The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1920-12-12

the speculative buyers. Again the
reason is obvious. The speculate
had too much sense TO force his cot
ton on an unwilling market The
farmer could not avoid making that
error.
Freedom i'm High Prices
There never was but one hope for
breaking this economic slavery. That
hope was realized during the period
Of high prices referred to. During the
past three years thousands Of farm
ers have put enough money In the
bank to pay cash for their supplies.
to buy new equipment, perhaps to
buy land. They broke the chain Of
usury which had bound them.
The condition Of these farmers to-
day is better than 1t has ever been
before. This problem of cotton pro-
duction is brought to a crisis now,
not because the conditions are more
intOlerable than ever, but because
the producers have had hope stirred
in their breasts for the first time in
30 years. They have always known
that they should hold their cotton and
market it gradually. This year some
of them are so determined to market
their cotton right that they are even
willing to burn down gins to prevent
others from Cutting the market.
The failure OF cotton to bring wealth
to its producers is both tragic and
absurd The southern states have 4
monopoly on cotton production which
makes every other alleged monopoly
in the world seem foolish. Great
Britain, France and other countries
have searched the globe for cotton
lands The worlds demand for cot
ton goes on increasing year after
year. Every twelvemonth sees new
uses develop for this remarkable fibre.
Only the southern states seem to be
able to grow it, and yet it has never
made them rich. Wherever cotton is
the principal crop, there you will find
public schools in tumbled down shacks
underpaid teachers. a high percentage
of illiteracy and school term rang
ing from one month to four. Wherever
cotton is the principal crop, there you
will find bad roads, poor bridges and
the highest interest rates.
Those who have lavished their SYM
pathy upon the child in the factory
or mill and the boys in the mines,
might profitably give some thought
to the fact that very large per-
centage of all of the cotton harvested
in this country is picked by children.
I am sure that well over half Of the
cotton is. picked by women and chill
dren, perhaps nine-tenths Of it. Near
ly all OF this back-breaking work Is
done during months when those chill
dren ought to be in school.
Cotton at eight cents to fifteen cents
n pound has been possible only be-
cause of the toll Of these children.
In no other way could such prices
be maintained year after year. This
crisis, which now takes the form OF
burning gas, would have developed
twenty years ago If the cotton farmer
could have seen q way out. They
have been willing to seize any avenue
of escape whether IT involved dis
order or not. They have blamed the
spectators, the bucket-shops, the cot
ton exchanges, the national govern
ment and their various state gov
ernments for their misfortunes. But
the truth of the matter all the while
has been that they needed money to
operate on and they did not have 1t.
Their crop was sold before 1t was
planted.
Some way out of this difficulty
must be found. 1t would be highly
advisable for the exporters and spin
ners of cotton to send commissions
into the southern states and make
very careful study Of the cost of
producing cotton. Nothing very defi-
mite Is known on that subject yet.
The State Department of Agriculture
Of Texas estimated in the fall Of the
year 1919 that the cost Of producing
cotton that year was approximately
40 cents u pound. Cotton was then
selling at A cents a pound.
In company with other men who
were experts on cotton production. I
made study Of the problem and our
figures showed for that year that
the cost Of producing cotton was 81
cents a pound. In those figures the
cost Of picking was the heaviest item.
Negro cotton pickers were earning
from $40 to s25 day at that time.
It's No Local Matter
This problem is Of national and
international interest because this
country has never grown even APP
proximately the amount Of cotton 1t
can produce under reasonable condi-
tions. In the spring Of 1919 when
labor was high in the cotton fields