Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1872-02-29
EARN LAROR.

The following letter suggests some pain
full truths, and yet we are satisfied, after an
ample experience, that in the aggregate, the
negro will perform as much labor during the
year as any other laborer that we can COM
mand. 1t is true he has bis faults and his
weak points; he is disposed to take advan-
tages of his position, but how seldom do we
hear of "strikes" among them; how seldom
of combinations to eXtort increased wages
from their employers in busy seasons? Let
us give him credit for what he does. Heis
usually obedient, but is inattentiVe by ma
ture, as all uneducated intellects are, and
the complaints which our esteemed cores
pondent makes against him, result not
from an indisposition to perform the
task, but from inattention and
listlessness. We are often annoyed by this.
1t taxes the patience of the most charitable,
but even this is better than the weeks of
dissipation which the laborers in some
! countries indulge in. Let us make the most
of the negro, whose lot fortunately, or IN
/ fortunately, has been cast amongst us. Let
us try to elevate his ideas of justice and
sense of propriety. He will be what we
make him. Firmness is as necessary in the
management Of him as it is in the manage
ment Of any other race or color:
In your paper of the 18th inst. is an edito-
! rial under the heading, "The life OfaFarmer,'
in which occurs this paragraph: "There is
something radically defective in the manner
| in which farm-fe is led, else why does it
| happen that young men, aye, and old ones
too, are hOcking in an increasing stream in
to the cities, seeking a precarious subsist
ence, by engaging in vocatiOns which have
no permanency, and in which they can never
hope to reach any degree of success"
! Is it the manner in which farm-life is led,
| which makes the city-life, with its prospects
of a precarious subsistence, or the hope Of a
! bOuntiful remuneration, as the case may be,
! the cause of so many fiocking yearly to the
cities? Is it not rather the impOssibility Of
farming in the country to profit? Our
young men $50 many of whom are quitting
the farms, for other pursuits, which
by the way is much to be regretted) have
been raised and educated, mostly at least
amongst different class of laborers, to
/ those Of the present day, for those laborers
were taught, yes, and compelled to obey
1 commands. When commanded to do a
certain work, in a specified manner, it was
done according to order; for there was then
the power to enforce orders; but very differ
! ent is il now, for in the first place in hiring
our labor, we have now to beg, persuade,
coax, and promise to pay high wages, in
order to procure help at all. After it is
procured, it is often an expense rather than
profit, for when farm hands cannot be
| depended on to do any work Alright, when
there is a possibility Of doing wrong, and
the proprietor has to see everything done
himself, then 1, at lie ,st, am not able to
make such labor profitable.
To instance, hire hand and agree TO
pay him Sl25 to $3.50, as the case may be,
for the year, to feed him, furnish him a
! house 10 live in, firewOOd, etc.
put him to stripping tobacco, tell him to tie
only six leaves in bundle, and tie il nicely,
for do like to have my crop appear well
I when opened in market. l may be at work
in the same room, but busily engaged; do
not notice this hand for some time. When
l do, l find that he, regardless of my orders,
is putting eight, ten, and sometimes as high
| as twelve leaves in a bundle, making large.
rough heads. l demonstrate; show him
how wish it done; he answers YEss'R;
but in fifteen minutes find he is doing the
same thing again, and so on throughout the
day; does not seem to care how his work
is done, or how little is done; so be kills
time and gets his money when he wants it,
be has filed the bill. At night weigh his
days work and he has 100 to 125 pounds
of this rough tied tobacco, which is in no
condition 70 60 to market till tits culled and
retied; and this is not solitary case, 81
many might suppose, neither are
they like angels visits, few and far