The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1920-03-03
ANOTHER LETTER
FROM WR. COTHRAN

large companies ever bundle any of it
1t is first redried put back in huds
and later stemmed when it is ready to
be manufactured into smoking tobac-
co or cigarettes, the bundlng isn't
at all necessary.
But my friend will want to know
why 1T IS graded as he terms it, in
other States? The answer is simple
AS l have already stated, we are the
only State that prims tobacco exclu-
slvcly. In the other States they use
the knife largely for all but we will
say the first curing or what is known
as me prlmlngs, in some sections some
OF the farmers prim the first lugs, and
Of course, this tieing question comes
perfectly natural to him and he ties
UP this part too. But why does he
grade and tic the rest of his crop or
all of it where he doesn't remove the
sand lugs? He has to grade his tobac-
co because he doesn't Use our method
Of grading as he cures. He cuts his
entire stalk and when he puts his TO-
bacco off this stalk he has all the to-
Dacco that grows on stalk from top
to bottom. Hence it is very necessary
that he class his tobacco, and if we
used the same method of cutting here
IT would be necessary to grade ours.
Mr.. Sprott | think this is clear. We
ma that we make more tobacco to the
| acre than North Carolina, or Vir-
Elnia. This is easily explained thus
from week to week our tobacco takes
up more weight as the bottom leaves
are removed and so on to the top of
the stalk. ] have frequently seen the
tips or top cropping the best leaves
Tobacco thpt
! ms isn't often the case where the
stalk is cut, the tips arc usually on
the green side and light. North Caro-
linz has one advantage here over us
win her curing method and it is
fh!%i If t IS Il ray season our to-
oacco Will get worse off from week to
! week and in many instances finally
gets ruined from excessive rains,
Wh ch could have been averted at least
m part It We had cut the nntire stalk.
we would have thus saved all we cut
! ifoM tGrther rains, this would only
hapnen where rains set in about
curing time. But we have found from
experience as J have already stated
that our method of curing suits the
hot sandy soils better. Most of ou,,
tobacco would lose too much if we
waited for the entire stalk to ripen. |
mean it would burn too much from the
hot sand. In the Piedmont section of
North Carolina, or Virginia, this isn't
usually the case unless it happens to
rain too much about maturing or cur
ing time, and then it burns at the bot
tom just like it does down here with
natural seasons. This is what hap
ncned in North Carolina and Virginia
last season. 1t burned at the bottom
and reduced their weight very ma
terially. doubt if my friend Mr..
Sprott knows that North Carolina only
made an average weight of $50 pounds
TO the acre. You can give them fifty
cents per pound and we still beat them
not to mention their trouble and cx-
pense OF grading over us. I haven't
the South Carolina weights but am
| reasonably sure it was considerably
more than that. | know that all the
best experienced farmers made from
500 to | 900 pounds to the acre and
better OF course, this applies to the
farmers that use good methods of cul-
tlvation, we had plenty Of farmers that
maze from .250 to 300 pounds per
acre in 1918. We have grown as many
as $500 pounds per acre in this coun-
ty. Mr.. G. NJ. Hicks Of the Puddinc,
swamp section produced this much one
ycaILon part of his crop.
Our farmers that had good tobacco
That did not get injured too much
from rains realized from $4OO to 5000
per acre. North Carolina only real
IZci an average per acre for her $50
pounds around $291.5O. This probably
beats us on an average, but it certain
~ does not reach those that were sue
cesStul in growing good crops.
hlr. Sprott mentirns another So
called objection to selling tobacco un-
graded, he says that we usually sell
by the sorriest tobacco in the pile, or
lot. He says the buyer bids in way
to always save himself. OF course,
tins IS the case with any buyer that
buys at public auction, but this phase
has another side to it. He can not see
all the sorriest tobacco that is in the
pile of tobacco, and he frequently gets
stick. So this will break about even
between him and the seller. The thing
Tor the farmer to do is to keep his to-
bacco as uniform as possible. If it
isn't this way why he can class it.
We have number OF farmers that do
this. mean he removes the green or
burnt, should he happen to have this
scattered through his tobacco, which
is usually caused from poor stands in
the field, different settings, this can
be avcrted by having good plants and
getting good stand the first setting
which he should do by all means if
possible. The farmer I'm much more
easily remove tobacco that does not
match up properly and do it more
hurriedly than the farmci. that hos six
or seven Grades to pick out class and
tic up as thew do in North Carolina.
Mr.. Sprott did not mention the short
ace that became apparent in North