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THE INDUSTRIAL AMD EDUCATIONAL INTERESTS OF OUR PEOPLE PARAMOUNT TO ALL OTHER CONSIDERATIONS OF STATE POLICY.
Vol. 2.
RALEIGH, N. C, NOVEMBER 3, 1887.
No. 37.
OUR FARMERS' CLUBS.
What our Farmers are Doing and How
the Work of Organizing is
Progressing.
s GRANVILLE COUNTY ALLIANCE.
Granville County Alliance was
or-
ganized on the 8 th of October.
President M. L. "Winston.
Vice-President; L. A. Wilkins.
Secretary W. P. White, Wilton
N. C.
Treasurer D. B. Lawrence, Jr
Red River County Alliance has
bought a half block of ground in Clarks-
vilie,. and wm erect a piattorm tor
weighing cotton at once. Resident
cotton buyers are favorable to the Al-
liance platform. Citizens of the town
advanced one-third of the cash to buy
the ground, and offered to make it as
a donation, but the Alliance did not
wish this to be done, as they preferred
to have the entire control of the plat-
fnrm Cotton is commff in freelv.
Waco Star and Crescent.
At the farmers' club meeting here
the 1st Monday in November next, the
question will be publicly debated as to
whether or not tobacco or cotton is
the more profitable crop for warren.
The farmers generally should come
and hear it, for there are not many
men who know it all and cannot learn,
Come out farmers and listen and learn.
You hear politics, law, religion, prohib
ition and other topics discussed. Why
not listen to something about your
own business. Come. Gazette.
For The Progressive Farmer.
Auburn, N. C, Oct. 25, '87.
Auburn. Alliance No. . 41
15th (last meeting.) Some
portant business transacted.
met Oct.
very im-
Several
applications presented and several in
itiated. This Alliance is now com
posed of 55 members and applications
still coming in. It will not be long
before every man in this community
who is eligible to membership will be-
lonar to this order. The lumber for
the erection of our lodge is expected
to arrive in a few days. . Will some
reader of The Progressive Farmer
tell me the best method of ventilating
our lodge ? Will not some one give
me a good answer to this question ?
At the organization of the State Alli
ance this paper (The Farmer) was
adonterl as its orcran. Why then do
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not more of the Alliances in the State
let us hear from them through this
organ ? Let there be more communi
cation between the brother farmers of
the State.
Hoping to read numbers of reports
from other Alliances in the next issue
of The Progressive Farmer, I am,
Fraternally yours,
Sellie M. Smith, Sec'y.
. For The Progressive Farmer
Tyro Shops, N. C., Oct. 26, '87.
Davidson Countv. Gravel Mill.
Farmers' Club met on April 9th, 1887,
and organized bv electine:
President J ohn H. Koonts ; Yad
kin College.
Vice-President D. C. Craver ;
Michael
Secretarv Alex. Swicesrood: Tyro
Rim
Treasurer John H. Gobble ; Yad-
kin College
b To.nt ito rWnTniftoA I a k. i Jraver.
. o . - It
H. C. Fritts, I. H. Walser, G. W.
Snider and H. A. Clement.
VVUWC VVlUAJiiWWW - 7
Our fjlnh'- numbers 28 and is in
good working - order. Meets every
fourth Sat.nrdav at 2 p. m. A good
Dort.irm of Vi mom Via ra tfl.VA an active
A. w vA lH.A.j wy. Mm.w w- - i
part in the discussions, which has
been yery interesting. The question
discussed at the last meeting was,
"The best plan for sowing wheat,
and quantity per acre," &c.
The next meeting will be at 7 o'clock
P- m on the fourth Saturday in No
vember.. Questions for discussion,
"The raising of hogs and the best
breeds adapted to this country."
Speakers. John H. Koonts. G. W.
Snider and H. C. Fritts. Also " The I
tfcst plan for raisinsr cattle, and the I
uc&b uieeus lor mis section oi coun
try." Speakers, Alex. Swicegood, H.
neimesteller and K..B. Myero.
Respectfully,
Alex. Swicegood. Sec'y.
GREEN MANURING.
Number 10.
The statement that the South is not
a hav country has been made so often.
and so confidently,' that it has been ac
cepted by nearly every one as being a
well established fact. The sea coast
towns of the entire South and manv of
the inland cities have been bu vine hav
from the New England States during
tne past century.
The farmers find that grass grows so
fast that it prevents their having time
to cultivate a vegetable garden and
nearly all cotton farmers for this sea-
son failed to produce a full supply of
vegetables, for their, own use, ; It has
been lately discovered that the South
is the great hay-producing portion of
the countrv. and that forage ran T
can
produced more abundantly and more
cheaply here than in any other portion
of the Union. The truck farmers have
found that a profitable and large crop
of hay can be grown on their truck
land, after the spring craps of peas,
beans and potatoes, by turning under
the green vines and harrowing the
fiplrl TW writer Vi n. ftYA nf Mm
erass about thirtv inches hie-h. which
was produced by turniug under a crop
of bean vines in June. This crop was
crown for manure and will be turned
under in December or January.
There is a splendid field of two hun-
dred acres, belonging to J. L. Rhem,
adioining Newbern that was planted
in February with peas and potatoes,
which were taken off in June. These
crops was followed by carp grass, (the
best hay-producing grass , for the
South), and the hay was cut with a
two-horse mower in beptember. I his
land produced from two thousand to
twenty-five hundred pounds of cured
hay per acre. This crop will be worth
at least twenty -five hundred' dollars;
the stubble will be plowed under and
will return to the land several tons of
greed manure per acre for the next
: .
crop.
The hay crop, which is the second
crop this year, will pay more net profit
than the majorrity of the acres m cot
ton. and will leave the land in better
condition for the crops of next year,
.Each acre produced seven times as
much forage, as is usually obtained
from an acre of corn fodder, and for
age almost as good, at less than one
fourth the expense of pulling fodder.
THE FARMERS' ALLIANCE AND
y CO-OPERATIVE UNION
A OF AMERICA.
It has Come to North Carolina to stay
A Southern Institution Adapted to the
Wants and Needs of Southern Agricul
ture An Official Statement of Its
Scope, Character and Purposes.
Mr. N. H. C. Elliott, of Brown
wood, Texas, arrived in
this city a
few days ago. ; Being regularly ; com
missioned as National Lecturer and
Organizer by the National Alliance,
and comme: with the highest testi
monials as to his character and posi-
tion, we sought an interview with him
with the view of presenting some of
the chiet features ot tms young put
powerful and rapidly growing lnstr
tution. to tne reaaers oi jlhk xku-
: .i t e m - t
gressivb Farmer. We found Mr.
Elliott an. intelligent, straightforward
J -
manner and thoroughly conhdent ot
the ultimate and grand success of the
order. We give our Questions and
his answers
X
Q. " When and where did the Alli
ance originate ?
A. "It originated in 18 1 2, in Lam
pasas county, Texas, among farmers
and stockmen .for protection against
depredations of horse and cattle thieves
and land swindlers ?
Q. " When did it begin to enlarge
the scope of its purposes ?
A. "In 1875 it appeared m Parker
county, and was then cultivating social
and, charitable relations among its
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U 4- 1, J jVV .4 a
members and also inaugurating ?in a
small " way a crude system of selling
and buying together. It has grown
and spread and developed until now
we have 134 organized counties in our
State, with a membership of 251,000,
and a State Alliance, officered and
fully equipped to manage the business
and look after the interests of this
larSe body f members."
Q- "To what do you ascribe the
raPid growth of your order in Texas?'
A. " It is due to several causes, bu
it may be briefly stated, that the grea
depression in agricultural interests.
tne utter helplessness of the farmers
to control the products of their labor
me general system oi servne ae:
pend en ce which was gradually but
surely fastening itself upon us. These
crushing evils were growing upon us
and excited deep concern, if not alarm
among our thinking farmers, and they
were anxiously looking for relief ; so,
tney were not only ready, but anx
ious to adopt such measures of relief
as are oitered by tne Alliance ; Hence
they went into it by hundreds and
thousands."
y-v . . -r i
u. " is your order, in any sense, a
political organization ?"
A. "In a partisan sense. No
Ihere are important reasons why it
cannot be. The Alliance is of neces
sity a secret order and we know that
party politics introduced into a secret
business organization would kill it
then we could not belong to any order
wouia require us to Keep our po
lltlcal principles or action a secret
0f course we not only tolerate, but we
encourage and require our members to
sluav ine science oi economic govern
me- At 1S a business and not a po-
litical organization."
O. "You say it is ot necessity a
secret order ; will you please explain
why?"
A. ''Simply to secure success. We
are learning some lessons from other
interests and other classes. One of
the most important lessons is, that to
succeed in any business, the plans and
methods to be employed in its prose
cutions are not to be made public.
Merchants, banks, railroads, corpora
tions of any kind do not throw open
their plans and purposes to the world,
if they did they would never succeed.
We the farmers of the South, must
adopt the same wise precautions. We
are a secret order simply because the
recognized successful systems of our
age admonish us that it is the road to
success in all business enterprise. The
CD
only secrets, I am free to say, that we
have, are our business plans and some
machinery by which we protect our
selves against imposition."
Q "Who are eligible to member-
ship in your order ?"
A. "I will quote the language of
our Constitution on this subject, and
he read as follows: "Farmers, farm
laborers, mechanics, country physic
ians, fnot engaged in the drug busi
ness) and ministers of the gospel. All
persons becoming members must d
of good moral character, believe in the
existence of a Supreme Being, be of
industrious habits must be a white
person and over the age of 16 years."
Q. "Does your order m any way
conflict with the Grange, the Agricul
tural Wheel, or the Farmers' Clubs?"
A. " It does not, but is in thorough
accord with the general purposes of
all these organizations. Indeed, the
Wheel in Arkansas, Tennessee, Ken
tucky and Missouri, have adopted our
work, and now affiliate fully with us.
The Farmers' Union of Louisiana and
The Farmer Relief in Mississippi, have
adopted our work." 1
Q. "What is your aggregate mem
bership, , and chiefly in what terri
tory ?"
A. "About 1,200,000, chiefly in
eight Southern States."
Q. "Are you not athhated with the
Alliance of the Northwest ?"
A. " We are not. That was origi
nated in Chicago, by Milton George,
a brother of the noted Henry George.
Theirs is an open political organiza
tion and there is not, nor can there
be, any affiliation between us."
Q. How was your order received by
the press and the business men of your
State, and how do they regard it
now?"
A. "At first the business men
treated the matter very lightly, and
predicted its early and utter failure,
and the press sympathizes with that
view, and assumed and declared that
we were a secret political order, but
now there is not a paper in the whole
State that is not our steadfast friend,
and the leading dailies are giving us
their active and earnest support. The
business men as a rule are most kindly
disposed toward us and our order, and
its success has their confidence and
encouragement. Indeed we have oves
100 Alliance cotton yards established
in the State, and most of these were
built for us with money and contribu
tions of the business men in the towns
in which they are located. As an in
ducement to establish our State Head
quarters in that city, Dallas made a
contribution to us in lots, lands,
money, buildings etc., amounting to
not less than $100,000. This shows
what the business men of Texas think
of us.
Q. " Well, have you had any trouble
with political parties or politicians ?"
A. " With the parties as such, no.
Chronic office seekers, political trick
sters and disappointed sbre-headshave
given us some trouble, but we are
now in a position to paddle cur own
canoe."
Q. " You say you have cotton yards
of your own will you give me the
methods by which you run these
yards, and something of the benefits
you claim for them ?"
A. "A detailed statement of the
whole system would perhaps be longer
than you would like to have in your
paper at this time, and as it is the
duty of myself and all organizers to
explain fully and in detail this system
to your people, I will give you. only
an outline. Each of these colAvards
is in chajge of a bonded bflBcerV V(by
the way, all our officers ar ooAwd,
salaried men. We have no mehaid
in any way by commissions.) We
have every facility that any cotton ex
change or mercantile association has
for obtaining the exact state of the
market at any point in the world and
at any hour, and our machinery is
such that within one hour from the
time our dispatches are received at
State headquarters, every agent in the
State knows the price of cotton for
that day, and every farmer belonging
to the Alliance can know what his
cotton is worth if he will ask. So, a
farmer bringing his cotton to our
yards can take his sample and go on
the local market (and we always en
courage them to do so) and know
whether or not to sell, then we can
send sample to State headquarters,
where we are thoroughly prepared to
get him the prices in the best markets.
It costs him from ten to twenty-five
cents per bale to have his cotton
weighed and for storage no matter
how long he may want it stored. He
pays,' of course, the insurance, which
is very little. We are prepared, un
der the same system, to handle our
other products and our stock. Under
this system, also, we have arrange
ments perfected by which we can and
do make purchases for our members,
and so perfect is the system that we
confidently expect to make a net sav
ing of over one million dollars to our
members during next year."
Q. "Well, you strike heavy at the
"middle man " by your plan, do you
not?"
A. " Nor we do not propose to do
away with the middle men they are
an important factor in our great social
fabric and we could riot well do with
out them. We make no war on any
one. We encourage all men engaged
in a legitimate business and want to
see them prosper and succeed, but
there are checks and balances which
are essential to the well-Tjeing of soci
ety, and we propose to see that middle
men nor any other class shall absorb
what justly belongs to us. The Alli
ance is founded on Truth and Justice,
and justice is all we ask at the hands
of the business world. ; This granted
and we will take care of ourselves."
Q. "Does the Alliance own and
operate co-operative stores ?"
A. " Yes, a few, but under our sys
tem, known1 as the "Macune Trade
System," we, as a rule, find that we
are able to make very satisfactory
terms with our own merchants and
for the present we recommend this
system. It is very perfect and gives
satisfaction to all merchants who deal
with us. This will be explained fully
to your people as we proceed in the
work of organization. "
Q. " Well, are the financial advan
tages of your order confined to buying
and selling ?"
A. "Why, bless your life, these are
only the beginning of a vast system of
financial design, which. we. hope will
penetrate every department of our
industries. We ' have already per
fected a system for establishing manu
facturing enterprises, and under which
we have now in operation twelve fine
Roller Flouring mills and five others
in process of construction and several
cotton factories prejected, two of
which we hope soon to have in opera
tion. The South must become what
nature designed a great manufac
turing district, -we must work up our
vast store of raw material if we would
become the prosperous and powerful
people that we ought to be. We, of
Texas, cling with filial love to the dear
old South, and we want to quicken
her into new life, by grasping and
utilizing new opportunities. We have
the most abiding faith in the nerve
and pluck of our people and in the
scheme, which for eight long years we
have worked earnestly to perfect, and
it is 'with pride that we all recognize
the truth that to the foresight, wisdom
and indomitable pluck and loyal devo
tion of Dr. C. W. Macune, the Presi
dent of our National Alliance, we are
indebted for our success and the high
plane we occupy in the business world.
We not only wish to see the material
development of the South, but we
have other grand objects to accomp
lish. We want and must work for
the moral, social and intellectual de
velopment of our people, and this is a
part of our declared purpose."
Q. "What means do you use for
bringing your order before the people,
and for informing them as to your ob
jects and purposes ?"
A. " We use organizers, whose lec
tures are always public, but the gvfiat
propelling power of the movement ; is
our Alliance organ, the Southern Mer
cury, which fcargely patronized and
extensively reahrby our order. It is
the property of the Alliance and we
could not do without it, neither can the
Alliance prosper in any State unless
it has an organ, patronized and read
by the members. It is a silent but
powerful and eloquent advocate of our
noble principles, and the father and
his whole family are receiving "line
upon line and precept upon precept"
every week, and thus we educate our
people to cherish and love the princi
ples they have espoused. No alliance
can live and grow and prosper that
does not read its paper this we have
found by experience, to be strictly
true. I am therefore gratified to see
that The Progressive Farmer has
been adopted thus far by the Alliances
in your State and hope they will use
it freely and liberally for the upbuild
ing of the order. ' ' r
Mr. Elliott then went on to say that
he was commissioned and sent to our
State to organize a State Alliance and
to push the matter of organizing sub
ordinate and County Alliances until
our whole State is brought into the
order. . He will attend the meeting of
the National Alliance at Shreveport,
in Louisiana on the 12th inst., and re
turn to our State and address himself
vigorously to the work of organizing.
He requests that counties ana com
munities wishing an early organization
will address him at Raleigh. Care of
The progressive Farmer. ' .
The Agricultural TClub will meet
here the 1st Saturday in November.
Interesting questions will be publicly
discussed and . every ; - progressive
farmer in the county i3 invited to
attend. Gazette. . - .
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