The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1916-10-05
PEANUTS. COTTON and PRICES.

credit cotton as crop Ill lillS yedi VI
1916 will be wasting his time If not
quarreling with his bread and butter.
The price of cotton is very satisfactory
to most folks and few are complaining
so bitterly about the shortage in yield.
That is the general way of thinking in
Louisiana, but in Alabama there was
terrible storm and cloudburst that washed
away cotton crops to that extent that
one planter said he would not make
bale to the square mile. So there is no
great enthusiasm for cotton in that part
of Alabama this season, and here is
what some OF them are saying about
peanuts:
The Opelika News continues the prac-
tice of landing the peanut as great aid
to the Southern farmer. That fully
alive daily recites an incident, reported
bv the Hartsboro Tribune, where farmer
had only 100 acres of peanuts in the
field to show his banker to whom he
owed $1,000. The banker did not think
it was so bad a showing. He said he
would cancel the farmers note and give
him $4,000 to boot for the produce just as
it stood. The banker is harvesting $1,000
on the peanuts, and will have aboutS1SOO
of hay in addition. "Good night, cot
ton!'' exclaims the NeWS.-MOJte Reg
lister.
That sounds good and doubtless it is
| all true. 1t could we'll be a truth. Pea
nuts contain a valuable oil and are
sometimes marketable in the large cities
at handsome prices. They are also good
feed for hogs and cattle, and for the
last mentioned purpose any farmer can
afford to raise some peanuts. But the
chief disadvantage Of the peanut crop
as money crop is that disadvantage
which attaches to everything the farmer
produces, which is the marketing of his
crop. Peanuts may be worth two or
three dollars per oushel in Chicago but
the buyer at the nearest market town
will only pay, perhaps, 50 cents per
bushel. The unorganized and unin-
formed farmer always pays a heavy
profit to the middle man on all crops.
Even cotton is heavily taxed in this way
as it passes through the hands Of the
too numerous dealers on its way to the
backs OF the people Or to the munition
factory.
Nearly everything raised on the farm
would pay the farmer handsomely if it
could be intelligently marketed. The
raising of oranges in California was
formerly as uncertain business as
cotton raising now is in Louisiana. The
orange business continued uncertain
until some rich noople from the East
who had invested in California orange
groves and had noticed the difference in
prices at the orchards and the fruit
stands Of New York undertook to regu-
late the sale of their crops by organizing
for that purpose. They organized the
orange growers and formed marketing
association with agents located in al
parts of the United States and Canada
After that the oranges were shipped or
advise from the agents and good prices
have since been realized for all the
oranges raised. There is never any
talk now about overprod1etion, supply
and demand, and Other such nonsense
in The marketing Of California oranges
Very much the same story could be tolt
of the onion crops of Southwest Texas.
The farmers Of Louisiana and thu
South will never be paid the full valu,
Of any crop they raise until they organ
ize intelligently and protect themselve
by getting in close touch with the peopl
who consume their products, as the Cal
, ifornia orange raisers have done and a
the Texas onion raisers have done.
Many attempts have been made t.
: organize the cotton farmers along tn
, lines suggested and all have signal,
failed for reasons that the Banner will
, not undertake to give because the Banne
, is not any better informed than tn
farmers in such matters. The Unite'
, States Government has lately tried t
help to an extent and has, perhaps, don
some good. But nothing will ever TAX
, the place Of personal effort and organ
, ization by the farmers themselves. Man,
, failures are NO reasons for abandoning
+ thing that can be done and must be don
, before the matter is settled in th
interest of those concerned. The farmer
r will have to try again.