortgaged homes
and famine and poverty will stalk over
the southland. filling the highways OF
industry with refugees and the bank
ruptcy court with prisoners.
All calamities teach us lessons and
the present crisis serves to illuminate
the frailties of our marketing meth
DDS and the weakness OF our credit
system, and out Of the financial an
guish and travail of the cotton farmer
will come volume of discussion and
q mass Of suggestions and finally a
Of this, the biggest problem
In the economic life of America. II,
indeed, we have not already laid the
foundation for at least temporary re-
lief.
More Pharaohs Needed In Agriculture.
Farm products have no credit and
perhaps can never have on q perma- |
1ent and satisfactory Dasis unless we
build warehouses. cold storage plants,
elevators, ETC.. for without storage and |
credit facilities, the south is com
oelled to dump its crop on the market |
It harvest time. The Farmers Unions
n the cotton producing states have
or the past ten years persistently ad- |
vocated the construction Of storage
ABILITIES. We have built during this
'eriod 1000 warehouses with a ca I
'acity of approximately 1900, 900 bales
md looking backward the results
would seem encouraging, but looking
onward, we are able to house less
han one-third of the crop and ware
louses without credit system lose
. per cent of their usefulness. The
'roblem is q gigantic one-too great
or the farmer to solve unaided He
must have the assistance of the bank
r. the merchant and the government.
In production we have reached the