Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1845-08-27
MISCELLANEOUS.
From the Mercury. l9th INST.

The following communication comes
10 US from gentleman OF high resPec'a
bility, and Member of Tho Legislature
! from Spenanbnrg:
SpARTANBuRG C. Fl. Aug. 9. lS45.
TO the Editor Z the Mercury.
A meeting of the farmers of this Dis,
trict ON Monday last, 10 take into consid
eralion the stale of the provision crop,
was mos, numerously attended, and from
tire authentic information then derived,
our worst fears have Been confrmed.-
The. provision crop will fall short fully
iwo Thirds, and So far as we had The means
of obtaining. information, the opinion was
that the whole uppe" country is in about
the same condition. The surplus of the
old crop in Rutherford, Henderson and
Buncombe. N. Co.. is in great degree ex
hausted. by the demand from this State.
Our people are already sending their
wagons into Tennessee for Corn. thereby
necessarily enhancing its price to ruinous
raes, aud utterly placing it out OF The
power of the poorer Iaborng classes to OBJ
lain bread. Many of this class are. al
ready living by The charity which los,not
yet quite fi,ied-but which must fail if
relief from some quarter is moi afforded
Them. The monicd resources Of The up
per country are so near dried up that the
capital is not amongst US 10 relieve our
people. |, is rrre they are emisratng in
droves, YET charity cannot sustain The bal
ance |, will he impossible for your rea'
ders 10 realize The excitement now pre-
vailiug amongst all classes, or 10 credit
without plenary proof the lamen'able
condition Of The farming interest. The
crop that is now making is almost exclu-
sively confined to the bottom ands--lhe
upland in many places is 81 loial failure
that many are cutting nown their fields to
save the stalks for fodder. There are
hundreds of acres that will not make the
seed planted. know men. who in or
dinary times are called "goud liverS,"
that will not make as many pecks AS they
usually make barrels of Corn. Men speak
with fear aud trembling Of the prospect
before lhem-and those who have Corn
feel and know they will not long be better
off Than those who have none. Starving
men never have been controlled by reason
or the law, and we have no right 10 hope
they ever will he.
With the ecli ascer,ained fact of the
failure in the provision crop. aud in view
of the inevitable consequences which a
shorI time will develope-the men of pro-
perry, the tax payers, have come 10 the
~ hat .e, ,l,a
duy of The State 10 inlerposs lis shield
of protection against The threatened ca
lami,y, ia favor of lis suffering children.
Sparlanburs has adopted The general prin.
ciple of "relief TO The people," aud invi.
tel her co.sufferers to an expressiun of
of opinion and a prompt cooperation in
The means of carrying ou1 the principle.
No details have been offered. No iudi-
,dual or sectional opiniuh sci up for The
government Of others. We trust 10 the
parental feeling Of the Stale, as well as To
its wisdom. Will she see her sous and
daushters-lhe small farmers. The bone
| aud sinew of the Stale, drive iuro exile,
or suffer them to slarve Oh her sol. Our
! people trust not.
have been requested NY many respec-
table gentlemen to bring the mater before
the public through the columns Of tire
Mercury. | am wei! aware that on the
first blush of this question Of relief, many
will treat the idea with ridicule, as Chi
merical, as unnecessay-ineApedien, Of
doubtful policy or even Unconstitutional
but if the coun,ry be in he SITUATION gen
orally supposed, | upiue the advocates for
relief will present a much stronger case
of urgent necessity, and undoubted expe
diency, than did The city OF Charleston in
asking The fire loan. If the expedienry
of granting relief be admitted, presume
the power Of doing so will not admit Of
serious argument. AT all events have
done my duty in inviting public attention
10 this--lo us, allabsorbine subject.