Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1873-08-27
HON. BEN. HILLS ADVICE TO THE SOUTH

In a recent address to the people of Geor-
gia, made by Hon. Ben. II. Hill, at the
Jonesboro' fair, he told them, among other
things, these wholesome truths. After
reviewing the folly of the past policy of
the South in trying to cultivate too much
land and to raise only cotton, he told them
they were growing poorer every year, but
that better future was before them if
they pursued the proper policy. The
change he advises is as follows:
But you ask, how can this better destiny
be secured? | will; tell you.
First. Make cotton your surplus crop
In these five words lie the Samson locks
of your future power. Make your own
fertilizers by resting, cropping, grassing
and manuring your lands. Thus you be-
come independent of the guano merchants.
Raise your own provisions. Thus you be-
come independent of the provision mer-
chant. Your cheapest and safest line of
transportation runs from your own fields
and hog-pens to your barns and meat
houses. With no debts for your supplies,
you will need no accommodation credits at
two per cent. per month. Thus you be-
come independent of brokers and cotton
factors and lien merchants. You can sell
your own cotton, at your own time, to
your own chosen buyers, and for your own
price, and will get your own money.
Now, / affirm, it is cheaper for you to
raise your own provisions than to have
them brought from the West and given to
you at the nearest depot free of all cost and
charges! How is this? In the first place,
if We raise five millions of bales of cotton
we will get no more money for them than
we would get for half that number. Then,
out of the same amount realized, you pay
n 70 at
of production Half the labor and supplies
employed in raising five million bales of
cotton could be employed in raising sup
plies without reducing the value of the cot
ton crop one dollar.
But half this labor would raise more than
you needed for supplies. You could en-
ploy much of it, also, in searching your
lands and improving your property in
many ways. Then you would come to the
end of the year with your cribs full of corn,
your smOke-house full of meat, your family
full of smiles, yourselves full of independ7
ence, and your pockets full of money for
investment. And how would you invest
1t? In cotton factories on the waterfalls
which God sent all through your country
to run spindles, This would make you in
dependent of Old England and New Eng
land. Then, also, you would mine your
own iron and make your own implements
of husbandry, and this would make you in
dependent of Pennsylvania foundries and
Massachusetts workshops In a word,
every improvement would be built up in
your own country, and all the profits of
those improvements would go into your
own pockets.
Go on as you are now going, making cot
ton your chief crop, and slavery is the
doom of your children and your children's
children forever! a people who depend
on other people for food and clothing are
and must be slaves.
There is much good sense in this advice,
but is it not overdTaWn?
The advice to Southern planters to raise
less cotton and to make their own prOyis-
ions is certainly sound and good. But is it
true that they could get jus as much mon
ey for half as much cotton raised as for
their present crops, We think not, The er-
ror lies in supposing that in raising cotton
the South can control the markets of the
world and dictate its price. The late re-
bellion was uased on that fallacy, and we
are surprised that it should again be en-
couraged by such a sensible and profound
thinker as Mr.. Hill. For time, the pro-
duction of but half Gotten crop in the
South would disarrange the markets and
advance the price. But it would not be
long before the high prices would drive
other sections into cotton raising, AID lead
people To supplant the use or cotton cloths
with other fabrics. But this part of
Mr. dllfS auVce may De wrong, Out yet,
taken all together, il may be good. Even
if the planters got but little more for half
the amount raised, they woul,' raise their
own meats and bread aud stock and re-
duce their working expenses. Their lands
would improve, and with improved cult
walton their crops increase withou cor
responding increase of production.
Mr.. Hll's advice to the South TO invest
in manufacturing is unquestlonably good,
but when he no DIS out To them the hope
of making themselves independent of Eng
land, New England or Pennsylvania, he
maps out for them work they will never
see accomplished. II is common for men
to talk about the West or East or South
becoming independent OF each other, but
it will never be. TO manufacture success
fully requires abundant skilled la