Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1923-08-30
ETS,AVERAGE Of
26.O3 CENTS POUND
/. To THE PRODUCERS
First Year Of association
Ends With Remarkable
Showing. in Handling Of
Cotton for Georgia Farmers
BY EDWIN CAMP

ION GfOWerS SO-OpeFdliV0 dSSOCld"
ton melted an averae price of 26.03
cents a pound for all the cotton han
died according to final statements
which are going out Tuesday with
checks to it's members.
Farmers. who were offered IS
to 20 cents pound for their
cotton at harvest time last fall
but who turned their cotton over
to the cooperative selling organ
iZatiOn gained 6 to cents a
pound, which means $50 to $40 a
bale net after the deduction of all
expenses, and increased their
revenue by at least $1,5OO,O0O.
The association obtained an
average price of 1880 cents a
pound for the SIS, 1874 bales of cot
ton it handled.
Expense of doing business i'm
its first year was only 1.57 cents
pound. This figure includes
storage, insurance, grading, sell
ing, interest charges and all the
costs of organization.
The figure is strikingly low and
one in which the management takes
pradonable pride. The heaviest
items in it are storage and interest
on money borrowed to make adj
vances to the producer members. 1t
is the function Of the association to
sell it's members cotton gradually
IN the course Of twelve months, thus
obtaining an average price. This
tot oc 40 Of hoo n.
-vances to the members upon delivery
of cotton. But since the association
can sell no cotton at the time of de-
livery and since the average period
of carrying each bale is six months,
the advance of $50 bale must be
made from money borrowed by the
association for an average period
Of six months.
Expense Remarkably Low
The expense of carrying on the
organization, what is called cover
head" in the language of commerce,
was astonishingly low and reflects
the greatest of credit on the manage
ment. Yet when it is considered
that it was necessary for the asso-
citation last year to make plans and
create an organization for handling
at least 100000 bales of cotton in
view of a sign-up of $1,000 bales
and when because Of the crop fall
ure in that part Of Georgia in which
the heaviest membership lay this
total amount of cotton turned in was
only 55,184 bales, the achievement
of the management in holding total
expense down to 1.57 cents a pound
is little less than remarkable.
The association starts it's second
year with every likelihood of great
ly reducing this expense.
Whereas one year ago it had 49,
900 members and handled only $4,000
bales of cotton, it now has 10000
members and will handle from three
to four times as much cotton. This
TRIPPING or quadrupling Of the
amount of cotton will not only en-
able the management to merchant
disc its cotton more effectively from
larger lots of even grade cotton, but
it can be done with no material In
crease in organization expense, which
fact alone will divide overhead cost
by three or four.
Further, the association begins It's
second year with thoroughly Or
ganized, smoothly running force.
One year ago it was forced to create
an organization out Of a theory.
The average price obtained for cot
ton, 2760 cents, reflects the great
est credit on the craftsmanship of the
association.
Seasons Average Exceeded
In his recent year-end report, II.
G.. Hester, who is the worlds great
est authority on cotton prices and
statistics, announced that the aver
age price of middling cotton in pri-
mary sales during the year was 24.6O
cents a pound.
The report of the association
shows that it obtained 8 cents more
than Hesterss estimate Of the sea-
sons average.
All that could have been expected
of the associations management was
that it get an average equal to the
years average. Yet it crossed SID al
bale more and netted to its members
$715 a bale more.
The. association has sold every
bale of cotton turned in by members
accept a relatively small amount,
of long staple cotton for which no
market has existed for months AK
cept at a sacrifice price. Normally
long staple cotton brings a premium
of cents or more a pound over
middling cotton of the same grade
During the past season there was
little or no demand for this staple
length and rather than sell the cot
ton at an absurd price the associa--
ton, after consulting with the pro-
ducers, decided to carry the cotton
over to a more favorable market, re-
hitting to the producers at the rate
of 20 cents a pound, with a further
AS an indication of the enormityr
of the task of handling 20 small an
amount of cotton from so many
different producers, 1t is Interest,"
ing to note that the $4,000 bales fell
into 81 different classifications.
ranging from dogs" to 1.-THE highest
grade of long staple cotton.
Range From IS to % Cents
The prices averaged for the 81
pools ranged from 18.49 cents for the
sOrriest cotton turned in up to $3.50
cents for excellent grade and staple.
payment to be made on sale.
The association 'eports that its
grading Of cotton brought only words
of praise from the members. In
scores of cases they have record OF
the fact that the cotton subse0ucc+.
ly turned in by them had previously
been given much lower grades by
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