16 CIRCULAR 10 0, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



marketing association an opportunity to arbitrarily control the price 

 of their product, and this attitude was encouraged by the speeches 

 of some of the members of the organization committee, the " selling 

 talks " of solicitors, and in printed matter issued to stimulate 

 organization. 



In the fervor, eagerness, and enthusiasm of the membership cam- 

 paign, the benefits resulting to the members of a tobacco cooperative 

 were described in extravagant terms. It was generally believed that 

 a sufficiently large membership of itself guaranteed the success of 

 the organization. References were too seldom made to the diffi- 

 culties and limitations of cooperative associations, to the complicated 

 problems of management and merchandising, or to the problem of 

 retaining membership loyalty. Such enthusiasm and optimism was 

 felt by many leaders to be necessary in the formation of such an 

 organization of producers. Unless stimulated in this way, it was 

 believed, the growers might fail to take the necessary steps for group 

 action. The practical difficulty with any organization formed under 

 such Utopian and roseate promises and expectations is that a danger- 

 ous and harmful reaction will follow. 



There can be no doubt but that the spirit and attitude of enthusi- 

 asts at this time greatly influenced subsequent developments. Dur- 

 ing a period of depression airy plan of relief may be grasped eagerly 

 without a careful analysis or even reasonable examination of its 

 practicability. Most of the producers seemed to be in a mood to 

 accept any proposal which gave even reasonable assurance of relief. 

 Farm journals and newspapers contained articles about cooperation, 

 which showed how successful it was in other areas and in handling 

 other commodities. All these factors led many farmers to believe 

 that cooperative marketing of tobacco was bound to succeed and that 

 it would supplant the existing market machinery and insure at least 

 cost of production plus a fair profit to the growers. 



ATTITUDE TOWAKD THE TOBACCO TRADE 



Preceding and during the organization campaign there developed 

 throughout the area an attitude of intense antagonism toward per- 

 sons and firms engaged in the marketing and manufacture of tobacco. 

 The disastrous decline in the price of tobacco was laid at the door of 

 these agencies. Speeches made and articles written during the cam- 

 paign intensified this feeling. Many rash and derogatory statements 

 were made regarding the agencies engaged in handling, marketing, 

 and manufacturing tobacco. Belief became widespread that the co- 

 operative association would supplant all agencies then engaged in 

 handling and marketing the crop. 



This attitude of many organizers toward existing market organi- 

 zations during the campaign period was such that the new associa- 

 tion in turn incurred the antagonism of the warehousemen and other 

 middlemen. In the beginning, many private dealers were not openly 

 antagonistic to a farmer's organization. When they were informed 

 of the attitude of the organizers, however, and understood that it was 

 the intention of these men to supplant the existing marketing organi- 

 zation, they became aroused and formed organizations to oppose the 

 cooperative movement. The attitude of some of the leaders of the 



