Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1915-10-01
"lest We FORGET"

Cotton as a surplus and a fair price
for that surplus, is the economic doc
trine Of The Yorkville Enquirer.
For more than fifty years, ever since
the great civil war, this paper has
been urging cotton as a surplus, and
for the past twenty-five years, 1t has
been trying to do educational work In
the direction of a better and more
equitable price.
In opinion the southern farmers
have never gotten a fair price for their
cotton; but what has been done to-
ward lettering conditions along this
line during the past twenty-five years
and especially what is being done now
clearly points the way to what can be
done.
It was the late L. M. Grist who orig
inally committed The Enquirer to the
doctrine of Cotton as a surplus" Tn
paper taught the doctrine in season
and out of season and this writer still
remembers how, when a boy, he e
to hear Capt. Grist talk to his farmer
friends like this: "Show me a mar
who, since the war, has been raising
all OF his own supplies, especially In
the way of food for family and stock
and cotton only as a surplus. and ]
will show you a man who Is not only
free of debt; but has the cash to pay
for what he wants and very likely
money to lend to his n%eighbors. Show
me a man who, since the war, has
been raising nothing but cotton, with
his corn crib and smokehouse in the
west, and I will show you a man whose
lands and stock are mortgaged, AND
who will eventually be closed out by
the sheriff."
We have never known Of an excep-
ton to Captain CRISIS rule in this
country then and we have never known
one since.
In our opinion it is very doubtful as
to whether a farmer could much more
than make ends meet raising cotton
at twenty cents a pound, If he had to
depend on that money exclusively fol
the purchase Of the supplies needed
in the raising of the cotton.
1t is a fact observable by all men
that the higher the price of cotton, the
greater the tendency Of our southern
farmers to curtail or cut out other
crops and give more attention to cot
ton.
Right at this moment people who
last year sowed more owe crops and
more grain than ever before, are be-
ing strongly tempted to break away
from the splendid policy then adopt
ed and plant twice as much cotton
next year as they planted this year.
Their is every reason to believe that
cotton is going to be a good price e
year. AS we see things we are Unable
to conceive Of anything else; but 1t Is
not good sense or good business for
the farmers Of this section to allow
themselves to be excited over the fact.
The most sensible thing u farmers
can do is to SOW more grain, both
wheat and oats, especially wheat, than
they have ever sowed before, and put
in more cover crops, and then hold the
cotton acreage down to what it is this
year, or even make it less.
The corn, wheat, oats and cover
crops of York county this year., are
worth a great deal more than any cot
ton crop the county has ever raised,
and the farmers who cut these crops
next year in favor of cotton are going
to be the losers.
Of course, we must raise cotton; but
let us raise it only as a surplus. Let
us devote our principal efforts to the
more important and profitable crops
corn, wheat, oats, clover, grasses, and
other foods for men and stocks and
the lands.