The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1916-07-23
HOW THEY DID IT IN MoULTRIE.

get along. They were always borrowing
AS long as cotton was good thing, things
were fair enough; but when the day came
that cotton failed, want shook its fist over
the land.
The bankers and merchandise here
are very close to the farmers, and they
began to preach diversihcation. Plant a
little of this, little of that a little of some
thing else. Try an acre in truck, etc.
The farmers did They planted many
acres in truck, and then with perishable
crop on their hands, found that they
couldn't market it. The experiment ended
in disaster.
Then some one said hogs. The region
was practically bankrupt then; but the idea
was SO good that people plucked up cour-
age right away You mustn't diversity,
was the idea, unless you have a market at
home for what you raise. What better mar
ket could there be than hogs and cows
plus packing plant?
The idea took like popular song. A
man who understood packing was brought
down; his advice was followed, and all the
capital for the packing company was raised
right there.
1t was estimated, when the packing plant
went up that probably 10000 hogs would
be available the first season. But 10000
were killed. This season the output will
be doubled if not trebled.
The main point to be observed is, Mou1-
trie was not hog or packing center until
after the packing plant was installed No
one thought here were enough hogs there
to be profitable; the man who said there
were 10000 hogs available was put down
as a very excitable dreamer-but three
times that number of hogs turned up when
the time came to count noses.
Knowing this, it is easy to answer the
question propounded by ]. Y. Porter in the
Vox Populi column, docs anybody think
that such number of hogs could not be
had for similar factory Tin Pensaco1a) if
1T was now under construction and had
been assured four months ago?"
I Pensacola business men have already
answered the question: they know that a
packing plant can be established here, they
know that it should, and there is no doubt
but that it will
At recent meeting of the Escambia
County Crop Improvement Association
and the Rotary Club, the packing plant
idea was endorsed, as also a plan to ship
hogs to northern markets The two plans
are not antagonistic in the least; thew work
together very nicely. No matter how many
hogs we ship to the north we must at least
pack sufficient for our own needs. The
local trade calls for a smaller hog than the
big packing plants, and we must have a
plant to absorb what we can not dispose OF
to advantage elsewhere.
For the farmer with one, two. half =
dozen hogs, the packing plant likewise is
the solution
Mr.. Porter is, however, mistaken in
thinking that Pensaco1ians are combining
their efforts to Escambia county. The Els,
Gambia Crop Improvement Association is
a county organization, and the Rotary Clut
is a city organization; these two got to-
gether because they were the only two that
could get together. If there ie packine
! plant built for Escambia county, it will BE-
an easy problem to enlarge it for all Wes
Florida. This region is homogeneous, so
cially and economically; county lines exis
only on the map and were drawn merely
for legal purposes. Pensacola stands fo
everything West Florida stands for: anc
Pensacola is trying to get the packing
plant built Why? Because we under
: stand how they are doing things in Mou1
trie.
"The effect (of the packing plant)
writes the secretary of the Moultrie Cham
' Der of Commerce, upon the general pros
| ,erity of the country for hundred mile
, around Moultrie has been wonderful. Or
dinarily our banks have been borrowin.
money from New York at this season q