ANALYSIS OF TOBACCO GROWERS ' ASSOCIATION 



51 



of farmers to join the association, the benefits that would accrue to 

 them as members from the operation of the association were pre- 

 sented in too favorable and positive a light. A large number of 

 members who had delivered tobacco during the first years became dis- 

 satisfied because the improvement in their conditions which had been 

 predicted during the organization campaign did not materialize. 



In some districts, in 1922, members carried small quantities of their 

 tobacco to the association warehouses merely to learn what the asso- 

 ciation would do. When the initial payment or grading was unsat- 

 isfactory these members often sold no more tobacco through the 

 association. 



Conditions were not improved in subsequent years by evidence and 

 rumors of mismanagement, dishonesty, and mistaken policies, which 

 were published and magnified by the opponents of the cooperative- 

 tobacco movement. Many of the steps taken by the association to 

 improve the situation, such as the stringent enforcement of contracts, 

 served to widen still further the breach between those members who 

 had violated their contracts and the association, of which they were 

 an integral part. 



That many of the members were of the opinion that the policy of 

 enforcing delivery of tobacco by legal procedure injured rather than 

 helped the organization is shown in Table 17. However, a fairly 

 large percentage were of the opposite opinion, and believed that the 

 association was helped by attempting to enforce the contracts. Many 

 of these undoubtedly were merely expressing their wish to see the 

 enforcement. 



Table 17. — Replies to question, "Do you think the association's prosecution of 

 contract violation hurt or helped the association? " 







Replies made by members of— 



Reply 



Sun-cured 

 pool 



Dark-fired 

 pool 



Old-belt 

 pool 



Eastern 



Carolina 



pool 



South 



Carolina 



pool 



All pools 



Hurt 



Number 

 13 

 

 14 

 

 

 2 

 1 

 1 

 



Number 

 37 



1 

 22 

 12 

 12 



2 

 14 



2 







Number 



[28 

 23 

 8 

 2 

 39 

 1 

 2 



Number 

 L 86 

 

 16 

 15 

 2 

 



32 

 1 

 2 



Number 



81 



3 



32 



12 



4 



3 



25 

 

 1 



Number 

 309 



Did not hurt association 



4 



Helped 



112 





62 



Neither hurt nor helped 



26 





9 





111 



Other replies ._ . . . . 



5 



Xo replv 



5 







Total 



31 



102 



195 



154 



161 



643 











ADVANCES AND PAYMENTS TO MEMBERS 



During the first year the association advanced only 40 per cent 

 of the bankers' valuation of the tobacco delivered. The loaning 

 banks at this time were making loans to the cooperative of 50 per 

 cent of the amount of the appraised value of the tobacco. Of the 

 appraised value, 40 per cent was used in making advances to the 

 growers and 10 per cent was kept for association expenses. Later, 

 the percentage of the loans was increased so that the initial advance 



