Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1879-12-04
Some Facts About Cotton.

of Boston, shows by comparison of results
the enormous economic superiority of free
labor over slave labor, in the cultivation of
cotton. The crop of cotton of 1878 and
1879 was the largest over raised Tho
ten crops of 1850 to 1861, inclusive, being
the last crop raised by slave labor, mum.
bered 80, ,995 ,440 bales. Tho ten crops of
1870 to 1879, inclusive, being tho ten last
drops raised by free labor, numbered al.
454,7 ,743 bales. The excess of the ten years
of FREQ labor amounts to 6,459,303 bales
The value of the ten last crops, of which
about two. thirds have been exported, has
been not less than $4,000, 100000, and has
probably amounted to $4,000, 900.
The increase is progressive, tho excess of
the five last crops over tho FIVE drops imme.
diately preceding the war has bccl $685.
Ais bales.
The worlds crop Of cotton is now equal
to ten to twelve million bales of tho aver
age weight of American cotton, probably
the latter. Of this quantity five million
bales are raised in the United States, and
between six and seven million bales arc
spun and woven upon machinery contained
in large factories in Europe aud America.
The rest is spun and woven by hand, aud
there is probably larger portion of the
population of tho globe still insuflicicntly
clothed in handmade goods than are
clothed in those furnished by tho factories
of Europe and America combined. The
average work of one operative working one
year in Lowell will supply tho annual wants
of 1000 fully clothed Chinese or 5000
partly clothed East Indians. No country
in the world, except Egypt, produces any
substantial quantity of cotton so we'll
adapted to work upon modern machinery as
that of the Southern States. Nearly one
half the world remains to be conquered by
cotton and commerce. TO the cotton fields
and factories Of the United States will not
the increase surely come as commerce slowly
but surely opens the way?
The whole cotton crop Of the world could
DO raised on a section Of Texas less than
ono twelfth of its urea; or could be divided
between any two Of the other principal cot.
ton States without exhaustng onc.half of
their good lands, or it could all be raised
on less than one~half the Indian Territory
that is not yet occupied at oil.
Touching the cost of raising cotton in the
South, MIR. Atkinson suggests the opinion
that If the cost of labor be measured by its
effectiveness as we'll as by tho measure of
the money with which it is paid, there is
no place in tho world where 40 effective an
amount Of manual labor can be procured at
so little cost os in the employment OF no.
groes upon Southern cotton fields. The
price of bacon aud corn gauges the cost of
cotton. Eaten together they arc digestiblo
and nutritious-eatens separately quito other
wise. They constitute the food that tho
negro field hand freely chooses. Three and
one half pounds Of bacon, one peck of meal,
and one quart of molasscs or syrup consti.
tute tho weeks ration of an adult man or
woman. This ration has been lately and
can now be supplied at cost of thirty.
eight to fortytwo cents per week, or six
cents or less per day. The plat of sweet
potatoes and fish from tho ponds and rivers
serve for the rest.