The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1920-05-05
TIE COTTON
SITUATION


SITUATION
Commissioner of Agriculture Ad-
viises Farmers to Hold Cot
ton and Force Mills to
Pay a Fair Price
Columbias May Commissioner
Harms has. been making a personal
survey of crop conditions in South
Carolina and offers some advice to
) the farmers Usually by the middle
Of g says Mr. Harris 'We t'nd
planting OF cotton well under way,
and indeed, quite a lot Of cotton above
ground This year, owing. to the un-
usual weather. very little cotton has
been planted here pr anywhere ia the
cotton belt Not over 50sper cent OF
the average crcp has been planted
ssna great deal Of the land is yet to
De prepared fer the planting
therefore,, in order to make q nor
rnal crop. every day from now hence
forth must be ideal cotton weather.
The spinning trade ig-in the most
1luorishing condition in its history,
and it IS being more generally recog-
MED that with the large demands
for goods at present high levels the
price of Southern cotton is relatively
cheap. According to the law OF sup
ply and demand, cotton should be SELL
ing for SO cents, the price that the
American Cotton Association recon-
Epeaded for the remainder ofsthe. 1919
crop.
Affairs are entirely in the hands
of the farmeS and spot holders. If
tzsey positively refuse to take present
prices it. viii immediately advance. to
: S5ec@and above. as the spinners VIII
call the spectators for delivery as
they are making unheard of profits
nov So, I say again, sit steady in
the boat and. freeze to your spots and
slaey y III pay your price.
ay no attention to futures con-
tracts prices. they cannot be spun.
I 4IoWeye... if you have no use for your
saacney, f you will hold Your cotton
s2intiJulys 1921 it will pay you a big
interest for after careful review of the
6rst crop and weather reports of the
season State by State and after
seomparison with private reports from
every State in the belt, we have ar
rived at the conclusion that this is
likely to be. another season of short
yield and that from the beginning. il
as Doomed to be a short crop. In the
few sections Of the belt where plant
Ing has been done, termination is
very unsatisfactory mainly because Of
The low temperature that has pre-
vailed and the first planting went to
naHght IN large areas.
In many places il the belt It has
been planted now the third time be-
fDSs getting a stand Too much rain
and low temperatures always work in
5iry to the crops, especially cotton.
There has never been a time since
cotton has been planted that such 2.
bear raid has been made. upon spots
cotton, and they have not succeeded
In driving it down. I want to say
to spots holders that if the weather
keeps good for g. week or so they VIII
drive October and December contracts
much lower, but this will not eject
the spots if the holders Will not get
panieky and sell.
freeze to your spots. Don't sei'
;sintil the price is reached: II viii
come if the farmers will not release q
pound until it gets to so cents ana
above. The price Of goods justides it
If you don't get your price don'
blame the other fellow. Did you know
: that the spinrable cotton is no:
aenough to run mills. of the worls
more than five or six months. ans
that If the cotton to be growI, thi'
year should be withheld from thf
market until December 1st then the
majority Of the mills''woCid have <
close down on account Of lack Of cot
ton to- spin? Well. these are facts
and the producers of cotton never hao
the opportunity in their hands as they
have today.
hope that the producers. vii
realize that this is a fact and that
they will make up their minds not to
nut any new cotton on the market un,
It'll December. Then market sDarinsjy
and you can name your own price.
Now / want to urge every farmer so
to arrange his farm this year that he
VIII make plenty OF. supplies,such as
corn, hogs. hay and syrup. Don't
neglect planting a pop-corn patch
and peanuts so that the children may
amuse themselves on rainy days and
J in the long winter evenings.
Remember. the farmer that makes
all his home supplies has half finan-
ced Sco:ton crop to begin with