The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1916-03-10
(By John X. AulD.

GOIuNlOl0, MdICL 9--0SAAe''N' '0'
l., McLaurin, State warehouse COM
missioner. returned on late train last
night from the North where he has
been ,.or the past week, in company
With State Senator J. Arthur Banks.
OF Calhoun county. Upon his return
he issued a statement dealing with
the situation as to cotton and refer
ring at some length to the insurance
situation in South Carolina at this
time.
q have just returned from New
York, Washington and Richmond he
said, 'where in company with Senator
Banks was discussing the mater
OF the lurther enlargement and develop
ment Of the State warehouse system.
l also took up the matter Of insurance,
Besor discussing that l desire to say
that | went over the cotton situation
verv thoroughly with a number Of
experts, and particularly with Mr..
Harding. of The Federal Reserve board.
Mr.. Harding will make a speech Fri
day in Montgomery, Ala, in which he
will discuss at length the statistical
position of cotton. and also give some
valuable information from the British
ambassador as to the situation abroad
and the effect of the various orders
promulgated by the British govern
ment with reference to cotton. Mr.,
Harding considers the statistical Do-
sition o. cotton very strong, but on
every side I was urged to advise the
farmers in the present situation not
to plant cotton except as surplus
crop, to make their farms self-sustain-
ing. Another thing that l am satisfied
of is that the necessity Of potash mas
been very greatly exaggerated, and
that much of the land in South Car
lima, by deep blowing and the use or
legumes, will continue to make cot
ton without potash. The clay lands
are the ones 70 which l refer.
Personally l do not believe that We
can make large crop of cotton next
veal, with the small amount of fer
ger, and it looks to me as if the
war will be ended before the next crop
comes on the market The Germans
have evidently made up their minds
not to fight war of attrition. but are
making the issue at Verdun, and from
all that l could gather the fight along
Meuse now in progress occupies very
much the position hat tie Battle o:
Gettysburg did in the War Between
the States. If the Germans lose this
battle their only hope is to make the
most favorable terms of peace that
they can get. and the reverse is true
as to the French and the English, be-
cause this breach in the lines will put
the German army between the French
and the English and open the road to
Paris
L find sentiment in the North prac-
ticaIly unanimous for the Allies e%-
cept where You strike those Of Ger
man descent There is lot nearly SO
much divisi( CT senument north of
the Potomac as there IS in the South.
There is a lingering feeling here
that EngI8nds con rabend orders have
been a great blow to cotton, and yet
a cereful study of the situation does
not bear this ouI, because the advance
last August which put cotton above
y cents so as to give Us a 10-cents
borrowing basis was strictly due to
he purchase of cotton by the British
government, off-setting as far as pos
sible declaring cotton contraband
These purchases were the result OF the
negotiations between officials in Wash
ington and the British ambassador.
With the Federal reserve board dis
counting warehouse receipts at so per
cent. of the value Of cotton and the
British government purchasing heav-
lily, cotton was bound to advance.
do not know what effect the speech to
to be made by Mr., Harding on Fri
day will have, but when the cotton
trade studies the figures which he
showed me I think that they will real
ize that the price has touched bot