New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-03-19
Lau{ Culeasle,

The season has arrived when tina agricul
turists Of the land are clearing OF the be-
6ris of last years crop, when, the soil
is turned over to be warmed into nour-
ishing vigorb by the increasing heat OF the
suns rays, and when air, earth and sky be-
token that all nature 10 awakening in verify
from her short winter slumber ere clothing
herself with the beautiful habiliments OF
gentle spring. The question. naturally in.
trudes itself, ct this period, what shall be
planted that will best cOnduoe to the mu-
tual benefit of planter and merchant
What will fill the depleted money bags Of
the one and bring prosperity. competency
and Independence to the 0ther2
A gentleman, speaking most earnestly
adopted by small and large farmers alike
of planting cotton to the exclusion of those
products which are necessary to the well
fare of the planters and the prosperity of
the State, remarked that it would be q
blessing to this country if destroying fire
from heaven would blast, withef and ruin
every cotton stalk that grew above the
ground; that little more experience such
as that taught by 1875 would learn farmers
q lesson they would not easily forget or fail
to heed.
Yet there is q little hope that planters
will cease the Disastrous and ruinOus course
of pledging their crops for necessary sup.
plies, paying q heavy interest on advances,
and mortgaging their lands on the brittle
hope that large crop OF cotton will relieve
them of their burden of debt. Has it done
go heretoforef Is there any foundation
furnished in the past upon which to build
these delusive hopes Of the future9 The
record does not prove 80. Thus the landed
propsrty of this country does not realize to
the owners twenty-five cents on the dollar,
and is slipping inevitably, irrevocably from
the possession of its original holders into
the hands Of m0neyed men and capitalists.
The gentleman who 90 bitterly denounced
the ruinOus system Of cultivation adopted
throughout the cotton belt, was himself q
capitalist. and connected with q mOneyed
knowledge, keen observation of whittier
this folly, this ideal worship of de-
thoned king, ended. He eaid that he had
eeen lands cultivated in European nations,
among all classes of peOple-but never had
he seen idiocy, such blindness and total
want of calculation "a that evinced among
| the cotton planters of the South. Who shall
| gay that he was wrong!
just study seriously. earnestly, practi-
| cally, this whole subject and see where 1t
| tends, to what results it leads. Here is a
cline such as few lands can boast of; q soil
rich and as prolific as ever blessed the toll
| OF the husbandman; with nature lavisbing
bountiful gifts in prOfusioD, com bining air,
earth and sky in sho wering blessings upon
the toilers. What then? Forgetful Of the
future, unmindful of the rich gifts OF this
prolific land, which with Outstretehed arme
implores them to receive and prosper, they
foolishly, bllndly follow an imaginary, de
coitful, glittering image which beckone
them onward to untold wealth, only to lead
them into ruin, hopeless despair and inevi
| table misery,
| Talk about Esau selling his birthright fol
q mess of pottsge! Why, the cotton
planters of Louisiana are even move to bt
censured than Esau Of old. With wealth
and prosperity within their grasp, they arr
pushing them aside, literally barterlne
away their inheritance OF productive SOIL
rendering to strangers and aliens the breat
and meat necessary to their sustenance
They pledge homes and lands, their pres
ent hopes and future salvation as people
for false god. They buy bread and mea
predicated on q cotton crop The crop fail
or is a little better than worthless, and the.
are topelessly entangled, eventually ruined
Is there no remedy for this? Most az
suredly Plant less cotton, raise more corr
Become self supi orting Raise your oHl
stock and fowls: raise products to feed an
tatten them. Make your own bread, but
ter, cheese. ever hing to sustain life ire
from any dependency upon others.
Let the one great aim and study of lam
cultivation below to mako it most II
mnuerative: how t. plant and sow aud rea
SO as TO supply home necessities; what pre-
ducts will meet with the most really an
paving .lee; in fact what course to pursu
TO sh AXE of the Shyiocks who are not onl
taking the pound OF flesh. but blood, I'll
lite giving current and power with it.
These are not merely chimerical idea
, nor yet visionary dreams. Farmers vi
eventually learn Wis ION and abandon as
hopeless task their efforts to obaln weait
; abundance and prosperity, which the syre
cotton is eternallt singing in their cara. al
the fatal witchery OF whose melody Is col
stanrly vet inevitably Turing them into II
: !, quick sands of ruin, and stranding the
trail banks upon the surf-beaten shores
deceitful hope.-Natchitoches Republican.