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THE COVINGTON NEWS
Published‘every!!hursday by the News Piiblishing Company,
\V. K. TTcimwr-iSbiTOK-MANAdEK
Official Orga"n of Newton County and the City of Covington.
Entered as second class mail matter December 2, *908, at toe
Post Office at Covington, Ga„ under the act of March 3, 18id.
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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1923.
This rot iia the way of a press dispatch dated out of Atlan¬
ta and headed “Republicans Trying to Build White Party in
Georgia/' is about the weakest propaganda we have ever
seen, The truth of the matter is Phillips and his whole bunch
are on their last legs, and are making their last desperate
effort to stay in power to control the patronage in this state.
It looks as though the Central Committee has been run solely
to satisfy their own selfish desires with utter disregard to
the principals of the party, and have preached “White Re¬
publican Party” which made it possible for them 8o still fur¬
ther abuse the Republican patronage in this state. Link
Johnson is coming back one of these days and kick the whole
regime out, arid it will serve them right. PhilMps and his
gang have disgraced Republican politics in Georgia.
-0
BAD SITUATION AND THE CAUSE
(From Tifton Gazette)
The following letter was received the other day
from a highly esteemed friend. We publish it
without his signature, because we have not asked
his permission: Willacoochee, Ga., August 23, 1923.
Editor Gazette—I have just finished gathering
the cotton off a ten-acre field, and it’s all gathered,
too—none left. There was just 563 pounds #f seed
cotton. My friend, Thomas Henry Paulk helped
me weigh it. He said he had 75 acres of the finest
weed he ever saw. Said if he had no bad luck he
would get two good bales. If you know what the
cotton acreage is in Georgia this year, divide the
acreage by 30 and you will get the number of bales
for Georgia this year. Tifton is not in the coastal
plain belt. You take a trip through it and you will
easily see that the people in that section are face-,
to-face with starvation. For them this is not the
year 1923. It’s nineteen hundred and perish-to
death.
The three greatest enemies South Georgia has
ever had to contend with are the long loan people,
the Standard Oil Co., and Henry Ford’s cheap au¬
tomobiles. Along with the 64,000 farms that are
idle in Georgia today there has gone at least 75,000
automobiles to the scrap pile with them. The cheap
automobile has completely eaten the South Geor¬
gia farmer up. They need a man who can write
like you can, to write and advise them to ride less
and stay home and work more.
Most of the farmers who have lost their farms
have sold the last hoof of live-stock on the farm
and burned it up in gasoline before they gave up
their farm. I am writing this to jog you up to
getting down to the real facts and writing Ynil some
tl;* v\ir. sidestepping ll-i-A ...;u the real naar dpvil Come out plainly,
are issue.
tell the farmers where they have made a mistake
in the past, and advise them to stop and turn back
to the mule and wagon again.
Conditions our friend describes are general
throughout South Georgia, at least, and not local
to his community. A Tifton man who made a trip
through the section northeast of Tifton the past
week said that in many places the cattle had been
turned into the cotton fields, because there was no
cotton there.
We agree with our friend as to existing condi¬
tions, but we do not agree with him as to their
cause. He points to effects; the cause lien much
deeper. It lies in the one-crop system that has
been the curse of the South for sixty years; that
has been the bane of the West, and will prove the
undoing of any agricultural section that follows it
whether that section produce cotton, wheat, to¬
bacco or any other one crop.
The long loan is an opportunity abused. We
should not criticize the source because of conse¬
quences following the abuse. If we mistake not,
applications for long loans carry a provision that
the funds shall be used for improvement or invest¬
ment. Wisely used, the investment returns should
repay the loan; the improvements should not be
made unless the owner could afford them. But the
truth of the matter is that 99 out of 100 of these
loans were made to people who stood in urgent
need of the money to pay off debts due to their
losses trying to grow cotton as one crop.
Men in a position to know tell us that the av¬
erage cost of producing cotton for the past fifty
years has been a fraction over ten cents a pound.
The average price for which cotton has sold was
a fraction under nine cents a pound. For fifty
years the South has produced its principal money
crop at a loss. That its farmers should get deeper
and deeper in debt was a consequence inevitable.
It was with the hope eternal to humanity that
money was borrowed through the loan companies
on chance that a bumper crop and a big price
would enable the grower to pay it off. Long loans
are good things wisely used, the trouble is that
the majority of the loans made in this section were
obtained on a hope that was not realized. What our
friend says about the loan companies so.on ownin'?
many of the farms is only too true, unless some¬
thing intervenes. But this will be, not because they
want the land, but because they must buy it te
protect themselves. The result would have beer
the same had the loan been made by a bank, a firm
or an individual.
The Standard Oil Company, although a trust
has standardized production and cheapened light
and fuel. It has an article for sale, and that arti¬
cle a common necessity. Do not blame the Standard
people if the article of necessity they offer is ;
source of extravagance. The same could be tru<
of any necessity of life.
Henry Ford is a benefactor to mankind. He als<
has standardized production and cheapened cosi
to consumer. It is not his fault, neither is it th
fault of his product, that his cars are a source of
extravagance. Rightly used, market they have cheapened
transportation, brought the to the door of
th > producer, put church and Sunday School with
m the reach of every rural family, and laid the fa¬
cilities for education at the feet of every child,
i hey have put the physician within a few mo¬
ments touch with his patient, and put the consum-
THE COVINGTON NEWS, COVINGTON, GEORGIA
er within easy reach of the manufacturer. They
have eliminated distance, banished isolation, made
travel possible to millions who otherwise could not
j mve hoped for its advantages, and made possible
visits to relatives and the cultivation of social re¬
heretofore beyond the reach of those of
moderate means.
We should not blame the motor car because the
opportunity it offers has been abused. Neither
should we" altogether blame those to whom its
possession meant extravagance. For, did the farms
pay a profit, the farmers could afford cheap motor
cars and the gas to r*n them.
That brings us back to the one crop system.
Here, also, we find the cause for the 46,000 idle
farms in Georgia—and the 50,000 more, some ot
them in Tift county, that will be idle next year—
the men who cultivated them have gone to some
Promised Land whieh the one crop system does
not curse.
So much for the other fellow—and we hold no
brief for the long loan people, Standard Oil, nor
Henry Ford. We pay tribute from limited means
to them all.
Now about newspapers’ part.
Our friend suggests that we write something,
but we confess we do not know what we can write
that will do any good. The things we have written
about the causes that brought about present con¬
ditions would fill many, many large volumes. And
we are not alone.
More than forty years ago, we learned the rud¬
iments of newspaper work under J. W. Hanlon, a
veteran South Georgia editor. He was an earnest
and able advocate of crop diversification, and hs
preached it in every issue of his paper. Following
him, Henry McIntosh proclaimed the doctrine of
hog and hominy until now Henry has grown old
and gray in service. Then there were Triplett, of
Thomasville; Perham, of Quitman and Waycross;
Pendleton, of Valdosta and Macon. And these only
in this immediate section—aH through the South
devoted newspaper men were preaching the same
doctrine and sounding the same warning.
And they were only the pioneers. They were fol¬
lowed by a notable succession of editors, able and
oublic-spirited men, who wrote and preached and
talked the doctrine of crop diversification.
More than one hundred newspapers come to
our exchange table. During the past winter and
spring, not a single one of these published in the
:otton producing states failed to urge upon the
farmers not to put a large acreage in cotton, and
:ach and all of them preached crop diversification,
and the danger in the one crop system. It was time
md effort wasted.
With the newspapers, preaching the same doc¬
trine, a small army of representatives of govern¬
ment and state authorities advocated crop diver¬
sification, and presented the reasons therefor.
No, our friend, the newspapers have not side¬
stepped the issue. They met it face to face, many
years ago, and they have stuck to the front ranks
of the army of crop diversification advocates. But,
infinitesimal has been the result, that ofttimes it
ooked like love’s labor lost.
So we do not know what we can say to add to
wlial l/ccji oaitl, rtMfel repeuuuil gxuwS IIlUMut
onous. Advice is wasted on the gambler who thinks
le must risk all on one more chance—who is cer¬
tain that the next ticket will draw the lottery
orize; on the slave to drink who swears the next
swig shall be the last; on the dopester who intends
to take only one more shot. Something stronger
ihan advice is needed.
We believe that something is here. We bel-ieve
there will be a turning about, because we are at
the end of the row. We believe there will be an
awakening and a change, because we can g& no
farther.
For present conditions, men who seN fertilizers,
loan money or sell supplies to cotton growers are
not blameless. They should have foreseen what
was coming and taken steps to avoid it. But we
believe they are awake now. We believe that they
will refuse longer to join in a losing gamble, and
will Insist in the future on that diversification ©f
crops in which alone lies safety.
We believe that the cotton grower has learned
his costly lesson, and that it has not come entire¬
ly too late. We believe that he will emancipate him¬
self from the high cost of fertilizers by raising live
stock; from the one crop slavery by diversifica¬
tion, and from this will come wealth and prosper¬
ity to this, the most blessed by Nature section of
the world.
With all, through much travail, will come a re¬
turn to the faith of our fathers, a renaissance of
the economy of former days, adapted to modern
conditions. That men in trouble will get closer to
God and closer to fellow man. The*, indeed, will
prosperity come out of adversity, and in the days
to come we will look back on this period of trial
as the great turning point into right and better
living. It is hard while it is going, but we believe
the outcome will be worth all it costs.—Tifton Ga¬
zette.
-O
IF YOU CAN’T SAVE MONEY, YOU WILL FAIL
“If you want to know whether you are des¬
tined to be a success or a failure in life, you can
easily find out. The test is very simple, and it is
infallible: Are you able t© save money? If npt,
drop out. You will lose. You may think not, but
you will lose as sure as you live. The seed of suc¬
cess is not in you.’’
At first thought Mr. Hill’s rule seems noth¬
ing but cold and commercial. Really, however, it
is much more than that. Prudent saving implies
strength of character. In order to save money
one must be able to resist temptation. He must
discipline and train himself in a thousand ways.
He must be boss of himself. He must say “N«”
to his own desires and to the pleadings of temp¬
ters and sharpers. And that strong mastery of
self, the power of self-control, which one acquires
in learning to save money—that is just as import¬
ant a factor in the success that almost invariably
follows as is the actual Money itself.—Clarence
Poe, in The Progressive Farmer.
DIVERSIFY, DON’T PIDDLE
This is an age of specialists.
The services of the man who
knows ©ne subject thoroughly,
whether it be medicine, agricul
t»re, engineering, or what not,
are in greater demand than are
th.e services of those people who
have scattered their efforts in
learning something of many
things without getting a thor¬
ough knowledge of any one sub¬
ject. the far¬
To a certain extent
mer should specialize. He should
specialize in the production of
those crops or products for
which his soils and climate are
best adapted, his markets best
suited, and about which he
knows most. We can’t agsee with
those who preach unbridled di¬
versification. A farmer needs
two, and in seme cases three,
money crops, a major or most
important money crop, such as
cotton here in the south, and one
or two minor cash crops such as
dairy products or poultry prod¬
ucts or grain. He should, of
course, produce the greater part
of the living for the farm fam¬
ily and the farm stock. When
this is accomplished, there is
conservative diversification. The
farmer has not scattered his ef¬
forts in attempting to produce
small amounts of five or six
cr#ps for the market. He has di¬
versified sufficiently to insure
himself against disaster in case
of a market slump in his major
crop, b-ut at the same time has
confined his energies to a suf¬
ficiently small number of crops
to become adept in their produc¬
tion and marketing. The farmer
who tries to grow a little of ev¬
erything for the market does not
often become proficient in the
production and marketing of any
one crop.
There is probably a larger
number of farmers who are fail¬
ing to make good because of one
crop farming than there are far¬
mers who have carried diversi¬
fication too far. However,, it is
never a good plan ho carry a good
idea to extremes. Practice sane
and ©onservative diversification,
but don’t become a “piddling'
farmer.—The Progressive Far¬
mer.
A revolver is always danger¬
ous when when it is loaded but more so
its owner is loaded.
Modem Service
ForMoiorists Station Service
The Standard Oil Company
operates the following modern
service stations at
COVINGTON, GEORGIA
Clark and Brown Sts.
In Charge of
C. J. NORMAN
These gentlemen will personally ap¬
preciate your patronage and do their
best to serve you to your utmost satis¬
faction.
Crown We are confident you will be pleased
Gasoline Also with Crown their Gasoline and Polarine Oil. of
Always Better free service in the way
POLARINE water, air and draining your crank case.
OIL & GREASES
Best For Lubrication
Better Stick To The Standard
Standard Oil Company
INCORPORATED
Ui hen
Number you ujant One
Drugs and
Drug Store
Call Tfiings
on
US
SO
The policy of our Drug Store is to give
everyone the greatest possible service; to sell
them everything they want, and to put up
prescriptions with care and promptness.
We invite everyone to make our Drug
Store their Drug Store.
We are Careful Druggists.
Pennington Drug Co.
SUCCESSOR TO
GEG. T. SMITH DRUG COMPANY
, Better Than a Mustard Plaster For Coughs and Colds, Head¬
ache, Neuralgia, Rheumatism
and All Aches and Pains
ALL DRUGGISTS
35c and 65c, jars and tubes
Hospital size, $3.00