Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1846-11-11
From Me South Caroliaian.
DIR STATE

40 -uS f'I"'La. ~ -, ..~st !,
dcuoted to the purchase Of Lani and
Negroes, and TOO little to Improgfs
ment. -,
We have said, there is in South Car.
oIlna, ,oo,largean amount Of capital laid
out at very unproduciive interest.
This is particular true of our Agricul-.
tural capital. We invest too much in
lands and negroes /; and too little on the
Improvement Of those lands. A baFf
century ago. this impoverishing existed
all over the Union. Every where the
capitalist looked TO the investment ofhis
money in lands--bestowed his labor
upon them, without having care to the
improvements Of agriculture; and was
in consequence doomed 10 see the pro-
duc,iveness Of bis soil gradually. dimin-
.ishing. Within few years back, a
amore. jndicious system Of culture has
obtained; science has come in to the
aid Of art, and the. farmer has been
taught, tia, il is better to buy one acre,
and expend a portion Of his capital On.
It's Improvement, than hold two. acres
under the old plan. IN whatever States,
therefore, agricultural, Improvements
have been Introduced, the capital and
labor Of the farmer have been produc.
lively employed. Whesvh the opposite
course has been pursued, impoyerisll.
inent and ruin have followed. =. -, -
Let us dwell somewhat upon this
view ofthe. subject. Al over our. State.
our planters have been complaining Of
the small interest derived from their
Iadns and negroes, Until very recently.
the cry was, that produce of every des-s
cription had come down 10 a mere nom,
inal value ), and farming labor Of all.
kinds was proftless Grant this TO- be
the case; are hot such depressions ipci-
dental to every species ot1abor2 And.
j ust as certain as there exist a cause for
such dep.esaons, there likewise existssia
remedy. u. ). .;,!,.-i..
E. We are. not Of those WHO beliesas
there is an over prod1ction etscotton Rrs
the uses ofniahkhd. We q rlt!ie5 ihlRk!s::
II can. be shown that there is yet sasll
large market for, the; consumption Of
that article. as was ever conceived by
the most liberal imagination. The
millions in China--the numerous newly
discovered islands in the Paci6c-the
States of South America-tl,e yet uh>
visited parts of Africa,-jn word, all
the world is opening markets for this
staple, and all these markets must and
will be supplied: :
Nor dre we Of those who,are scared
into the belief, that the cotton planter is
starving because the staple has come
down to its present depreciation. Az
most every thing has nominaIly come
down in price and this will appear to
any one who will make a comparative
scale oflhe prices Of our staples, with
the prices of the manufactures of other
countries. From an exhibit now. before
us, we find, for instance, that in 1920
raw cotton averaged 10 Liverpool, 9
pence per pound ; while cotton twist
sold at 19;pence. In 1880, cotton had
fallen to only 7 pence in the pound;
while cotton twis, had fallen TO IL
pence. Thus: there had been in ten
years fall, averaging only 2 pence on
raw4cotton;, while in the same period,
on the manufactured article the depre.
citation was as grea, as 7 pence.l
This difference, We will be told,
arises from the improvements 10 ma
cbinery, which enables The manufacturer
10 sell for much less. But may not
similar improvements take place ia the
production of the raw material? lfthe
past teaches any lessons for the future.
we are certainly warranted in such a
.heps. Let it not be forgotten that il is
scarce seventy years since cotton was
introduced amongst us as ali ornamental
fower-that people laughed at the idea
of its eyer. becoming staple conimodi-
ty; and, until Whitney's Cotton Cir
was introduced. no 5.one ever Thought
1.-The seed could.be separated from the
wool, except by the agile fingers 40
monkeys trained for the purpose. Art
the improvements in. cotton culture; tc
stop with Whitney's machinery? W.
can look over the cotton plantations o
no portion of our States, without bein.
convinced TO the contrary. We cal
point to many planters in South Carroll
ma; who can afford to sell cotton at five
cents and vet make money. This the,
are enabled to do, by raising every thinI
on plantations necessary for their wants
and { considering cotton as the result Q
their surplus labor. How many planter
are there in this and other states, wh