480 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS 



Postmaster General, and the Secretary of Agriculture are hereby consti- 

 tuted a board with authority to conduct such purchases and to carry out the 

 provisions of this act in connection with the purchase, handling, and sale 

 of said cotton. 



The said purchases shall be made exclusively from the producers of 

 such cotton at the price not to exceed 10 cents per pound for middling lint 

 cotton and shall be made as rapidly as possible. Other grades of cotton 

 may be bought at prices higher or lower than 10 cents, based on the differ- 

 ence of their values, as the same are more or less valuable than middling 

 cotton. The purchases shall be made in the States where the cotton is 

 grown, and shall be prorated between the States, as far as practicable, 

 according to the quantity of cotton grown in each State. The cotton so 

 purchased shall be handled under the direction of the board hereinbefore 

 provided for, and none of the same shall be disposed of earlier than Janu- 

 ary i, 1916. During the year beginning January i, 1916, said cotton may 

 be sold in blocks of 100 bales or more at the market price. On and after 

 January i, 1917, so much of said cotton as has not already been disposed 

 of shall, within six months thereafter, be sold by said board. The money 

 received from the sale of said cotton shall be kept separately in the Treasury 

 and shall be used to pay off the bonds provided for in section 2 of this act, 

 and whenever $5,000,000 has been accumulated from the sale of said cotton, 

 blocks of said issue of bonds shall be called in and redeemed, and said board 

 is given full power and authority to make such rules and regulations as -are 

 necessary for the purpose of executing the provisions of this and the pre- 

 ceding sections. 



SEC. 4. That after the cotton the purchase and sale of which is pro- 

 vided for in sections 2 and 3 of this act has been disposed of it shall be the 

 duty of the said board to prepare a statement covering the entire expendi- 

 ture by the Government in connection with said transactions, including the 

 redemption of said bonds, and if any part of said expenses has not been met 

 it shall be the duty of said board to officially report the amount remaining 

 unpaid, and said report shall be filed with the Commissioner of Internal 

 Revenue. For the year 1917, and annually thereafter, a special tax is 

 hereby levied and shall be paid and collected during the months of August, 

 September, October, November, and December upon every person, firm, 

 or corporation engaging in the business of planting, growing, or producing 

 cotton, said tax to be measured as follows: 



Every such person, firm, or corporation shall pay on all cotton produced 

 or grown by such person, firm, or corporation during each of said years an 

 amount equal to i cent per pound on such cotton, and the same shall 

 be payable before said cotton leaves the ginhouse: Provided, however. That 

 if the report of said board filed with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue 

 shows that no amount remains unpaid, the excise tax provided for in this 

 section shall not be collected: And provided further, That no tax shall be 



