This is the auction line. The man on the far left is Pat Bowling. He owns the warehouse. Next to him in the green coat is the auctioneer, who in a sing-song voice tosses out proposed bids for the tobacco bails before them. The men on the far right work for the tobacco companies. Their raised fists mean they're willing to buy the tobacco at the price the auctioneer has just reached. The whole line moves pretty fast; these men went through the allotted tobacco for that day in about two hours. The government regulates the number of pounds of tobacco that can be sold each day.

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