The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-05-31
THE CAROLINA OF TODAY
views OF i GENTLEMIN OF THE
OLD SCHOOL.
Poverty of the Old Plantcrs-Cotton
Planting Observation-Disclosures of
the Negroes-Their Destiny-Future of
the South.

h outh.
The correspondent Of the New York Tribune
writes from Charleston under date Of the 18th
instant:
I met yesterday a good specimen Of the old.
school South Carolina gentleman-a man OF
about sixty, tall and well built. dressed with
scrupnlous care, and having q diSnifed bear
inr and a courtesy Of speech. This gentleman
entertained me for an hour with o convelsa-
ton upon the condition OF affairs In this Stale
that showed a freedom from prejudice, aud a
disposition to forget the past aud make the best
of things as they exist, that is seldom eVlnced
BY people OF his class. he was for ten years q
what was called a model plantation upon the
Savannah River, in Ab5eVille District. His
plantation was one OF that kind that used to be
shown to Northern travellers as a proc; OF the
benign character Of the Institution Of slavery,
where all the slaves were robust and
healthy, well-clad, well-ted. comfortably
decree of happiness. he said that since
the surrender he had become poor, and
had taken tc the practice of the law to earn q
living. Ny acquaintance, whom ] SHALL call.
the colonel, gave me an account OF the pow
erty OF most of the proud old families in the
middle and upper districts of The State, men
IlOQlup luGIu dill Wv uollVt WIZ "
of their former atauence and their present IN
digence. One OF his illustrations OF their
changed circumstances was particularly
striking. "These gentlemen" ne said, Yin
the old time would never drink brandy that
was less than thirty years old, and now they
can afford nothing better than tne meahess
corn whiskey.' But how can they De SO
Why don't they sell a portion of their estates p
I asked. s.Becarse nobody wants 10 buy. The
land Is a burd> % them. They cannot get
accustomed to Lee new LABOR system, anu
many Of them, when their cotton Is sold at
the END OF the year, md themselves poorer
than when they began, and only ueeper-in
debt after a years hard work. The plant
ers have been ruined by cultivatlng cotton
exclusively and neglecting all the food crops:
In nv district I am we'll acquainted with all
the planters. ] do not know one who mas
made anything the past year. and can call TO
mind o number who have each lost several
hundred dollars. They planted with The eX-
pectation that cotton would sell for 20 cents q
bound, and when they had brought their crops
to market they could only obtain IL or IL
cents, and could not pay their expenses with
the proceeds" The colonel said that, previous
to 1860, 1t was considered discreditable Tor a
planter not to raise all the corn be needed lot
who did not plant an acre. The cause Of THIS
mistaken policy, he thought, was the great
need OF money, and the expectations raised by
the high price that cotton brought alter the
war. This year he had observed mat a mucn
larger area OF corn had been planted. He did
not think that the corn was stolen IN tne 1elos
to so great All extent as TO deter lhe planters
from cullivating it, as others had represented
to me.
Three systems OF labor prevail. One is Tor
the planter to hire his workinen, paying them
monthly wages Of from Sc to IS, and giving
them an allowance of corn meal and bacon. a
cabin. and a garden patch. Another Il to give
the laborer one-third OF the crop, the planter
providing seed, fertilizers, tools and m
The third system is for the laborer to furnish
everything eXcept fertilizers, and receive one
halt the crop. The last two systems are much
preferred by the negroes, and are the most
used in practice; but even these systems. the
colonel said, do not afford sntlclent lncenes'e
to the negroes to be INDUSTRIOUS, anu, as a
consequence. the result often proves unpront-
able 10 the planter and to the .aoorer. he
that the negroes are, as n class, lazy
aud fhriitless, working only when driven 10 IL
by necessity. 'You draw false CONCLUSIONS,
he said, ''about the industry Oh Inc aeaaS
from the amount of the cotton crop produced
in tin South last year. Ihaye showl you now
his Vas done BY an almost total neglect, Oh
the provision crops. and that The result mas
been disastrous. I do not believe That the
total value of the agricultural productions Oh
thu South Tor 1870 will equal the average value
ofihe productions during the ten years pre-
,eedjnr the war. In other words, l am conf
dent that the negro is Rot producing as muen
now as he did under the slave system. Hels
not Industrious by nature. He will work nard
for oae day, and then spend TWO IN huntnS,
fishing or idling, about the nearest toWn,
planting thus but one acre, where, Win con,
ss&ept industry, ne might plant tnree;. l t9sa
The colonel that had observed in Columbia.
Anderson and Greenville that q number OF
colored men had bought lots and Quilt com
Portable houses, thus giving evidence OF haolts
of industry and economy. These, ne thoughC,
were exceptional instances. They, were me
mechanics OF the teSvns, trained 10 STEADY
labor from boyhood. The vast majority OF the
colored people OF The STATE oarely l'eu ifom
hand to mouth. he said.
The colonel thought that the African race
would soon become extinct in all Inc country,
with the exception, perhaps, OF Inc not,
marshy seaboard, where the white race would
not come into competition with 1t. AccorolnS
to his observation, the mortality among LUG
negroes had greatly Increased since ihey, were
emancipated, and this increase resulted from
insufficient food and clothing. poor shelter
and carelessness and lack OF Judgment 10
tending The young and nursing the SICK. ful-
monary complaints, formerly almost unAno"u,
had become prevalent and fatal. He discuss,
ed Darwin's theory of the struggle Tor llte, anu
maintained that its truth would be strlkingly
illustrated on this continent by the gradual
disappearance OF the negroes, who, now lta1
they are brought into active competition Win
the whites. must inevitably perish according
to the law OF nature, which preserves only lhe
strong and vigorous races. I'm lhe Gays OF
slayery,n he said. lit was for the interest Oh
the white men that the negroes should ~
crease in numbers. There was, therefore, no
struggle between the two races; the stronger,
on the contrary, aided and protected The Weak,
err. Now, the case is changed: and, win all
the feeling of kindness We have Tor the ne.
croes, and our unwllliEgness 10 see Them SUI
fer. the aggressive energy OF the anSlo sax
on race will push them out OF existence
TIE colonel thought that, as the negro race
disappeared, G new and vigorous civlilZatlon
would spring up in the South that would leaa
the world. He believed that all the element
of such q civilization exist IN the Southern
character, the remarkable power and energy
of which were fully proved by the war. we
are not an indolenl. enervated people, rs many
al the North imagine; he said, land we te.
monstrated during the war the immense eAer-
tions of which We are capable. When THIS en-
erry. industry and intelligence which we pos
sess are brought into full play in Developing
orr industrial resources, we Will make the
South the garden OF the world. Mark my pro-
phesy.' The colonels grey eyes shone win
enthusiasm while making his prediction. he
gave me an interesting but sad account Of lhe
decay oil the old proud families that once iora-
ed il on the sea Islands, spending the summers
at the Virginia springs and the Northern
~watering.places, and living the rest ollhe year