The Ouachita telegraph., 1878-03-08
ALL COTTON MEANS STARVATION.


The Hon. b. H. HilI, of Georgia,
made the following terse and pointed
remarks in speech delivered by him,
short time ago, in that State. He
said:
seasons may come, what large crops
you may raise, under existing condi-
tions, you will ever grow poorer, who
produce cotton, and they will ever
grow richer who handle it after il is
produced. Without a great change,
the Southern States are destined to be-
come so many plantations, practically
owned by Northern people, and the
southern people SO many hireling slaves
to work them! And in this condition
you will reap scarcely the wages and
not half the respect you accorded your
former slaves. And yet, the very re-
verse of this fate is in your power.
Under the present policy the next
generation of Southern people will be-
come the poorest, the most powerless
and the most contemplate of earth's
Inhabitants, while under wise policy,
the next generation of Southern peo-
pie may become the richest, the most
powerful and the most respected of peo-
pie. Which destiny will we choose?
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, cropp-
ing, grassing and manuring your lands.
Thus, you become independent of the
guano merchants. Your cheapest and
safest line of transportation runs from
your own fields and hog-pens to your
own barns and meat-house. With no
debts for your supplies, you will need
no accommodation credits at two per
cent per month. Thus you become
independent of brokers, cotton factors
and lien merchants. You can then sell
at your own time,t to your chosen buyers
and will get your own money. None
of these things can planter do who
plants on credit and borrows money
to buy his provisions.
But, you say, the Western States raise
provisions SO much cheaper, we can
make more money by raising cotton
and buying from them. This is the
teaching of figures, and Il greater lie
was never taught.
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 cost and charges. How is this ?
In the first place, if we raise 5000, 900
bales of cotton we will get no more
money for them than we would get
for one-half that number. Then, out
of the same amount realized, you pay
for raising the 100000 just double
cost of production. Half the labor and
supplies employed in raising 5000, 200
bales of Gotten could be employed in
raising supplies without reducing the
value of the cotton crop one dollar.
But half this labor would raise more
than you needed for supplies. You
could employ much of it also in enrich
ing your lands and improving your
property in many ways. Then you
would come to the end of the year
with your crib full of corn, your smoke
| houses full of meat, your family full
of smiles, yourself full of independence
and your pockets full of money for
investment. And how would you in
vest it? In cotton factories on the
waterfalls which God has sent all
through your country to run spindles.
This would make you independent OF
Old and New England both. Then,
also, you would mine your own imple-
ments of husbaudry which would
make you Independent of Pennsylvania
foundries and Massachusetts work
shops. In a word, every Improvement
would be built up in your own coun-
try, and all the profits of those i'm
provements would go into your own
pockets.
Go on as you are now going, making
cotton 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.
THE PROPOSED DOLLAR.