The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1922-04-14
EXCHANGE AND TIE FARMERS
Mr.. Rcddey Once Again Returns 70
the Discussion

chant, newspaper man. a PoHIt'dil
or almost any individual that c&Nnot
tell a farmer exactly now to overcome
all his troubles, yet if the farmers
were to presume TO tell uS~how TO run
our business, it would be considered
the "height of absurdity,' SO in writ
ing am simply "one of many proo-
ably Quitting in, yet willing to be
recorded. Would any far minded
man deny that the price Of the lar
mer's cotton is fixed by those So
called exchanges? Would any one
deov that in fixing the price that
those operators have the privilege OF
selling millions Of bales Of pure mag
ination impossible to exist in order to
fix a price to suit them. Of something
actually in existence, Would any one
denv that around these rings, Eng
land. France, Germany, Sapan, IN
fact all countries and sections are
there fixing the prices except, yes
except whom? The farmer, the man
who furnishes the product, they are
gambling in and with nothing Wh%t
ever to say. Suppose they would get
ND hat exchange and get every
body around the r:ng to fix the pfice
of hats. except the men who make the
hats. What's the difference! Ho"
would you like to be clerk or BOOK
keeper receiving say SIS per month
and have an exchange offering NIL
lions of imaginary clerks or BOOK
keepers at $50 or SIS per month
You would either be forced to take
$50 or SIS per month Imagination
price, lust like the farmer does with
his cotton or appeal to the people to
let actual supply and demand flN
your price?
Don't we see in New York future
sales of probably half million oales
in day and then have spot cotton
quoted say at 1880, sales none. What
has actual cotton got to do with Il?
This five hundred thousand bales OF
imagination in day is sent out
broadcast and fixes the price IN every
town where actual cotton is handled
and no one need deny it.
May I not quote from letter 70
p friend of mine from a man who
is probably known she world over
for his fairness and fearlessness,
'sFor rs years or more there mas
been a persistent. ceaseless fight IN
Europe against fair price for AM
erican cotton. have fought this
vigorously for the last p years
Probably you have seen from time to
time in The -------- during IHa'
period the statements which / nave
published taken from papers show n%
the efforts of the records made by
the European governments TO freak
down the price of American cotton.
Many American cotton gamblers, m
chang cotton garrb,c@s n the '"'it'
az: hers who haH" ',"'.''j lew
price cotton, have cooperated IN
this
think those were real artists who
fixed ND this exchange scheme over
5o wears ago, also that the cotton far
mer has been deprived of billions OF
dollars (not including The little gan2o-
lers of the south, who have been soak
ed from each state PROBABLY a NIL
lion dollars every year trying to beat
the game,) but in addition to that 1t
is not an even gamble. If so, why
give the seller 80 days advantage ans
ten why should the outside gambler,
if he wishes to take chance, have to
put up say $1,000 on each hundred
bales and the insider nothing? Why
not the outsider demand that his
$1,000 be put up in. some trust COM
pany and that the other side put up
their $1,000 against it? Let the trust
company as it were, ''hold the stakes
and if so, there wouldn't be so many
failures, with practically nothing PAID
on the dollar.
If the price of cotton is fixed on
these exchanges and I can't see how
any one can deny II, and we must
gamble. why couldn't they be !icens-
ed to run some other kind of place
and leave the farmer out of it? Why
should innocent farmers have to fur
nish the product in order to keep the
game going?
When wealthy professional opera
tors have the privilege of selling the
labor of men, women and children.
of entire counties even before a seed
is put in the ground and make them
the price of their imagination sales,