The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1920-10-22
SCARE In COTTON"
DECLARES HESTER
ISSUES STATEMENT OF EN-
COURAGEMENT.
In Ter Weeks More Than One Mil
lion Bales cf Cotton Have Literal
ly Been Thrown Overheard
Without Rhyme or Reason,
Says Statement.

New Orleans, Oct. 20.-In a
statement prepared at the instance Of
the New Orleans cotton exchange di-
rectors and made public tonight,
Henry G. Hester, secretary Of the eX-
change and for 0 years regarded as
an international authority on matters
pertaining to cotton. marketing, de-
clares there is no reason for rush
inc for federal financial aid'' and as
serted there was nothing the matter
with the South beyond an unrcason-
able scare in cotton"
The statement, prepared "for the
benefit and encouragement OF those
who are not. fully Informed" follows:
':The drastic decline that has oc-
Cured in cotton since the fist OF
August, amounting to nearly $50 a
bale, or about 4S per cent, has been
mainly due to the pressure to sell or
a shrinking market, undermining
confidence on both sellers ard cor
supers, accentuating the fears Of the
former and increasing the reluctance
of the latter until they practically
abandoned the market except at con-
slant concessions, which in the ag-
eregate probably constitute the
greatest drop that has ever taken
place in the staple in any like period.
In the past ten weeks, more than
100000 bales Of spot cotton have
literally been "thrown overheard"
without rhyme or reason. Nearly
thvce-fourths Of the Texas ginn!ngs
to September 2 have been rushed to
market and while other sections have
sold more sparingly, the reported
sales at three leading Texas centers
have mounted to mora than 100000
bales. Futures have Terforce fol-
lowed spots, the pressure having
been sccentuated by sales 70 hedge
spot.
Various TEcos:cs Given.
:Various theories have been give:
fer the scare mainly the question
of financing, unfavorabie attitude OF
the federal bank and tigh. money.
Neither of these: however, should
reasonably have preeipitated prac-
.tical panic. Calm thinkers consider
there was no reason for asking fer
federal aid than during the buy
balespefiod of 1914. We marketed
>ssst yearmore than was ever naTa :
keted in any year in the history CT
trade and if we did not get as*much
for our bales as we should have, we
laid the foundation Of an upward
trend and brought more money into
the South, fairly earned, in the years
that followed, than had ever before
been obtained in our history. why
then should we after four seasons N
which our raw cotton including the
seed has exceeded in value ST,9Io,-
100000, balk at carrying a few MIL
lion bales pending a temporary lui!
in demand? Has not that very lull
been heightened by the senseless. ana
unrcasoning fears Of producers. VI
course. everybody knows that the
governments efforts to lower the
high cost of living has exercised
some influence but that has been 9y
no means entircl irresponsible for the
cotton panic. Let US look at the
governments figures for the months
of August and September, 1920. In
face of ali The talk about reduction
of consumption, we find that the
mills North and South consumed OF
cotton from August l to SEPTEMBER
Sc, $4,000 bales against 943,cOO for