The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1867-05-15
Correspondenoe of the Rennblican

DEMoPOLIs, Ala, March ID, 1867. - The
erroneous idea that there are immense pro-
fits in raising cotton, has undoubtedly in
duced Congress to impose the tax of three
cents pound, while the actual truth is, it
is not more profitable than the cultivation
of any other agricultural product. What
made it profitable in former times was the
continual increasing number and value of
the slaves who cultivated the crop, rather
than the proceeds of the crop itself; for it
is well known that a man not owning slaves
never could make decent living By his own
labor in the cotton field, and even at pre-
sent prices its cultivation is not more pro-
| titable than that of many other agricultural
products which are not taxed To illustrate:
| One man with mule, in good cotton sea-
son, at high average, in the old cotton
States, can make 2G00 pounds of lint cotton
and about enough corn to feed his mule
This takes his entire time for twelve months
IN the year This cotton at the present
price will sell for 5000, on which the gov
ernment tax of cents per pound amounts
to 500. Now, one man with team in Iii
nois, by working six months in the year,
can make 1000 bushels of corn, worth at
least $500, A tax on this $500 worth of
corn raised by one man in Illinois, in pro-
portion to that imposed on the $500 worth of
cotton raised by one man in Alabama would
be 500, or nearly cents per bushtl But as
it takes only half the labor to make the
corn that Is required to make the cotton the
tax on it should be doubled, or JIG cents per
bushel, in order to equalize the business
One man in Berkshire county can provide
for and milk twenty cows, ffon which he
can make 5000 pounds of cheese. which will
net Sl400. Now tax on this 5 400 worth
of cheese, which one man in Berkshire can
make, in proportion TO the 500 tax on $500
worth of cotton which one man il Alabama
can make. would be S16S or two cents Der
pound. How would orr Berkshire farmers
relish this One man in any Northern
State can take care of and provide for
enough sheep to produce 1000 pounds of |
wool, which is Just the number ofpounds of |
cotton which one man in Alabama can pro- |
duce. But wool usually sells at double the |
price of cotton at its home market; hence a 1
tax on wool parallel with that on cotton /
should be six cents per pound Yet Con- /
gress, instead oftaxing wool until it stands
on an equal footing with cotton or remov-
ing the tax from cotton until 1t stands on
an equal footing with wool, keeps tax on
cotton which does not increase the market
value anywhere, and puts high protective
duty on all imported wool. which largely in
creases the home value of the native article |
1t is well enough to protect American wool |
but why thus Cypress American eettonR Is
il magnanimousf Isitjust Is it eneear-
aging Southern emigratlong Is it not rath-
er poor craftsmanship, and blind sectional
This. however, is not the worst feature of
IL. This little tax of three cents Der pouud
on cotton produces actual destitution and
suffering among the freedmen. / have as
sisted in the settlement of aecounfs With |
freedmen. on perhaps fifty plantations in |.
Alabama during the past winter, and know
perhaps we'll their condition. The following