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southeast will come next year, and both Mississippi and the general gov ernment will do wonderfully well if they hold back the pests from cross ing the river in 1908. Scientists, how ever, declare the river will prove no barrier, and that their progress will go on unchecked. The test will come in October and November of the pres ent year, for the annual migration generally extends to forty or fifty miles, and it has just been begun. The eastern cotton belt need not ex pect to escape the ravages of the pest, for no way has been devised to stay its march or to lessen its de sire to poison cotton bolls. It is fast marching across a continent, and the best opinion is that the field of its operations will yet extend from the Rio Grande to the Atlantic. — Age-Herald. WHOM FARMERS’ UNION IS ” AFTER. It has been said by some critics that has put such a heavy yoke upon of its objects to down the small mer chant. Not at all. The Farmers’ Union is not after the merchant. We need the merchant as much as he needs us. It is not the merchant that has put such a hervy yoke upon the necks of the laboring people. It is the cotton speculators and ga’ ling middle men that are robbing the farmers and laboring people of their hard earned labor. It is not so . much the fault of the manufacturer that we don’t get our share of our own labor, for he has a perfect right to a reasonable profit for man ufacturing the world’s cotton crop and putting it back on the market. Therefore, we are not fighting them for nothing more than, a just and reasonable price of our raw cotton. The farming class of people here tofore have been working themselves, their wives and daughters, and their little children, in the cotton fields, from early in the spring till late in the fall, making and gathering a cot ton crop, and at the same time some of them (and a good large some, too) have actually by the hand of oppres sion been forced to wear scanty clothing and a goodly number of them have quit going to public gath erings, for the simple reason that they have been driven to the wall by the hand of oppression until they were actually not able to afford a decent dress or a suit of clothes, or even to be able to purchase the ne cessities of life in quantity and qu ity that they might fix up a respect able lunch so that they might go out to public gatherings and mix with their neighbors, and to invite them to partake of their lunch without having their feelings cramped. That has been the case with a lot of us poor, weak-minded farmers. Now, Mr. Merchant, we are not blam ing you with all of our misfortunes; we are blaming the gamblers, thieves, robbers and low-down speculators of Wall street, and other gambling re sorts of this and other counties', and we also' blame ourselves for just sit ting down on the stool of do-nothing and letting the thieves, robbers and speculators rob us of our own. The object of the Farmers’ Union is to organize the farmers as others are organizing (we have about done that now), so that we may make a just demand for our farming prod ucts that we have to sell, The Farm- ers’ Union is not after the small merchant, so please dismiss that part of the subject from your mind at once. We are now, and have been for some time, after larger game, and we have just about got them cornered, and not very many days hence the Farmers’ Union, as an organization, will rise up from every quarter of the United States in full force and charge the enemy in their secluded dens in the various places and com pletely put them to flight, putting them completely out of their business. Then we will have won one of the grandest victories that the farmers have ever known. So now, Mr. Cot ton Speculator, big, little, old and young, you had just as well direct your mind to some other vocation of life, for we are going to oust you, that is all there is to it. Say, Mr., they tell me that the Southern Cotton Association has fixed fifteen cents as their minimum price. If that be a fact, and they stand up with the Farmers’ Union for their just and equitable rights, mark my predictions right here and now, Mr. Speculator, there’ll be something do ing. Put that in your hat and wear it some, if you please. Say, Mr. Farmer, all of you fellow that do not. belong to the Farmers’ Union, why don’t you join the union and help us battle for your rights? Would you not have a clearer conscience to come in and pay your little mite toward winning your own battle, than you would have to stand back and pocket a part of your money at our expense ? J. B. RAINEY. Lawrenceville, Ga., R. F. D. 4. —Gwinnett Journal. 1907 COTTON AND AVERAGE FROST. When will damaging frosts begin to occur in the cotton belt? With a crop from two to four weeks late, this is the feature of prime impor tance at present. No man, however, can do more than state the probabil ities. Average dates when Jack Frost makes his first killing on slaught at different points axe well known, but the range is so wide — in North Carolina of late years from October 22 to November 28—that these possess a very limited value. \ North Carolina, nearly all of South Carolina and the greater part of the States of Georgia, Alabama and Mis sissippi may ordinarily expect kill ing frost to arrive between November 1 and November 15. Northern Lou isiana, Northern Texas, over half of Arkansas and a good part of the Ter ritories are similarly situated. In the northern fractions of Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas the time is a little earlier. In south ern Georgia and all along the upper Gulf December 1 or a little earlier is the rule. Below there Jack is so seldom an important crop season factor that he can be dismissed with little consideration even this year. These data show thta the present crop has nothing much to fear if on ly the killer does not come ahead of time; if an unusually early frost does not smite an unusually late crop. This year’s crop, though belated thus enjoys more than a fair chance to es cape any serious damage, ft simply has a diminished margin of probable safety.—Charlotte Observer. WATSON’S WEEKLY JEFFERSONIAN. OOTTON GROWERS, STAND STEADY I In the eight days from last Mon day the spot cotton market in New York lost 130 points, or in the neigh borhood of $6.50 a bale. The decline was continuous throughout that pe riod, without a recovery being sus tained to the close of any one day. If that loss could be made appli cable to the entire crop it "would mean cutting off receipts of cotton growers on a 12,000,000 yield by $68,- 000,000. Is there any reason for that tremendous shrinkage in value? Have the mills received stop orders? Is there any indication of decrease in consumption? Is there actual or threatened fall in the price of goods? Does it appear that an American crop of even 13,500,000 bales will give the world more cotton than is actually needed? To all of these, the reply must be emphatically in the nega tive. Then why the sensational slump ? Is this the answer of the bear spec ulators to the action of the executive committee of the Southern Cotton Growers’ Association in fixing the price of cotton at 15 cents? That was a very questionable policy, for it should be realized that even if cotton is worth 15 cents, the farmers, par ticularly the farmers of Texas, will not stick for that price. But it is worth 13 cents, and the cotton asso ciation should have the influence to hold the market up to that price. Now is the time for the farmers to stand together. For once there is no guess-work; for once they know that however large the crop may be, ev ery pound of it is worth 13 cents to the spinners because the spinners need every pound of it to make goods for which there is demand at prices that give the mills a good profit when paying 13 cents for the raw material. That, we say, is a certainty, and if the growers are firm, if they refuse to let a handful of brokers in New York, that do not know a spindle from a cotton plant, handle them like jumping-jacks, they will win, and get prices that trade conditions warrant. —The State. MONEY FOR THE FARMERS. It is conceded that the southern farmers will this fall and winter be in a more prosperous condition than they have ever been before. Because it is known that as a general rule the crops have turned out well, and it is confidently expected that the price of cotton will remain up, the one con clusion must be that the farmers are doing well. Yet few people have tak en the trouble to estimate, or have any real conception of the vast wealth produced by the farmers of this sec tion, which will pass through their hands in actual hard dollars during the coming months. The farmers in the immediate trade territory of Augusta have produced at least 300,000 bales of cotton. At thirteen cents per pound this will bring them in $19,500,000. To this must be added the value of the seed. Say that two-thirds of the cotton seed produced will find their way to the oil mills, this would be 6,000.000 bushels at thirty cents per bushel. $1,800,000 for seed, and a total of $21,300,000 cash for the cotton crop raised in Augusta’s immediate trade territory this year. In addition to this the corn crop has been above the average. There is more corn on the farms than there has been in many years. The hay crop is fine. Sweet potatoes and cane are fine. Nearly all the by crops have been good this year, with the exception of the fruit; and while this is a growing interest in Augus ta’s territory it is not yet so great that the failure of this crop causes any appreciable hardship. So then, the condition is that farmers have more home supplies on the farms, and with this great advantage to begin with, they will have over twenty mil lions to spend before they buckle down to repeat this grand perform ance. This presents a roseate picture of prosperity, the best feature of which is that it is no picture of the imag ination, but cold, tangible facts and figures which speak for themselves, It means a prosperity which must be general for this section, for on the prosperity of the farmer depends the prosperity of every other interest. It means that the trade of the mer chants this fall and winter will be better than they have ever had be fore.—Augusta Herald. THE NEW BABY. Yes, I’ve got a-little brother, Never asked to have him, nuther, But he’s here. They just went away and bought him, And last week the Doctor brought him; Weren’t that queer? When I heard the news from Molly, Why, I thought at first ’twas jolly, ’Cause you see I * ’posed I could go and get him, And then Mama, course would let him Play with me. But when I had once looked at him, ‘‘Why,” I says, “great snakes, is that him? Just that mite?” They said, “Yes,’.’ and “Ain’t he cunnin?” And I thought they must be fun nin’— He’s a sight. He’s so small, it’s just amazin’, And you’d think that he was blazin’, He’s so red. And his nose is like a berry, And he’s bald as Uncle Jerry On his head. Why, he isn’t worth a brick, All he does is cry and kick; He can’t stop. Won’t sit up, you can’t arrange him, I don’t see why Pa don’t change him At the shop. Now we’ve got to dress and feed him, And we really didn’t need him, More’n a frog; Why’d they buy a baby brother When they know I'd good deal ruther Have a dog? —Woman’s Life. The Rambler predicts that Tom Watson will be either a caadid ile for senator or governor, and he will be elected if he docs run.- Cordele Rambler. PAGE SEVEN