The L'Anse sentinel., 1924-02-15
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20. 1924. western Newspaper Union)

inmates ii would be sold. sold to tf
highest bidder. He could hear n
monotone OF the auctioneer's deep has
voice. He could see a blurred mas
OF sharp-featured buyers, The auction
eer's voice pounded in his ears wit
dull. insistent monotony.
Fourteen n a quarter. a quarter
quarter, fourteen n half. a half
sold,-
Jefrs knees tremhled. Surely ther
must he mistake. But he had hear
II with his own ears. He turned hear,
sick. His whole crop had brought les
than $500. He couldn't take anythini
home 10 the little family. He couldn'
even pay his debts-but he had TO sell
1t never did any good TO hold of.
( That was in 1890.
Growers Saw the licht.
Somehow or other Jeff managed Il
stay in the tobacco-raiSing business
Indeed, there was nothing else he
could do.
In 1921, however, just one year later
JEFF received an average price of 2lIb
cents pound for his entire crop. And
the price wasn't bit of sheer luck
this time. He was a member of the
Burley Tobacco Growers Cooperative
association. In Kentucky the auction
block was gone. A new system of To-
bacco marketing had made its way
INTO the Southland--a system that was
stabilizing the whole industry. Jefr
was just one Of the 5000 tobacco
farmers who had made a fair profit by
joining the big cooperative.
In 1920 tobacco growers all over
the United States raised a bumper
crop of the golden weed: 1918 and
1919 had been splendid seasons: their
crops had brought enormous prices for
the first time in years; the war was
on Up until this time tobacco raising
IN the South was a poor-paying propo-
sition for anyone except the big plant
ers who owned from rs to 1000 acres
The small landowner and the tenant
seldom made more than enough to buy
their pork and corn meal. Then came
those two amazing seasons when even
the tenant farmer had money to spend
After he'd spent it he borrowed all he
could scrape together, even mortgag-
ing his future crop to plant plenty OF
acres for 1920.
The acreage was the largest in years,
the crop the heaviest. Tobacco farm
ers felt sure of good return. although
they had no control over the market !:
as always, 1t was in the hands of the
buyers.
Suddenly, almost overnight, tobacco
became a drug on the market. Buyers
wouldn't take II for the giving. The
warehouses opened for sales. closed
opened and then closed again. The
tobacco that was sold went for less
than 1t cost to produce II. For the
first time the tobacco farmer began
to think of the selling as well as the
production end of farming.
Try Cooperation.
The cooperative movement was the
result. One year later there were five
great cooperative marketing organi-
cations In the United States. each
growing particular type Of tobacco
and composed Of 100000 tobacco farm
ers, selling two-thirds of the entire
American tobacco crop.
When the price slump came in 1920
tobacco farmers were on the verge
OF ruin. Everywhere there was bitter
ness. Cooperative marketing was pro-
posed as a way out. But the hurley
tobacco growers Of Kentucky had tried
a sort OF cooperation back in 1905
and 1908. 1t had resulted in those
never-to-be-forgotten night rides. They
knew that 1t was useless to co-operate
to control. production that's what tbev
had tried before. To control the mar
keting of their crop was an untried
field. They hesitated.
Then they got the story of the sue
cess OF cooperation In California
California farmers were prosperous
and contented. The farmer and his
family were well dressed. They had
bank accounts and automobiles. Judge
Robert Bingham. publisher OF the Lou.
isville Courier-Journal, took a trim r.
California in 1921. He saw for him
self what cooperative marketing wa,
doing TOR the West. Judge Bingham
asked Aaron Sapiro, the cooperative
lawyer, to meet with group of bur,e,
tebacco growers to outline 4 co-opera
i've marketing plan like the one uset
IN California.
Under the system By which JET