Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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. ■ LOSE GREAT SUMS < j ' S • -—•*— imHANDLDiG OF COTTON IN THE SOUTHERN STATES MEANS * HUGE LOSS TO PUNTERS of the Southern States Face Great Annual Loss in the Wasteful Methods Used la Shipping and Bal ing Their Cotton—Most Improve It has been estimated by students of the cotton industry as it exists to day that the American people are los ing 975,000,000 per annum from the mishandling of their cotton crop. Our present system of procedure is both slipshod and wasteful. There fore, one of the vital problems con fronting the people to-day is the effi cient and economical handling and marketing of the products of the soil. It presents a problem of vast magni tude both from an agricultural and economic viewpoint, and it Is a prob lems In which every wearer of cot ton goods Is Interested. It so happens that cotton, the pur est known natural form of cellulose, will bear more abuse than any other crop material and yet retain a large proportion of its original value. Corn, because of its perishable nature, de mands far better- treatment, and re ceives It. If our bllllon-and-a-half- dollar corn crop were treated one- half as badly as our cotton crop It would no doubt shrink In value half a billion dollars annually. There are corn cribs on the farms and eleva tors and warehouses at the railroad stations and primary and secondary markets for the protection of the crop In general. Still, 10 bushels of corn, worth ordinarily at market prices from $5 to |6, requires as much space as a bale of cotton, for storage, which Is valued at from 950 to 950. Cotton planters persist in produc ing too many varieties In each com munity, and are careless In picking and In handling unginned and ginned cotton on the plantation. Neverthe less, in a broad sense thef individual farmer Is nnable, because of the com plexity of the present system, to cope with the great problems that exist. Most of the abuses with which spin ners, especially foreign spinners, charge the American planter arise after he has parted with his cotton and when ha. no longer has any voice in Its treatment. These facts most be clearly recognized as necessary and permanent reforms can be brought about only by community action among the planters and by co-opera tion between growers, glnners, com press men, common carriers, bankers, buyers, spinners and merchants. An occasional period of low prices is not as serious a danger to the American cotton Industry as contln uni high prices that serve to stimu late a rapid development of cotton in foreign lands. A well established foreign market mllans an ultimate re duction or restriction of our own prices. This In turn, injures every ene concerned, from the planter to the producer. The United States pos sesses no natural monopoly of pro duction, for cotton may be grown In many other parts of the world. Ac tive efforts to develop the cultutSkof cotton are to-day being made In num erous foreign countries, particularly Mexico, Peru, Brazil, Argentina, Al geria, Sudan, Togoland, Nigaria, In dia Turkestan and China. The only adequate proteetlon against foreign competition would be to improve our own Industry by growing better cot ton and by growing It more cheaply than other countries are able to do, notwithstanding the lower wages of the foreign plantation laborers. Some manufacturers are frank er principal crops, cotton is not rais ed tor storage purposes, but is a purely industrial or commercial pro duct. A food crop remains a part of the Ufo of the agricultural commun ity where it Is produced, only the surplus passing Into the general chan nels of commerce. In former days, when the weaving of cloth and the manufacture of garments were do mestic arts,/both producers and con sumers were more familiar, with cot ton and mofe able to apprehend the better/or pfeorer quality of the fiber. But to-day cotton 4s no longer a part of the domestic life; It is raised on the farm to be shipped to a city a thousand miles away to be manufac tured Into goods. Improvements in textile machinery and the factory system of labor have led in the last 60 years to an enor mous expansion in production and use of cotton, yet there has been no corresponding improvement In qual ity or intrinsic value of the liber, nor in thq methods of growing and mar keting the crop. The Industrial su periority of cotton Is usually suppos ed to lie merely in Its cheapness, but cotton of good quality can compete with any other fiber in strength, fine ness and durability. Though the con sumption of cotton has vastly out grown that of any other textile ma terial, the true possibilities of- the fiber are still very Inadequately ap preciated by the general public. A lack that educaton alone can remedy. The popular conception of a gen eration ago that fine fabrics were stronger and more durable than course fabrics was based on mechan- ors have thoroughly overcome. With leal limitations which modern invent- strong long staple cotton c&n to-day be made from much shorter and weaker fiber. The decline in the wearing qualities of cotton fabrics is often ascribed In cities to the use of destructve chemicals in public laun dries, yet the same deterioration is recognized in rural districts, where household washing Is still practiced. Fully 925,000,000 worth of cotton cloth is thrown away by the con sumer each year, which represents a loss from which no value has been appreciated. This loss has been made a fact because the textile manufac turers are producing a poor quality of material In cotton cloth. Millions of dollars are being lost annually in cotton by the farmers who endeavor to hqld their crop until the markets raise sufficiently to warrant a sale of the product. The majority of the planters who are following this pastime have Insufficient means for the storage of their crop. It means leaving the bales out in the weather, sometimes on platforms or boards, but ofte nalso flat on the ground without any protection what' soever. The saving of this cotton each year would make such a mate rial difference In the cost per yard of cotton cloth to the consumer that all buyers would immediately notice the saving. Under the present system, the gin- box, plantation, flat, or uncompressed bale, as it is variously termed, has a density of about 12 to 15 pounds to the cubic foot. Its usual dimensions are 64x27x43 inches. An average of 25 flat bales are loaded In cars of ordinary size and shipped to the near est compress, usually as a re-com press or railroad compress. As the usual commercial lot consists of 100 flat bkles, four ordinary cars are re quired for the haul. The compress collects Its fee tor service, amounting to ten cents per 100 pounds, or about 50 cents per bale, direct from the railroad company, the latter having included this amount in the freight bill. This the producer pays, as well as insurance, freight and ' other charges, all of which are deducted before the price has been-fixed. Upon arrival at the compress plat form, which often has insufficient roof protection for more than one quarter of the total shipments on hand, the 100 bales are jsnloaded, weighed, put on range, which means lined up side by side with faces out, and sampled. They are now classed, compressed, and patched while In the --fv enough to say that they do not de sire long or strong cotton, thus en eouraging the planters to plant Infe rior varieties. If the goods wear out faster new garments mu t ! be pur chased more frequently and this brings larger profits In turn to the manufacturers of this weak stock of fabrics. Such entire disregard of the interests of the ultimate consumer may serve to gain a temporary ‘pro fit, but It can not be expected to es tablish the cottonsindustry on a ba sis or permanent prosperity. The American public Is at last beginning to appreciate the vast difference in values of strong apd weak cotton pro ducts. Manufacturers of long staple cotton goods have undertaken an ac tive campaign of education regarding the superiority of theit fabrics. Some of the more advanced states have laws forbidding the adulteration and misbranding of .textile goods. The need for pure-clothes laws is one of the same vitalness as that for the pure food law, for the rapid wearing out of weak cotton not only results la enormous financial' lots to our public, but represents a general dan ger to our national health. Broken cotton fibers form a large portion of the household dust that Is to-day rec ognized as a serious factor In the Steady development of tuberculosis. Notwithstanding the unique com mercial Importance of the cotton In dustry the farming public has less . of cotton than most ofagrlculture. press, and then are ready for reload ing for shipment to port or domestic mill. Compression reduces thickness one-half or more, bringing them to a density of 22 pounds to the cubic foot Two cars will now accommo date the 100-lot shipment Compresses ordinarily employ the cheapest type of labor, and are un^ der pressure to show a large output of bales during the season they are In operation. In the Southeast their earnings must be ample, as the over age number of bales handled Is rela tively large. As an example, Georgia, with a crop averaging 2,000,000 bales, annually, has but 35 compress es, while Oklahoma,‘production but 750,000, has 35 compresses. Although the bad condition of many bales delivered to the com presses furnishes some extenuation, the quality of the work is in many instances unnecessarily poor, due to ^crowding and carelessness In handling. Pressure by carriers, leg- islation>and systematic compress in spectlon would vastly improve the present undesirable conditions, which cause the ultimate consumer to pay a far higher price for his cotton goods than is necessary considering the vast amount produced In this land to-day. The character tf^the American cot ton bale, both as to condition and covering, has been a source of uhtver- sal complaint and criticism for many years. The blame has quite natural- Unlike oth- ly been laid at the door of the plant- V STOP TRACK BETTING vs GOVERNOR STUART OF VIRGINIA RUNS BOOKMAKERS OUT*. t INTEREST AROUSED vjf V/Sf ' ■ t •. :Y gl; EXPULSION OF SPANIARDS MAY CAUSE COMPLICATIONS. i Detectives Raid. Track and Arrest Bookmakers—Governor Threatens to Call Out Militia. Acting on orders Issued by qpv. Stuart of Virginia ten detectives em ployed by the Baldwin agency, enter ed the Jamestown race track, near Norfolk, Va., Wednesday and arrest ed fourteen men accused of bookmak ing. The detectives were armed with big revolvers and one of them har ried a rifle. The raid caused consid erable excitement among the women, bnt amused the majorltytof the race followers, who followed the*detec- tlves to the gate, shouting Jocnlar warnings. The detectives poked their revol vers under the noses of the men of fering odds on the races, and made a grab for the money, which in most cases was carried in a satchel. Only four alleged bookmakers were ar rested, while ten others were not mo lested. The raid occurred after the second race, but the entire si^ races were run and many bets were made after the officers left. Manager Bob Levy, of the James town track, Wednesday nigbt an nounced that meeting would con tinue, but instead of offering purses, the horse owners would •'divide the gate receipts each day. The race track management will fight the case in order to get. a. legal opinion that will prevent future Interference. It Is claimed that-the system of betting in vogue at the local track is not, % violation of tbb'Virginia laws. After being warned by Gov. Stuart that the State militia would be used if necessary to suppress violation of the Virginia anti-betting laws, the Jamestown Jockey club late Thurs day night abandoned the spring race meeting, which was to continue until April 17. Sensational raids and fines and prison terms Imposed upon book makers had marked the few stormy days the meet had been In progress In a formal statement the officials of the Jockey club announced that they had decided to discontinue the meet to avoid “any conflict of opin ion". The statement added that If the higher courts later construed the laws so "that we can conduct racing without fostering a violation of the l*ws of Virginia, we will resume; otherwise the course will be perma nently closed." IBIS COUNTRY WATCHING CONFIRMS WILSON’S MAN V 1 * ( i AFTER THREE DAYS’ FIGHT THE SENATE GIVES CONSENT. V 1 Constitutionalist Chief Sustains Vil la's Order and Affirms as a Const! ■ tlonalist Policy the Expulsion of Spaniards Wealthy Refugees Reach Border. ^ Official Interest In the Mexican sit uation at Washington Wednesday night was divided between the grave problem presented by the arrival of the 800 Spanish exiles at El Pito and the outcome of the battle at Tampico. Sharp fighting already has occurred at Tampico, and army and navy strategists expect the battle there to -be the next decisive strug gle. Rear Admiral Fletcher at Vera Cruz Wednesday notified the navy department that refugees already were going aboard/ men-of-war in Tampico harbor. He forwarded a report from Rear Admiral Mayo at that port asking for an army trans port as a refuge for non-combatants. The American fleet at Tampico is composed of the battleships Minne sota and Connecticut, the cruisers Chester, Des Moines and San Fran cisco and the dispatch boat Dolphin. The battleship’ Utah has been ordered there from Vera Cruz. Read Ad miral Fletcher reported he had or dered the hospital ship Solace, non at New Orleans, (o coal and be in readiness for service at Tampico. State department officials were re ticent in discussing the expulsion of Spaniards, In whose behalf vigorous representations were made to Gen. Carranza. Officials were noncommit tal when asked whether further rep resentations would be made. The war department probably will be called on to direct measures for the care of the refugees at El Paso, al though at the state department late Wednesday it was said that phase of the question had not been considered. While officials agree that in inter national law these Spaniards have a right to seek asylum on American soil, it is realized that the problem of their ultimate disposition ia likely to bring up many questions to he ad justed by the United- States, Spain and Mexico. The gravity of the sit uation will be Increased if the con stitutionalists carry out their threat to drive the Spaniards out of all the territory they conquer. A dispatch from El Paso, Texas, says eight hundred members of the Torreon Spanish colony, -expelled by Gen. Villa, found a haven in the United States Wednesday. They had been stripped of their property tern porarily at least but supplied with temporary funds. They had refused to leave the train In which they and their baggage bad come from Tor reon to Juarez until American Con sular Agent Carothers arrived to ad vise them. Carothers was unable to assure any that they would be restored to their homee, his Interview with Gen. Carranza having met with the flat statement that expulsion of Span iards from Mexico was a settled pol icy of the rebels and would be modi fled only In the cases of individuals who had not been involved in poll tics. Rafael Arozena, wealthiest resident of the Laguna district and reported to be the most extensive of sea island cotton In the world, was one of the Spanish refugees who rode to the border in a secon(n:lass coach, with only big personal possessions to show for his lifetime struggle in the Coahulla cotton country. v Aronzena Is to the Coahuila Span ish colony what Luis Terrazas is to (%e Chihuahua refugee colony of Mexican^. He is the leader in com mercial activities of the Laguna dis trict, owns a number of the largest haciendas in' the district and his wealth Is estimated at'317,000,000 Mexican currency. Aronzena Carried only a leather satchel, a big steamer rug and a bag filled with his personal belongings, which he hastily gathered when the Withrop M. Daniels of New Jersey Is Named a Member of Interstate Commerce Commission, Nine members of the Senate, head ed by Senator LaFollette, openly re volted against proceedings behind closed doors Saturday night IST executive session in which tbe spinner and consumer the present diversity in assessing- tare and in making tare calculations should be at once terminated. The economic waste involved In the purchase of millions of pounds of extra canvas, on which freight and handling Charges must be paid should be stop ped at once. t The present system of cotton grow ing and distribution is both wasteful and costly. It loses money for the grower and for ,the ultimate c^suin- er, and the needed reform of these methods will aid In solving the prob lem of the high cost of living for the great army of cotton consumers. DoobleKHling. — Because his sweetheart, a house keeper, quarreled vplth him, George LeFanve of Peabody, Mass., Satur day shot her and bur employer. i i. CoImpMa leads the league! Rise up, ye ancient hopea. - - era. He is reality haa been merely the victim of an out ot date, Incor rect, and oppressive method ot arriv ing at the net weight of cotton in a bale. Tbe buyer, whether for domes tic or foreign trade, doee not pay cot ton prices for the bagging and the ties placed on bales at the ginnery, although a vast majority of the cot ton planters suppose they do. Al lowance for "tare” always Is figured In same manner of form in the price offered to planters for their cotton. In other words, a 500-pound bale is considered as containing 470 pounds of cotton. If the "middling” price in Liverpool is 12 cents, the bale is worth not 960 but 956.40; As the buyer purchases on a gross-weight basis he must protect himself against the tare rule; hence his offer to tbe planter, profit and other items of ex pense having already been reckoned In, is 956.40 divided by 500 pounds, or 11.28 per pound. The effect of the whole are.situa tion Is, Indeed, vicious. Its net re-; suit is to introduce complications and confuson n all cotton transactons whether It will go to New England or to some of the numerous Southern cotton mills. In other words, he does not know whether he should put on 22, 24, or 3 0 pounds of tare. As a matter of fact he practically puts on the same amount of bagging and ties, weighing usually from 19 to 22 pounds. If he attempts to "tare up his bales he Is met by the notice from -the great cotton-buying con cerns that operate In his section or from mill owners if in the Southern nilll sections, that they Will not pur chase cotton that carries more than the usual amount ot bagging and ties, which is six yafFds of bagging and ties. In tbe interest of good, straight forward business and for the protec- . , . tlon of planter, cotton merchant. VUI *._ f0r Spaniards to leave the country. The Spanish millionaflre Is a striking look ing man with a heavy white beard, a shock of white hair and a pair of gold rimmed glasses over which he looked sharply when parrying the questions of reporters. • "I am alone. My relatives and my possessions are air in the Leguna district,” he said. “I hope to be able to return, tor I have had no part In the Internal politics of the country. For that reasoq I prefer not to say anything tor fear It will be misunder stood. I was not mistreated by any one at Torreon and have no plans tor the immJediatp present.” The most Important property left behind the Spaniards was cotton said to bo valued at $15,O0O,OOOt Word was received from Torreon Wednes day that 11,000,000 worth of cotton was being loaded on trains for ship ment'to El Paso by Villa. It Is said the Spanish owners Can not touch the property if tt arrives aFEl Paso la bond, as U frequently ■■ . Senate, by a vote of 36 to 27, con firmed the nomination of Wlnthrop M. Daniels of New Jersey to be a member of the interstate commerce commission. Senator LaFollette declared on the floor that he proopsed to defy the rules of the Senate in future and discuss publicly legislation not af fecting foreign relations, and later it was announced that Senators Bris tow, Cummins, Clapp, Kenyon, Mor rls, Jones and Gronna, Republicans, and Poindexter, Progressives, would maintain the same attitude. The revolt created a sensation and there was much speculation as to thO effect It would have on future execu tive sessions. The general opinion was that there would be no attempt to take action against members who disregarded the rule of secrecy. Confirmation of Commissionar Daniels closed a three-day fight mark ed by one of the most bitter debates heard at the capitol In years. Both sides contested determinedly, Mr Daniels’ advocates having the sup port of President Wilson’s well known desire that his appointee and personal friend be confirmed without delay. Opponents to the confirmation bas ed their objection on the grounds that Mr.\ Daniels’ views on the valua tion of public service property were unsound.'; As during the two preced ing days, senators continued to in sist that Mr. Daniels’ ideas, as ex pressed in the decision of tbe New Jersey public service commission, of which be was chairman in the Paa- saic gas rate case, would make him dangerous as a member of the inter state commerce commission, at time when the commission was fix ing a valuation on railroad property Senator Hughes of New Jeisey called back frpm a congressional fight in his state, spoke at length In sup port of Mr. Daniels, and was Joined by Senators Ttowlands, chairman of the Interstate commerce committee; Pittman and Williams. The opposition was nettled by the patching up of the split in the Dem ocratic ranks over night. They con sented to postponement of a vote Fri day, when victory apparently was in sight, to allow Democratic senators to talk with the president about with drawing Mr. Daniels’ name after the noimnatlon had been recommitted They denounced the determination of Democratic leaders after a visit to the White House to force a vote on confirmation as evidence of bad faith gPHREEB LOUDLY Retired Array M*Jor is . ■ • 4 | m •• nfc.■■//&/:$ When He Attacked Wilson. Praise and blame for Pres! Wilson's Mexican nollcy were gled. at last wee Its session of American Academy of Political and Social Science, held at Philadelphia but there was general agreement that there will be no peace in that country until the land question is settled. The concensus was against intervention. Major Cassius L. Gillette, U. 8. A., retired, described conditions jift^MeXr ico, and declared that it was his bq. lief that the president would not be unwilling to become a war hero la order to set a second term. Loud and long hisses came from different parts of the ball at once. He added that he knew yhat he said Would arouse protest, and prophesied that such a situation would come about. Congressman S. F. Prouty of Iowa resented the remarks of Major Gil lette. "Although I am a Republican and have fought all my life to de feat Democrats," he said, "I will up- Tiold with all my power the president of my country In his Mexican policy and in his efforts to avert war.” He also resented, he said, the "dragging of the president down to the level of Huerta”. KILLS LITTLE BOY. While Firing at Each Other Two Men Cause Lad's Death. In a difficulty Saturday afternoon between R. E. Briscoe and Ben Brad ley, both of St. Stephens, Briscoe, It is said, In attempting to Shoot Brad ley, fired the gun and killed the lit tle son of Mr. and Mrs. H. A. Jaudon Instantly. The little fellow received the whotolOad of shot Intended for Bradley in his breast. Bradley saved himself by catching hold of the muz zle of the gun. He lost almost the entire hand, it being shot away by the same load that killed the child The boy was about seven years of age and a fine little fellow. Excitement was very high, but violence was pre vented by cooler heads. BLIND TIGER IN JAIL. Negro Arrested at Gaffney Keeps Up His Whiskey Sales. On Saturday afternoon the Gaffney pehce arrested Cephas Littlejohn un der the charge pf selling whiskey, to-,., gether with two other negroes. Th^ also raided an alleged blind tiger aa captured 36 pints of booze. Thtf 1 ! whiskey was in a box near the door of the cell in which Littlejohn was confined, though not qliite within reach. A confederate from the out side banded him a piece of stiff wire with which he pulled the box near enough to be reached, and during tbe day disposed by sale and otherwise of 15 pints of the whiskey. A great crowd was around the city jail dur ing the whole day, but It was not dis covered until later that Littlejohn had been supplying-the thirsty deni zens. Policeman Slays Woman and Self. Leaning over the shotilder of a nurse dressing a wound inflicted by a blow of his fist on the face of Mrs. Roberta Lester of Richmond, Va., I%llc6 Sergeant Nelsz shot and kill ed her. He then shot himself. Town Terrorized by Crazy Negro. Lewis Martin, k crazy negro of Pendleton, armed himself with a long knife Tuesday and went on the war path. Citizens organized a posse and finally- captured him. He was sent to the Insane asylnm at Columbia. Dynamite Kills Three. Three xqen were Instantly killed, one was so badly hurt that he lived only a few minutes and four others less seriously injnred by an explosion on The Dalles Celllo canal wbrks near Dalles, Ore., Tuesday; n Husband and Wife Found Dead. Offlcera who broke into a house ia West Philadelphia Thursday found Alexander Glazer, 20 years old, and h^s wife, 28, dead from ballet wounds. Two sons, aged 6 and were unharmed. y? Saved Fonr and Lost His Life. After saving four of his children Malcolm- Ford dashed into his blaz ing home at Rosslngton, Ky., Wed nesday night to rescue his wife and two babies, but perished with them in the flames. Mexicans Quit War Jor Work. Ten Mexican federal deserters threw their rifles into the Rio Grande at Laredo, Tex., a few days ago and crossed the U. S. border to find work. - ' » ^ , Gunmen Rob Gamblers. Five armed men enteied a New York plub early Thursduy morning, broke up seyeral poker games, grab bed 35,000 and fled. Equestrienne Killed. Ella Hackett, a 19-year-old eques trienne, of New York, was almost in stantly killed by a fall from a 60-foot trapeze to an Improvised platform in Madison Square Garden Wednesday. Life Convict |>yeed. The governor has granted a parole to Lobe Mungo, who was convicted In Kershaw county in July, 1911, of murder and sentenced to a' life term in the State penitentiary. .. " Had an Eye Shot Out. During a general row among some negroes at church near Reno, Lanrens county, one negro had his eyes shot out at the hands of another Sunday. * * • Could Not Stand Blindness. 1 Because he was going blind Alex Glazer of Philadelphia Monday killed -his wife and himself. Their two sons believe, robbers killed them and the police are withholding the truth. Gasoline Fames Fatal. Tom Fuller, a negro workman of Fayetteville. N. C—wont Into a ga*o- line tank car Tesday to clean It out. The fumes killed him before onlook ers could drag him out. Bank Robbers Slain in Fight. Joseph A. Patterson, wlio entered' and robbed the State bank of New- alla, Okla., of 0700 was shot and killed In a running fight near Okla homa City. Bandit Robs Express Car. A masked bandit robbed an express car near Little Rock, Ala., Thursday of 93.000. Unknown Men Drown. Two unidentified men were drown ed when \ bride over the Mohawk River, Schenectady, N. Y„ was swept away Friday. - , the case.* - If it comes bonded for transit through the United StatM for shipment abroad tt can not n re covered, it Is said. It !s said the only ‘way the original owners hare of get ting their cotton back is in a court of equity In case the consignment is released from bond In the United ' 'Lexington to be Wet. r The election In LartBgtOn Di 'favor of the county dispensary sytem was declared legal Friday by the supreme court i gr. - Explosion on Torpedo Boat An explosion on the torpedo host Aylwin stationed at Norfolk resulted la the death of a fireman Monday. ■,( \ .