The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1866-10-13
The Future of Labor,

sing, to some extent undertaking, Il
supply the deficiency from abroad. W.
acknowledge some degree Of skcpti
cism, says the New Orleans Picayune
rs to the applicability Of the lessons OF
history or of experience to our situa
ton, inasmuch AS history has so lamen
tably failed to repeat itself for our re
lief heretofore, and so far as it has
done has only presagcd misfortune
Yet We cannot fail to see that all Other
people, situated us we are, have failed
to receive prompt aid to their industry
either from cmancipatcd slaves orTrom
immediate immigration Of laborcrs
from regions. The West India Island
afforded ample illustration of this. II
is true, that in the Island Of Barbados
tlc negro works hard AMI well but
there he is cncompasscd by water, and
the population is dense. The better oil
Of his own class, as well as the white
man, insists upon his supporting him
self by his labor or means, and this he
must do or compulsion is used to in
ducc it, Il rule which is applied to white
and black alike; but here, in this open
country, and with institutions 50 eXces'
sivcly free as ours, this is impossible,
This we say, irrespective of civil rights
acts and constitutional enactments in
tended to dignity and protect lazincss.
All the orders of Banks and Butler,
which were infinitely more severe than
the labor laws enacted by Southern
legislatures since the war, couldnot get
steady, uniform and saving work out Of
the negro, nor can any reliance be
placed on his contracts for future labor.
As it has been found in Jamaica, Trim,
idad, British Guiana and elsewhere,
year by year the old habit of work will
wear away from the older ones, add the
Younger will never acquire it, unless Il
system of employment be devised.
1t is Of this we wish to speak now.
The whole system Of labor in the
past has been one of life, or at least
yearly employ of the laborer. We
never planted our corn and cot
ton as the Western and Northern far
lncr his corn and wheat, by laborcrs
employed from month to month, week
to week, or by the day. We have new
rr thought it practicable so to do. Yet
crops, including an inIinitudc Of
which VIC hardly think of, re
luirc to the space cultivated, at least as
much labor rs do ours, and they get
along exceedingly well, though there
IRE more proprictors Of the soil in pro
portion to our population with them
than with us. The objection made to
this course among us isthat large plan
cannot he thus cultivated yet
here are farms III the West of over
20, 600 acres in actual cultivation and
.illagc, where labor-saving machinery
supplies additional arms to two hun
lrcd men, who from time to time are
here employed. Yet lift should prove
rue that large plantations could not be
o cultivated, can the labor be other
wise secured to cultivate them? Much
he best plan would seem to be to plant
css land at less risk of entire failure or
great pccuniary loss, and thus be Sc
,ure of some gain, lift be nota fortune.
Th. chief end to be secured by short
;crms of labor, is that this course will
end to make the lahorcr more honest
II work. If he does not do the work
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Tho trutb Is. tbo effort 70 adopt free