The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1875-09-02
DALLAS, TEX AS.
THURSDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 2
WHO RAISES THE COTTON ?
A Pertinent Inquiry, and How 10 sat
isiaeiOriIy Answer II.

The question of how far the cotton
belt Is dependent upon negro labor Tor
its prosperity Is just now attracting
some attention from those who have
the leisure and disposition to go into
an investigation of 1t. A large num-
Der of people are under the impression
that If Cullee should not feel inclined
to work the crop OF staple would he
cut short in proportion to his lazllless,
and reports from the heavy cotton
producing regions, NJ TO the mannerin
which the negroes are performing their
labors, are looked for with consider
able sollcitude ut those critical
periods of the season, when the
success of the planter depends
upon prompt and vigorous work
In the cotton-Iield. That this impress
sion Is erroneous il apparent to every
one who has watched the progress OF
the South for the past ten years. Every
year the of dependence on the negro
has been giving way, until now the
majority of the people don't care fly
whether the colored brother occupies
his timo Mt work or enjoys contlnu-
Gus feast of political argument and
blovintion the year through. Texas and
Arkansas the present year show con-
olnsively that white men can and will
raise better crops than the same num-
Der of negroes, be the crops cotton,
corn, wheat or what not.
The negro does not, and cannot be
induced, to produce half the cotton he
did before the war. Crowds of able
bodied negroes have removed from the
rural districts to towns and cities. Or
those who remain in the country u
very large proportion cultivate small
patches OF ground in that uncertain
and shiftleas manner peculiar to the
race when left to their own guidance.
Reliable negro labor in the cotton
fields has been still further reduced by
the withdrawal of women and chill
dren from the work. The Mobile Reg
lister says, and with truth, that the four
million bales of cotton are due rather
to white than to black labor. Counties
in Tennessee, Kentucky, South Mis-
souri,. North Arkansas and Texas,
where not bale of cotton was made
ten years ago, now produce tens OF
thousands of bales made by white
men-the men whose minds Were en-
larged and whose industry was stimu-
lated by the lessons learned rs sol
dier. II the late war did no other SER
vice to the south, 1t transformed the
southern peasant into an intelligent,
frugal, peaceable and laborious citi-
zen, such rs no other country In the
world can boast. That the Register is
correct in its opinion that black labor
has refrigerated, 1t need but point to
the condition of Arkansas, where, I'M
I'll the last year, negro rule In one or
the other branch of government has
frowned upon and repulsed white inn
migration.
Boards of trade and cotton exchanges
would confer favor on the country II,
In addition to other cotton statistics,
they would, the coming season, ascer-
tain what proportion of the crop was
produced by negro and what by white
labor. 1t could be easily done, and the
information would be an incentive to
those who fear that "cotton can't be
raised except by negroes" to put their
hands to the plow, instead of whining
because labor is SO irreliable." Let
the people of the north understand
this thing! The bulk OF the cotton
crop Is now made by white labor, and
there is money In it