62 
COTTON 
In a word, it would be bad business, an unsound 
economic policy, for buyers to take cotton while 
the size of the crop is uncertain except upon the 
basis of the maximum reasonable estimates — which 
must in any given series of years be materially 
higher than the correct estimates. 
Selling in the fall, therefore, the cotton farmer 
must dispose of his crop with the knowledge that 
the odds are against him, and that the buyer could 
not afford to take a supply of millions of bales in 
excess of his immediate needs, if the odds were not 
in the buyer's favor. 
MORE REGULAR MARKETING SURE TO COME 
Whatever plans may be discussed, the one essen- 
tial, fundamental thing in marketing is more regu- 
lar distribution of sales; and even if the warehous- 
ing system does not become general, cotton growers 
are likely to break away very rapidly from the old 
plan of selling cotton as fast as harvested. In the 
first place, every "lien farmer," every farmer with 
a mortgaged crop, has had to put his cotton on the 
market immediately. This class, as has been said, 
is now rapidly decreasing. Then, too, other farm- 
ers, hard pressed by adversity in the period of low 
prices, were unable to hold their product, even if 
confident of a rising market later on. With better 
prices, therefore, inevitably comes greater freedom 
and more gradual marketing. 
LEAVING COTTON EXPOSED TO THE WEATHER 
If there is anything more foolish than the policy 
of rushing the entire crop upon an unwilling mar- 
ket in the ninety days of the ginning season, it is 
the way we handle the little cotton we decide not to 
sell during these ninety days. It has been said — 
