The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1879-06-14
!'HE EGRO IN THE SOtF1'II.

ter from cX-Govcvnor and cX-CnitcU
States Senator y. l.. Alcorn, Of Mis-
sissippi, addressed to Judge j. l..
Berry, OF that city. 1t will be read
with great interest:
! FRIAn's PoISr, Miss, May II, 1879.
II. II. Berry, Es1., AichjSon, Nunso$
was absent from home Whcn Nour
letter Of the itl inst lrachcd my Office.
| now rGply to- your intcrroyations
briefly rs the subject touched on will
allow.
TO your first inquiry--'IIavc the
CoSorcd people been compelled to pay,
for rent of land, from eight to ten dol
lars an acre."
answer: The most favorable lands
arc held ut and bring from seven to
ten, and ! have known them to bring
twelve dollars per acre. Such lands
are generally clear Of timber, are well
! fenced, gooL houses Cor dwelling, with
gin-houscs attached, lands producing
under proper cultivation from Il balc
to 4 bale and Il half per acre. Since
the depreciation in tkc pricc of cotton,
the rent is generally taken in kind.
say from eighty to one hundred pounds
lint cotton per acre. IN other words,
the tenant generally pays from a tinh
TO 4 fourth 4n THO cstimatcd prutluc-
ton.
Second intcrrogatory: Lave they
| been charged from twenty five to thirty
five dollars during cropping season for
| mule hire"
| answer; Thirty dollars is about
the maximum OF mule hire ior the sea-
son, estimated at ten months. This
sum will hire the best mule; inferior
mules hire for less. \ mule that WIZ
hi!r for thirty dollars is worth from
$3.50 to 500. Money is worth ten
per cent; loss OF mules from. death
from three TO ten per cent.
Ihird mlcrro@atury: "IIavc thcr
been compelled to pay twcntv-iiyr
dollars per barrel for rickIcd pork and
twenty-five cents per pound for fresh
mrut:'
| answer: Not for The past few
years. The price ofmcat, like that Of
other things, is governed by the laws
OF trade. Merchants who sell supplies
based on the growing crop add heavy
percent. have watched the working
results of the system for the past ten
years. We have shrcwd business mrr-
chants in town, and at almost every
cross road, and would have more If
the business would pay. The trade
embraces Jews. Yankees, Southern
whites and negroes; few have made
money. more have become banErupt
think ann safe in saving that three
iourllS oftliose who have sold goods
among Us have failed. The prices at
which bacon is now supplied 10y lhc
merchants is about ten cents n2r
pound. Pork is not often sold: Ne
srocs will NOT purchase il if they can
buy bacon. Oihcr meats are usravtl-
cd. The bacon supplied 10 ,aborcrs on
the crops sells for six cents cash. |
presume there there is no merchant
who would not prefer the cash to the
credit trade; the one is safe, the other
1 know well q merchant who this
year closed what was GnnSidcreI y
good business, Of seven Years stand
ing; his sales averaged about forty
thousand dollars annually; his books
show ON the "proiit and loss sheet
over torty-tivc thousand dollars in bad
debts; he declared his business Il fail
ur". The trouble lies in ;hc fact, that
shruid the tenant, be he white or
bE''E. find his crop prospects, either
IRON idlcnC$s or other causes, iuSuili-
cicnt to pay the current seasons debt.
with margin over, he stra"hlwav
ahanhons the crop and b.takrs himself
to picking cotton Tor wages, Il labor III
which good hands can realize two and
three dollars per day.
For reasons which will readily come
to an Intelligent mind, renting is no;
the popular mode Of culliyating in this
country. Usually the crop is cul.ivat-
ca ON shares, the planter supplying the
land, horses, mules. forage tools. and
a garden spot. the tenant clothes an,l
feeds himself; supplies the labor: The
crop Of corn or cotton is divided, the
laborer receiving half. Food and
clothing arc supplied to the tenant,
sometimes by the planter. often Lv
the merchant. hut always with lien
on the crop. There are not many
tenants who will no1 buy all they can
get; here lies the trouble.
cultivate largely; have ono hundred
and forty TO one hundred and fifty
HtulliltS oii III! l'l.tlltalltliS. lhcN live
plcntiiully. We're not to put rlcntv
III their hands they would soon rrn,oyc
10 other plantations, for ii is a fact
that, labor being scarce. the compcli-
ton among planters induce, among
their tenants rXtravneancc ami
idlcncsS. To-Day could. 1 think. find
employment within this county for
five hundred laborcrs at from twelve
to twenty dollars per month. In no
coAntry within my knowledge docs
unskillcd labor command higher
prices than in the Mississippi delta.
Frugal and industrious people thrive
here; tho improvidcnt and idle fare
here as elsewhere. | note an example :
Last year tenant on my plantation
with a small hired help, produced
twelve bales of cotton and Two hun
drcd bushels ofcorn and had rcnail.-
ing over one hundred dollars in cash.
That man was s2tis;icd. On the same
plantation there were three families
who cultivated in copartncrship: the
three mcn-for the women seldom
work III the crop-raiSrd nine bales OF
cotton abOut t,yn huulr,,l l,.l.<.l