Evening star., 1924-08-15
SECOND LARGEST
COTTON CROP SEEN
Growers in South Will Get
$1,000, 900, 900 if Present
Prices Hold Steady.
BY J. c. ROYLE.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

special D!SpAtcn TO Inc star.
NEW YORK. August 15.-Indica- =
tions now point to a cotton CROP
which will be the second most valua-
BILE ever produced in the South If
prices do not suffer recessions and
high prices current now are main
tanned during the season, it may
bring growers s2,300,0O0 So far the
traders and spectators have made
mighty little pocket money out of
the situation and it seems probable
the major profits will accrue to the
grower rather than the traders in
futures.
The most valuable crop ever pro-
duced was in 1919. when the South
received s2,5Oo, 100000 for 12.4OO,Ooo
bales marketed that year. The 1920
crop was worth only s1.O76, 200. 900
Last years crop was the fourth in
value ever produced, bringing 1885,
oOo,Oo0, including prices paid for seed
The South in the last season pro
duced 1O,9S5, 900 bales, but marketed
ll,29o,O0O. including linters and cot
ton carried over from the previous
year. The average price for middling
cotton was 3l.67 cents a pound. COM
pared with 24.06 in 1929 and 1908 in
l9Zo. The average value per bale
was $l5S.S9 and was exceeded only
TO o
Prices Higher This Year.
AS the price prevailing for the crop
produced this year is between 500 and
s25 bale above that Of last year and
indications are for a production of
around 100000 more bales than in
1923, the planters expect additional
returns to the extent of about
$350,0O0.000 in 1924. This would seem
to involve good business for the south
and the country generally, since the
crop promises to be more evenly dis
trlbuted throughout the producing
states than the last one.
The prospect for continued high
prices has been aided materially by
the better chance of rehabilitation in
Europe The discounting of this
rehabllltatlon in advance Is now de-
clared by cotton experts to have been
the real factor behind the advance in
cotton prices last month in the face
or prospective production above world
requirements. Few traders, however
saw this angle in time to take adj
vantage of the rise.
Even In the South SPECTATORS
proverbially bullish. placed more en-
phasis on the slackness of the goods
trade and the favorable weather con-
ditions.
SEOP lxureS vital.
Those who did take advantage of
tine advance held that world require
ment estimates were being based on
consumption records Of the last five
years rather than pre-war records
and that consumption was now on
its way to pre-war levels as re-
suit of the moves for European re-
habilitation If that is the case a
crop of 100000 bales of lint with
the smallest carryover ever known
before would leave but little if any
larger surplus supplies at the end of
the year than existed at the END of
the last two seasons. These men
say mills need carryover of five
million bales to make them thoroughly
comfortable.
In the meantime, mills are COM
mencing to add materially to their
output.
This is due to greater number
of orders coming in from merchants
especially in the rural districts. but
the hope of the wholesalers and man
ufactureres that the retailers will
return to the policy of ordering sea-
sonal requirements months in ad-
vance have not been realized and do
not seem likely to be, at least as
long as the railroads maintain the
prompt service now general.
Retailerx' Point Of View.
Retailers gathered in recent con-
ventions of various lines have ex-
pressed themselves to this effect in
no uncertain terms. They declare
the wholesalers and manufacturers
will have to continue to carry the
stocks instead of having the retail
ers load up on them. The assert
that this has worked out to their ad-
vantage in more ways than one and
place particular emphasis on the fact
that having the maker carry the
stocks has prompted greater stand
ardization, fewer style numbers and
less frequent style changes.