The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-05-03
THE SUGAR PLANTERS.
AN INTERESTING DISCUSSION ON THE
TENANT QUESTION IN LOUISIANA.

AN INTERESTING DASCUSSAUN ON THE
TENANT QUESTION IN LOUISIANA.
Last evening. at the office of the Crescent City
Oil Company. on Common street. there was the
regular meeting of the Sugar Planters Associa-
ton. President D. T. Kenner in the chair. and
quite full attendance of members.
After the reading Of the minutes of the pro-
ceding meeting by Secretary Giffen. at the re-
quest Of the president letter from Gen Le
Due. Commissioner Of Agriculture at Washing
ton, was read. The following is the letter:
To Duncan r. Kenner President Louisiana
Sugar Growers Association:
SRI have this day received letters from "a
pan notifying me that on the next steamer 'bi
monthy would be shpPea h "p oat haEdv =,
Japan. ! have ordered tho package to be
opened at San Francisco and $50 cuttings to be
taken out and the remainder to wit: three
fourths to be sent forward to you by freight or
express. as may be- thought best by Cen. John
trusted the execution Of this order-he to ex.
anime the condition o. the cane cuttings and
put himself in your place, and determine now
stances, and then act.
do not hear from the Brazilian Minister. OF
some intimaton of what he may be- able and
willing to do for US in the matter OF sugar cane.
VIM. e. LIE DUO Commissioner.
Dir. kenner SAID IL was eXtfetnsly deslEhpe
on the receipt Of this cane that the members
should take the matter in hand. The cane on
Its receipt here would be divided and the plan
tiers would receive portion for planting.
President Kenner then stated that it was ex
tremely desirable that the sugar growing intor-
est should be represented Mt Paris. and he
would therefore submit tho following resolu-
ton:
In Wow Of the great development Of the sugar
industry in Europe within the last few
years predicateh largely upon tho application
Of chemical science. both to the agricultural
and manufacturing departments OF that indus
try. and fully realizing the value OF the applica-
ton OF these same principles to our own sugar
industry. we deem it highly important that n
scientific man should visit Europe, and by per
provements made in This industry and report
the same to the Louisiana Sugar Planters As
ISOLATION, with such suggestions as his knOWl-
edge OF our wants may demand therefore,
Resolred That in order TO facilitate the car
rying out Of this purpose the Governor Of Lou
isana be requested to appoint Prof. Richard s.
Mccullough Of the Louisiana State University,
honorary commissio ner for the state to the
State
Mr.. J. r. Morris suggested that as only COM
missioners OF tho Federal government would
be recognized, the name Of Prof. Mccullough
be suggested to Gen. I,e Due.
Bradish Johnson. Esq, in seconding the reso
luton of Mr. Kenner. snia 1t was extremely de-
sirable that the recent improvements in sugar
making should be- known. II was by the care
full application of science that France had been
raised after disaster to her present high posi-
ton. He would therefore urge the adoption OF
the resolution.
MIR, j. Dymond then read the fol owing paper
on the tenant system in Louisiana in sugar
Having become engaged in the sugar indus
try In this State in 1868, ut which time the thor
ongh "a {" 1 haa ana ad the nigh
demand for and scarcity OF labor here, was led
to consider the easiest remedy for those diff
cuties. NO rem.dy presented itself excepting
that Of higher wages. and consequent cOncen-
tration of a larger number OF colnred people
here. arriving, from those States where wages
were lower. From that date the prices Of SUI
gars steadily dccl ined. and the prices OF labor
steadily advanced, until 1871 81 % was paid for
tages they have in the way OF free house rent
and free fuel would ba equal tos - per day In
the North, and was q compensation utterly I'M
dustry. The evil results of this we're manifested
In the failure ofthe great number cf sugar Ia:-
came from the lowering Of wages and in the
gradual Introduction Of white laborers into the
fields The a at LIVER gneray he
simply tranps, and their work was
timate n cost than nDe What was done by tho
colored men at their high wages; Having had a
full experience IN all these ,vcissitudes OF the
industry WAS led to consider very carefully
whether there could not be- some method of iden-
tifying the laborer with the work he performed.
At this time the same problem in the cotton in
dustry seemed to solve itself very. readily, and
the crop began to attain Its ante-bellum proper
TONS and this was credited in many quarters to
the fact that the negro engaged in the cotton in
dustry was generally a tenant. The problem
then was to find how to apply this success OF the
negro In the cotton industry to the sugar indus
try. The sugar industry. with its wonderful
completely. the planter at once being agricul-
turist. manufacturer and merchant. seemed to
involve inextricable difficulty In its ad u.s. ment
to the tenant system. In the cotton industry 1t
became quite easy to divide the product, as 1t
was available as seed cotton or as clean cotton
and as readily dvisibe as wheat or corn.
In the sugar industry we did not know how
much cane we produced per acre. or how much
cane, excepting We divided the number Of
hogsheads produced by the number OF acres OF
cane consumed: and yet between the acreage of
duced there were 80 many contingencies that it
was almost impossible to tell where to begin to
factory system Ri the West indies began to at
tract some attention and several factories there.
which were quite successful during the preva-
lence of high prices for sugar. were organized
upon the basis of paying for sugars to per
cent of the weight OF the cane in Il standard
same time producing about per cent of sugar
from the cane. Anticipating that We could IN
this State produce about per cent of sugar, and
choice yellow clarified sugar being worth about
10 cents per pound. | purchased from the Citi
zens Bank in 1873 the crop Of sugar cane grow
Ing upon Fanny plantation, parish Of Plaque
first purchase OF sugar cane by the ton ever
made ia this State. | concluded to make the
venture. to carefully weigh the cane, and thus
determine whether s. per ton was fair value
obtained but about per cent of sugar. but the
experiment gave me the desired data, and | at
once set about endeavoring to organize a tenant
system based upon the delivery Of sugar cane
at the sugar house at stated price per ton.
There were prevailing at this same time In
other parts Of the State various systems Of ten
ant or share work, but none of them seemed to
have any sufficiently Cetinite basis, and have
hpa liz H..i init mar
are, as far as know. but two general methods
the one In which the tenant or farmer gets one
half of the finished sugar produced from his
cane crop. and the other in which the tenant gets
in money one-half of thu value of the cane per
ton. the former system prevailing In the western
sugar producing parishes, and the latter being
the method inaugurated by myself Each of
these methods mny be modified to suit the ext
gences of any case. but the general out ines Of