The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1878-11-15
NUMBER 46.
THE LABOR SYSTEM OF THE sonTu

sio" oy the new state Of things. The
Southern people had no experience or nlans
Tor using free labor aud knew nothing prac.
ticaliy about it. The former slaves of tho
south were as ignorant and inexperienced
as their former masters, and having tbo;r
freedom suddenly thrust upon them were
as much unprepared for it as the whites.-
ie is not therefore strange thatthere should
BAYS, RsssSslssy mistakes On both sides
Ishlesapds experience has wrought -.s..,--
ehangcs IN the views Of both parties, but
still no definite and settled plan of using
this labor has been fully established, and
both races ARE still in. doubt as to the best
and safest and ,nosa- -s,raotinaL. plan Of .oou.
trressrbetwssn. che. parties. e -
There arc some things, however, Of which
We have become fully satisfied. One is that
the planter ought to have and must have
(to be successfully the labor of his emplov.
ecs the entire year, and we have no doubt
that the best plan is to hire them for stand
ing wages We believe that this is not on.
'y the best plan for the owner of the plan-
taton. but is the best also for the laborers
thereon. We know of one planter
who hires his laborers for standing wa.
ges for five days in each week, allowing
them every Saturday to work for themselves:
he also allows them a certain amount Of
land to cultivate for themselves and in their
own way. These lands are cultivated main
~ by the women and children who are MT
in the contract as regular laborers on the
farm, but it is stipulated in tho contract
that whenever tho owner of the farm, needs
them they are to work for him as day Ia
borers He furnishes his regular hands
with weekly rations, and at the end Of each
month pays them half the wages due them
Tor the month, the other half is not paid
until thetend Of the year, and if the labor
er violates hiscoptraet he can be discharged
lad .fosfeits nit that is due hiua:sls4o Is re-.
Fqaired not to absent himself from his ,busi-
! ness at any time without the consent Of the
employer or his superintendent. When he
loses time. from any cause so much per day
Ts~Siarsed up against him, to be deducted
from the mouths wages This is right, be.
cause he has his rations, house, land. sta,.u
Tor the whole time and -thrr-cmpoycr is Of.
ten reapisAeTro hire day laborer to put
IN his place, who also has to be fed and
! paid. From what we have seen and heard
of this plan we think it is about the best
~
plan OF any we have seen put in practice.
This gentleman has in the main the same
hands from year to year. While the wages
are not large, they are as large as the
employer can afford, both parties are
making living and those laborers that
are economical are saving something every
year, and seem to be contented. The
laborers are required while in the field TO
abstain from quarrelling and fighting or US
ing profane and vulgar language, and any
violation of the rules are reported by the
foreman, and the party offending subjected
to q fne to be deducted from his months
wages. In this way discipline is enforced
on large farm, and there arc but few yio-
lations of the rules. If two or more of the.
laborers disagree about any of their -busi-
ness affairs, they are not allowed to run off
to a Justice of the Peace aud have a law
suit at great expense and loss of time. but
they are required to'"ssisct some Of their
tellow-laborers as arbitrators, who settle the
matter between them, and when thus set.
tied they are required to abide by the de,
cision or leave the place. The system on
this place works well, and We commend it
to large planters everywhere.
There is another thing that farmers ought
to attend to more generally than they do,
that is, that employment of some kind be
furnished to all persons on the farm who
arc able to work If the women and chill.
dren DO not work on the farm, they ought
to have something else to do If nothing
better can be found for them let them have
their cards, spinning wheels aud looms and
make cloth to clothe themselves and fami-
hes, as hey did before the war. il is an
old adage that "an idle brain is the DEVILS
workshop" and it is true. Those ,ha, are
IDLE viii be constantly stirring mp misch