Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1866-12-06
THE LABOR EXPERIMENT Ia TEN
NESSEE.

THE LABOR EAPEhIMENE IN AE4N-
NESSEE.
In response to inquiries as to the sue
cess or failure Of the experiment of free
negro labor in this State during the year
now closing, we have received but one re-
ply, and that is unfavorable. There are
doubtless exceptions; but it is unqucs-
tionable hat the large majority Of those
who undertook to cultivate the soil by the
labor of the freedmen, have been thor
oughly disappointed, and viii scarcely
realize more than enough from the pros
ceeds to pay of wages, and the other ne
cessary expenses of cultivation. The ex-
ceptions are almost exclusively confined
to those who owned the lands, and have
no rents to pay But even with this class
no adequate return will be realized as in
terest on investment over and above the
current outlay.
Many are ascribing their failure simply
and solely to the substitution of free ne.
gro labor in place of that heretofore sup.
piled by slaves We do not concur in
this opinion to the full extent The negro,
in his free condition, is not wholly at
fault. His sudden emancipation and the
much that has been said about him by
the newspapers and the politicians, have
given him mistaken notions of himself
and his duties. The want of self-rellance
and foresight has made him to a degree
thriftless and idle But with it all, he has
conducted himself with general propri
ETY.. In the main he has shown a most
commendable appreciation of the usages
of society in the South, and his true re-
lations thereto, The great body of the
two hundred thousand who were in the
Federal armies, and fighting against the
Southern people, have remained in our
midst and demeaned themselves as be-
came their condition and station Freed
from the restraints of slavery, in the
midst of commotion, and turned loose in
the presence Of those whom they had
previously served, it was to be expected
that idleness would follow even to,a greater
extent than has been manifested. 1t re-
quired experience to teach them their ne
cessities and to bring them to realize
what their new condition imposed Thou
sands having taken that lesson, and we
are inclined to believe, are now ready to
embrace its benefits, and to turn their
footsteps into the paths of industry.
On the other hand, it is possible that
many of their employees, failing to make
proper allowance for the unavoidable
effects of emancipation, fixed their ex-
pectations too high; and failing in their
yerifcation, are still in error in the exact
estimate Of the result In this State, we
are persuaded, that very many planters
committed a grave mistake in deyOting
too much time and attention to the pro-
duction of cotton-depending for pro-
visions and other needed plantation sup
plies upon others, With the experience
and observation of this year, both on the
part of the planters and freedmen, it
would be natural to conclude that there
ought to be an Improvement next year.
Such we think would be the result, upon
q diligent and intelligent effort
These reflections are suggested by the
evident signs Of despair Of the profitable
employment of free negro labor in all this
section of Tennessee They are giveH
in this place to stimulate our planters to
renewed efforts another year, to utilize
the great body of colored labor, by still
further experiment, by stricter economy
and by more iudicious management and
direction 1t is folly to suppose that the
cultivation Of the soil inthe South can
be abandoned 1t is equally idle to sup
pose that it can be cultivated without the
labor Of the negroes. They necessarily,
under present conditions, constitute the
great resource for field labor in the South
Though it be not as valuable as it has
been, or as we may desire it to be, it can
not be thrown away These facts plainly
indicate our duty in reference to it, and
now is the time to resolve and attend to it