The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1922-04-20
Burley Opposition
Plan Explained

IF tobacco growers will keep IN
mind the fact that those who are ask
ing them not to join the Burley To
bacco Growers Cooperative Associa-
ton are persons who expect to make
money off the grower, we shall have
no trouble in making our organiza-
ton 100 per cent strong" said Pres
ident James c. Stone, of the hurley
association. in response to an inquiry
as to propaganda being circulated by
mail quietly among tobacco growers
of the district.
These men have lived, just as the
rest of us who we're in the warehouse
business used to i've" said Stone,
"off the business brought to us by
the grower. They are hardly to be
blamed for desiring to continue to
live off the work of the growers, but
it is only fair to the grower that he
should understand exactly what is in
volved in HIS staying out of the asso-
citation
There Gamble but little doubt that
the formation of the hurley associa-
tion was a factor in the better prices
paid this year on the independent
markets. This fact is generally rec
ognized now even by those who, re-
naming out of the association, prof
tied by it's organization.
regulate tobacco prices or would
regulate prices but for the system of
every farmer competing with every
other farmer. In case of the produc-
ton of surplus of tobacco this year,
under the old system of marketing,
the surplus, which would be thrown
ON the market, of course, with the
actual needs of the manufacturers,
would break the price of every pound
of tobacco sold, and under the old
system there is no way of preventing
this. Under the cooperative mark
citing system, on the other hand, the
manufacturers are offered only what
they need and at the time they need
1t. There is mo expense of auction
GERS, in fact, 1t is my belief that the
selling expense will be cut in half
by the new system, If not more. OF
course, the tobacco grower pays this
expense. 1t is taken out of his crop |
when he sells it. If he does not rush |
his crop to market, but delivers it to
the Burley Tobacco Growers Asso-
citation to be sold for him, he does |
not pay these warehouse charges.
He pays nothing except the expense
of conducting the association, and |
that, in my opinion will be very much
less than the expense of conducting
the warehouses under the old sys-
tenn, in which the profits of the ware
house business went into the pockets
of the warehousemen.
81 have no fear that the growers,
once they understand the facts in the
matter, will fail to take advantage of
this opportunity to free themselves
from the shackles of a marketing
system that has demonstrated that it
can set aside the law of supply and
demand, as it did last year. Tobacco
interests of Lexington and central
Kentucky, at considerable expense,
made careful survey of the situa-
lion in the winter of 1920, a few
weeks before the market opened. We
proved, not only to our own satisfac-
ion, but to the satisfaction of gov
experts, that the crop of
1920 was considerably lighter than
hat of 1919, which averaged SS IL !
cents a pound. In the face of this |,
act, and in the fact of the further
act that the demand for tobacco pro-
lucts passed all previous records,
he crop was literally taken from the
at prices but little more than
third of those of the previous year.
"If the tobacco growers will heed j.,
he advise of those who are interest
d in their welfare, those whose pr J. !
'erity depends upon the prosperity
4 the tobacco growers-the bank b
RS, the merchants. the lawyers, the
octors, the preachers-of their COM !,
nunities, we haven't a doubt they .
'ill come with us in the hurley as >
ociation. If they are honestly in .
oubt as to what they should do in \
egard to joining or staying out of a
he association. we urge them to ask !,
ny of their neighbors who have de :
vered their crops to the association !,
S to their experience and as to ),
neither they are satisfied with re-
llts. =,
1T is my firm conviction that the II