The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1919-02-25
THE PROPER WAY.

The Press and Banner mas lCsell
in thorough accord with those who
desire to make the South commerce.
ally Independent. 1t finds itself in
accord with those who desire to help
the farmers of the state and Of the
county towards prosperity. 1t is in
accord with those who believe that
the farmers of Abbeville County, OF
the state and of the South, should,
where they may, produce on the
farms all the essentials of living and
of carrying on the farms, and in that
way discourage the planting of cot
ton only, and the purchasing of, all
supplies and of all farm necessities
from other sections of the country
But the Press and Banner believes
that before prosperity comes some
other things, and among other things,
the right of every man to run his own
business. If we desire to plant cot
ton, we deny the right of few in
dividuals, or of many individuals, to
band themselves together and to un-
dertake to coerce us into doing some
thing which does not appeal to our
Judgment. The people of the South
will not be driven, nor will they
stand to be published as recreant to
a trust because perhaps the interest
of one group of the people of the
county runs contrary to the interest
of another group.
The Press and Banner is asked to
support in its editorial columns a
movement to take pledges from far
mers to hold all cotton now on hands
for thirty-fve cents, to take pledges
from farmers to plant thirty-three
and third per cent less cotton than
last year, and to use fifty per cent.
less fertilizers, UNLESS THEY ARE
ABLE TO PAY FOR WHAT THEY
BUY please keep that in mind.)
The Press and Banner cannot do
so. We believe that the people Of
the South should have sold cotton as
long as it was bringing thirty cents
per pound. We do not believe that
The farmers in the South who sold
their cotton at thirty cents per
pound, (many of them selling for
this price in order to pay pressing
debts, while many sold because they
were satisfied with the price, and de-
sired to buy government securities
and help the country, should now
be called on to cut their throats in d
commercial way in order to help peo-
pie who did. not sell at least some
Of their cotton when it was
thirty, thirty-two, or even thirty
i've cents per pound. If these people
Xho are holding cotton, desire to
hold it for either thirty-five cents, or
one dollar and eighty-nine cents,
then we say that they have a right to
20 to it. But when it is proposed
to get the names of the people who
will not subscribe to the proposed
pledge, to publish the names as,
coercive measure, to call on the
banks of the state not to help those
people whose interest conflicts with
cotton-holders, and otherwise to make
slaves Of a portion of the people Of
the state in order to help the holders
Of cotton, we demur.
The man with a hundred bales of
cotton, Or two hundred bales Of cot
ton or even a smaller amount, would
no doubt make a great deal of mon
ey, if the scheme proposed to be
put through would materialize, be-
cause man who is able to hold this
amount of cotton will be able to get
money from the banks, if he has not
already money laid aside. He may
call in some from his neighbors which
is loaned out, and which they might
otherwise use to purchase fertilizers
for cash. Having the money on
hands, he is not called on to cut his
fertilizer bill, oh, no! not he; but he
will buy fertilizers and plant cotton
on his farm as heretofore. In order