Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1868-02-06

we nave no guarantee even THAT thlS
liability shall be enforced under the
civil law or by military seizure and
sale. For, while in Louisiana under
the rule OF the present commandant,
the civil government is declared
paramount, in other Southern dis
tricts it is not. The same disposi-
ton to direct the application of the
treedmen's labor runs through the
regulations in regard to the transfer
Of surplus labor from one district to
another. At the same time no obli-
cation is imposed on the freedmen to
work, and no authority-by this or
der-given the employer to dock or
otherwise charge him for failure to
comply with his contract.
Let, then, the planter observe the
effect of accepting the terms held
out. He binds himself. To find
employment during the crop year tor
the freedmen. 2. To find them in
food and forage for the team used
by them. 3. 10 subject the whole
net profits of his cotton to the pay
ment of these treedmen's labor and
supplies; and A. To guarantee their
wages and support by acknowledge
ing tacit mortgage upon his perso-
nal property.
We withhold any criticism upon
the motives of the Freedmen's Blu
reau at Washington. We regard it
as a pure business transaction, in
which the planter is required to take
a risk that we think the Govern
ment ought to take. We cannot
bear TO sos this impoverished inter
est borrowing the means for the
preservation of their families at
usury so horrible as the positive for
fixture of the little remnant they
have left We do not wish to see
them give bond and security to open
and maintain boarding houses for
the destitute freedmen" upon the
penalties OF having no bread left
wherewith to support their own
helpless families. This, We honestly
believe, would be the consequence
of fall in the price, or the failure
Of crop of cotton, with all who
shall undertake this contract to sup
port the freedmen and pay their
wages besides.
The obligation to support the
freedmen is admitted by the Gov
eminent. Congress has appropriated
money for that purpose. 1t has
been so expended for the past few
years. This obligation, then, fur
nishes the basis of a just agreement
with the planter.
Let the planter hire the freedmeps
labor and let the government furnish
the freedmen with food Let the
planter then guarantee the wages OF
the freedmen i'll any proper manner
The risk OF the crop will then be
divided between the planter !; each
may lose something, but the planter
cannot lose all But even then We
should advise the planter not to bind
himself to find employment for the
freedmen at a fixed rate Of annual
wages. Ii a food or frost should de-
sfrov his hopes the planter should
not bear the whole loss. In such
case the government would feed the
unemployed freedman. The. freed
man would lose his wages for his I'm.
employed term, while the planter
would have advanced the use of his
land, implements and teams, without
profit. The planters should hold
convention, and tender some such
terms 10 the Bureau, and this institu
ton would, no doubt, incline to lib.
era and mercifal policy.
The order contains another stipuls-
ton to which we would call the at
tention of factors 1t is embodied
III the following extract: "And the
(the planter further agrees that when
said crops or other products are pre-.
pared for market tina, the same, or
his portion thereof, shall be shipped
for sale, to such merchants As may
be designated ~ the Bureau in this
city of Me- o leans."
Under n : provision the Bureau
will, in 'o'nm'n prudence, prefer such
tactO1- - Il e|ai he assured will carry
on j.. pn'l.o>r> and protect its inter
t. T.. hey all constitute factor.
aye agency for the Bureau But
What will BE- the situation of those
t"'lors who may be the present agents
of the planter What will become
Of the balances still due them from
the planter? His business will be
aiken from him and conferred, possibly,
upon the Government factors.
We may trust to this astute class