Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-03-11

shortly receive theirs.
early May will have as good growth this year
as those set out in February.
Speaking of plants reminds us of an anus
ing claim made the other day.
In January of last year subscriber took
advantage of the wonderful offer we then
were making: The Tri-Weekly Journal and
nine apple tree CRAFTS all for ST. Very fool
ishly, we had guaranteed to replace every
plant that failed to live.
This subscriber wrote that eight of his
plants lived but that one had died He had
moved into another state, having sold the
place on which he had planted them, but he
wanted to get that one plant replaced.
Has it come to pass that Jesse LiUerm0re
the Spectator, or any small group OF men
toiH be permitted to knock the price of cotton
down $50 to $50 bale? 1t has, When
the co-operatiUes control one-haF Of the Amer
lean crop, it toiU no longer be true.
The law of supply and demand has not set
the price of cotton in the past fifty years
There are those who will challenge this state
ment but they cannot do it successfully.
The figures on production, the figures on
spinning and the stock on hand will at one
time indicate that cotton is selling too low
Such an indication being seen, thousands of
gamblers will buy cotton they don't want.
This will send the price up higher than
the law of supply and demand would have
put it.
At another time, it may seem to be true
that business is falling off and that demand
for cotton will lessen. Then thousands of
the price will fall farther than the trade stu.
alton warrants.
You cannot prevent cotton gambling with
out abolishing the cotton exchanges. If you
abolish exchanges you will do the farmers a
greater harm than the gamblers can do.
Farmers. however, prevent gamblers
from having very much to do with the price
of cotton by joining the cooperative market
ing associations in sufficient numbers to give
these co-operatives control of SO to IS per
cent of the American crop
These associations will never be able to
obtain for cotton more than cotton is worth.
When any commodity is held for more than
it is worth, consumption dwindes, Substitutes
are found, buyers go on a strike.
We all ought to remember what happened
to sugar few years ago. The government
sought to regulate consumption and price.
The public got scared. Hundreds of thou
sands of housewives bought 100 or 200 pounds
of sugar-enough to run them year more.
The price went out of sight-up to 80 and IS
cents at retail.
These housewives buying sugar they didn't
need, had the same effect on the price, in
spite of government attempt at regulation
that the gamblers have on a bull movement
In cotton.
Then the world woke up to find that there
was more sugar in sight than had been count
ed on 1t woke up to find that hundreds OF
thousands Of housewives wouldn't have to buy
any for many months 1t woke up to find
that more acreage was being planted in sugar
than had ever been planted before. 1t woke
up to find that millions, angered at the high
price of sugar, had cut their use of it down
to little or nothing. Then the bottom fell out
1t hurt everybody.
The rise of cotton to So cents, late last
November and its fall to IS cents the other
day have hurt everybody in the long run AS
long as there are varying conditions in bust
ness prices will change, but there is no ex
cuse for a difference of $50 bale in the
price objection in less than four months in
the middle of a season.
The co-operatives will STABILIZE the
price That will help the consumers and the
spinners as much as the producers, for it will
get rid of a lot of gamblers. who are a men
ace to the public, whether they be winning
or losing.
OIHpC AMI OIUDDITIEC