The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1873-03-06
The Men Who Make Money by Cotton Plant
ING.

Our experience since tne war mas proven GuaI
very few large planters have made money by
cotton planting There have been some excep-
Itions. There are few gentlemen who have
extraordinary skill in managing the negro, and
Others who have been fortunate in retaining
gangs of well-disposed and we'll trained ne
groes. These gentlemen, if they have owned
good lsnd, and have started with or controlled
sufficient capital to avoid debt, have done well.
But these exceptions are rare. The list OF
large cotton planters is, for the most part list
of unfortunates, whose crops and even lands,
IRE mcrtgaged beyond redemption. -. =
:. aPlarters, to moderate extent, who raise
their own provisions for man and beast, have
often escaped debt. They have generally made
but little money. This small profit is, perhaps,
quite eounterbalanced, if not exceeded, by the
damage which continued cotton culture does to
theirl lands.
Bnt there IS a class of persons who have
made money by cotton planting more rapidly
than they ever did before Cotton bears a
better price than before the war, and their
expense in its cultivation has not increased.
Reference is made to the small farmers wbo,
with their sons, work their own land, and whose
wives and daughters pick out the cotton. They,
did not suffer by the abolition of slavery, as
they never owped negroes orr at most, small
number They win continue to make money
by cotton planting. The price of cotton is
permanently raised far above its "ante-bellum"
price r-When. it descends below given price
its cultivation must be discontinued in this
country, except by she class of persons referred
to. These men make their OWN bread and
meat and,milk and butter Their clothes are
made at home. They buy scarcely anything
but sugar and coffee and thread. They hire
little or no labor. Their cotton is clear. If
+the PRICE Ebeefow their income is DIMINISHED,
:but neither their comfort or solyency is affect
ed, for they, have incurred NO debit =. - ~
1t is pleasant to observe the steadiness with
which these, small farmers are increasing their
properly; Chiefly among this class in: Cobb
county, sufficient success had attended previous
experiment to warrant the purchase and use of
fertilizers, which, atsSs70lthe ton, would AMOUNT
to SiG5 600. These fertilizers were bought in
quantities., from few sacks to few tons. Z ?
Now, if these farmers will rightly manage
their gains if they will not attempt to in
crease the area of cotton cultivated, but to in
crease the quantity produced from the same
area; if. instead of buying more :land to in
crease their landed property, they would in
crease it by deepening the soil which they
already own; if they will measure their land
not by superficial, but by solid measure, not so
many rods long or wide but SO many inches
deep; if they will add to their stock of cattle,
sheen and hogs, supplementifg the deficiency
of manure from these animals by the purchase
! of commercial fertilizers; and If they will
adopt such q rotation as-with a saficiency of
manure. will keep their land in a condition Of
steady Improvement, they have before them the
strong probability of soon reaching affiuence
- This subject has been introduced to direct
attention to- what the wrirer believes, In view
of our experience of the past, should be the
future Of cotton culture at the South. 1t
points to the necessity of the multiplication of
small farms and small farmers. There are
hundreds and thousands of men among US who
are cursed with too much land. They pay
taxes upon it. They are irritated by seeing
their fence rails burned up. IF the surplus
land oe thrown out they are vexed by seeing it
fconverted into commons for the pasturage
| of the freedmens miserable cattle and hogs.
To prevent the large body of land which is
under fence from being overrun with briers and
scdge, they are compelled to scarify it annual
| ly- with the plow, producing unremuneratiye
crops, and loosening sufficient earth to be
washed away by heavy rains. Unless there be
change-if the fate of, some of our large
landholden were clronicled, and if our lands
| had mouths, it would be repetition of the end
| Of Actheon OF Diomnedes in classic story, eaten
| up by their acres instead of dogs or horses.
UHlder our present tjssstem these lands can
| not ;ncrease in value, that is to say in those
I9sectipns in which large bodies are held by pro-
prietors. They may receive ,spasmodic ad-
vance in year in Which cotton bears good
price, but sink the next year when cotton is
| low. They cannot advance because with our
present of farming, they rate at their full
value; that is to say, a man of means, think
ing cf investing in cotton planting according
to the present method, would find, upon calcu-
lation, that he could not pay more than five
dollars per acre for an ordinary cotton planta1
ton, without incurring risk or loss J
to sell portion of these large estates to small
farmers allowing long credit, the whole sum
to be paid at the end of q term of years. in
smal1 annual payments. But where are the
| small farmesH They must come from abroad:
Their introduction requires legislative action;
and this, it is to be feared, though certain in
the end, is at present remote.
| There is present partial remedy. One fea-
ture of this remedy is the conversion of large
portion of our land into cattle and sheep pas
ture. If we value our land so pastured at $40
per scre we shall certainly receive, in this way,
at least ten per cent. on the Investment.
Tie other feature is renting our lands to the
most reliable of the negroes. under long leases.
The English leases run, from ten to twenty
years. The mode of culture, rotation of crops,
amoant of manure, number of live stock, ap.
portionment of, taxes, care of buildings and
fences are prescribed with the utmost minute.
ness by the landlord. If the tenants are small
farmers, the landlord, for a stipulated sum,
furnishes reaper and mower, thresher, wool
carder, and, in many instances, grain-mill (run
by water or steam) together with all such
agricultural machinery as the small 'fafmer
cannot buy.
A man, white OF black, who rents piece of
lane for one year, feels no interestin it, except
to OBTAIN the greatest possible present crop. 1t
is Of no consequence to him if the goose dies
after he has gotten the golden egg it is not
his loss. ~ .-.