Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1916-11-18

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ness Of the opposing side is quickly ap
parent The strategist is almost In
variabiy the successful contestant.
AS commander of troops, he may
4. not be dashing and fearless. The fear.
less man may present picture OF sub.
lime heroism. but may sacrifice hun
dreds OF soldiers needlessly.
Strategy Is the pr me factor in a sue
cessful contest. There have been from
the beginning OF this contest, and are
skill. splendid strateglsts directing the
course Of the buying interests, and II
dollars represent soldiers i'm a more
sanguinary affair, Il may be said not
one dollar will be sacrificed needless.
ly by the buying interests.
The association made n brilliant and
successful assault upon the first lines
Of powerful and apparently perfectly
systematized buying aggregation.
striking a staggering blow, cutting off
sources OF supply effectively. The
buying interests could not counter"
From an aspect of contest for su.
premacy of the market, notwithstand
ing the source of money supply, is the
accepted point of vantage, the associa.
tion vanquished the buying interests
the first season of its existence.
If they had cont nued to oppose its
advance with the same tactics they
met its first assault, victory for the
grower would have been complete and
permanent. But instead of continuing
to contest prices on the basis Of low
est possible buying average, as, for
instance, four cents before we were or.
ganized we find our willy antagonists
combating the association with a rep
resentation of paying more for tobacco
than II has received or may be asked.
After paying interest on borrowed
money, insurance, storage suffering
depreciation in weight, and having to-
bacco tied up six months, the grower
is confronted with an interrogatory:
Yves The net result Of associe ton sales
more, or less satisfactory than spot
cash for loose tobacco through other
channels? But if the first assault was
all the association ever accomplished,
" to rout market system, which was
iniquitous, dominated absolutely by
buying interests, and which enabled
them to secure our product below cost .
of production, to install instead a new
system. which put the industry OH az
up-to-date bass and put the grower on
his feet with an even start. its bene-
fits could only be reckoned by millions !
Of dollars
But for the buying interests to have
neither apology nor explanation of
their one-time starvation prices. stand
ing with heads erect. and an express
sion Of proud and admirable citizen
ship, may be, is to say the least of it,
However. a great dis
play of money whitewashes many Of
lenses, and often makes memory !
blank as to past injury or injustice.
Suddenly we found as great a pleth- {
IRA of money as there was once a I
Iearth of ii. We found tobacco which q
re were once told was a sore drag on
he market, with a heartrending song !
in very lively de- .
land. But still more remarkable, l
here are many growers who think it
lie to discuss events which promoted '
more posperous era. I
Progressiveness to many men means Q
, avail of the best opportunity within =
he law; hence many availed of the
rategy and progressiveness of buying I
terests which realized the price :
ust be advanced quickly and mate Y
ally. 1t was the bird in hand worth a
7o in the BUSH TO such growers.
Growers received a cordial invita- .,
on to take seat on the highly up y
'lstered, brilliantly illuminated rub y,
n tired band wagon of the buying :,
terests with a siren horn, and many u
them did so. The buying interests
lth the keenest strategy have seen to !!
that when the association was oper- y
ing to full efficiency with the sup II
'rt OF only one-third of the growers,
accurate comparison of prices, es-
scially when the grades of any two
ops was taken into careful consid- p
alton. was practically impossible. n
ut would be folly to think of past IL
hclency sustaining an association as v
today. Business rules this universe, II
Id business is heartless, business has Il
memory for unprogressive things; p
'erything worth conidering had a for u
ard tendency. The tobacco buying n
lsiness is neither more or less cold b
greedy than other business, but IL q
among the most powerful in the c,
orld. Unless it can be proven to a q
rye majority of tobacco growers that d
e association will still enable them c.
progress, 1t is utterly impossible II
r 1t to survive. II cannot progress u
even hold its own unless growers a
lpply sufficiency of tobacco. One 81
ird In the association and two-thirds al
Inside will not suffice. The buying c.
terests have not been idle, while 5
any friendly disposed growers have p
'sumed that their management would n
Ill them across somehow. There is OF
ot sufficient sentiment involved to CT
spire a management consisting OF Ct
ractically five hundred men to toll e.
ay in and day out from year to year, lie
hen the good 1t is accomplishing is al
ther not comprehended or not appre- d
ated. q
There are some, indeed, there are oil
'eat many growers and other citi- Il
ms who demand an exalted ideal for b.