The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1870-04-14
ExnnsnisTatESn:s

S9esA0Ats ANsos'Ay ;" ~ ASyo
been intsHded as reioinder to pys' SUP
Iplement% on imhigrai6nj Dissassion
iof .thiss issallaabsofbing $suBject fbr tie
South was Invited by yourself, and Ger.
tainly more than welcomed by me when
conducted in the right spirit. MY object
10 reviving this subject in the public
prints was purely patriotic. and with no
love or ,fondness for newspaper. fame or
notoriety. I hope the ecorrespondent in
question can pu. his hand ousr his heart
and say M6senae. I have always thought
that whenever any one intended to give
his arguments on my subject to the pub
lie, for royiew. that they should have
been first we'll digested. II your corres-
pondents have undergone this process,
the result has certainly been flow of
words without the proper modioum of
ideas. I have often heard it said that
when debater's arguments failed him.
he would then, and not until then, resort
to the perversion of the meaning of
words and isolated sentences It is GER
tainly singular coincidence, to say the
least of 1t, that all the -editora through
out the State who have noticed my com.
munications on immigration at all, have
either commended them, or spoken of
them, in the mildest terms, "a worthy ut
lelst II consideration. Is it possible
that this single individual is better ac-
quainted with the matters involved, and
better capable of Judging, than all these
gentlemen of the press, who have had
the opportunities of both reading and
rejecting on all that has been published
on this subject since the close Of the war?
He accuses me of ''gross misrepre-
sentation of his meaning" Well, T gave
my views in regard 20 the kind of labor
!ers we both needed and could procure.
He says "Our country does not now
need the introduction to large extent
of suoh laborers as contemplated in the
plan" Icontend that we do need them
to q 'large extent" both as Iaborers as
we'll as voters, and hence the logical de-
ductions as stated in the supplement.
I suppose he would say in reply. that he
intended those who accepted homesteads
80 supply these wants. Suppose we
could get the class indicated by him, as
we'll as secure them good titles to their
homesteads. (which do not believe
they would have their own farms, and
hence could not be at the command Of
the landowners as laborers and the
numbers introduced would not be 80
great as the plan contemplated by me,
and hence the number of votes less.
BE seems to object to the manner in
which I disposed of his relation of our
loss Of labor since 1866. did not think
1t necessary to comment upon the causes
Nf fha1 loon 1e 1o1 -
ern States, for it was 80 plain to see
after the negroes we're freed, that it took
no prophet to foretell it; the laws of
supply and demand would have answered
this question. But, really, I saw no me-
cessity for Juggling this question into his
first article, with the view of proving
that we could not ''keep our immigrant
laborers after importing Them" My
plan for the introduction and distribu-
ton OF laborers was intended for the
adoption OF the whole South; and if oar
ried out, would not the West procure in
proportion to their ability as we'll as de-
mands And would not this fact, when
applied to all the Southern States, regu-
late both the numbers rs we'll as the
prices of labor?
When pondering over the results that
would accrue to the State if his sugges-
tions were carried out, I asked, does he
mean that the planters of the South
should take the plow-handles and give
their waste lands to the already comfort
able ",Ohite men Of some ,neans,'' &c.2
l meant by this that the supply of labor
ers would not be sufficient to occupy
them in directing or experimenting ia-
borers; and that this, together with the
pecuniary want necessarily consequent,
would force this state of things. I
would ask, which woull develop the re-
sources of and enrich South Carolina
most rapidly: to have hordes of laborers
introduced into the State. distributed
and managed as indicated in my articles,
or to have all the planters to take the
plow-handles, and each one able to giue
good titles 10 homesteads, to have one or
more foreign families settled on his plan
tation. no one of which foreigners know
ing how to prepare the land, plant, cul-
tivate or harvest any one of our South
ern products-say cotton, rice, tobacco,
sugar-cane, or corn? What do you sup
pose would be the result ? My predic.
ton would be universal bankruptcy, and
moro paupers than the world ever saw