The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-01-02
DAYID DICKSON.
Some Practical yle.-= E..s.:.;. from, ;i,c
Great Farmer.

Chronicle and C5nstifutionaiia has lately
visited Mr.. David Dickson, of Hancock
county, Georgia, who has long been con.
sidered the first planter in the South.
The following published account Of the
correspondents interview with Mr.. Dick
son will be read with interest:
Thinking brief respite from TIE
monotony of Il dull town would be both
hea!thfa! and pleasant, your correspon-
dent planned and executed visit TO
Mr. David Dickson.
MIR. Dickson has long been considered
the first planter in the South He has
won his way to that proud distinction,
not by long spun theories, peddlcd out
in journals aud reviews, but by the de-
m0nstration of practical success, which
is, after all, the true test ,f merit.
Mr.. Dickson is n remarkable man,
considered from almost any point Of
view. His physical organization is tex
turally fine. His appearance is striking
and commanding. He would arrest the
eye in any assemblage Of men. He has
the broad, honest, intellectual face of
the genuine Anglo Saxon, Of which race
he comes. His cast of mind is hardy
and practical, rs is eviDccl by the great
prominence of the perceptivo organs.
lie is. cminently, man of affairs, view
ing all questions in the light of reason
and common sense
MIR. Dickson is one Of the few planters
of the South who has kept up the large
farming operations of ante. belum davs :;
aud notwithstanding the s,ringency of
nd .,r Il l..
has managed to make money on every
exception of the present year. His en-
acres, presents everywhere the appear
ance of thrift and enterprise, in striking
contrast to the dilapidated and efIete
plantations contiguous to il. His fences
appear in good repair; neat and commo-
dlous cabins dot his place from centre to
circumference. Water gins and saw
mills of the most approved pattern are
whlrled by every stream that waters mis-
domains. Ponds five i'll number), with
fish In abundance, and constructed at n
total cost Of $4,000, upiurn their silvery
faces from between the hills, and in The
expressive language of Byron, "Warm
up with their stiffness, to forsake carths
troubled waters for purer spring." All
of these objects, combining the useful
and beautiful, render ride through Mr..
Hickson'5 farm ii most delightful ami in
teresting pastime. Your correspondent
had the pleasure of this jaunt in compa-
ny with the proprietor and took advan-
tage Of the time and occasion to ply him
with the following interrogatories
"Mr. Dickson, you are the only plan
ter i'll the State who has farmed on an
extensive scale that has managed to keep
up. What do you attribute your success
to-"
"Well, I don't know, unless it is 20
financiering. l make calculations and
steer clear of what don't pay"
do you expect to make large gains
now as you did years ago?"
"Oh, no. y is out Of the question for
farmer to make money now on hired
labor and the price Of the products of
that labor. The price Of labor and the
other necessary expenses aggregate, in
most instances, more than the entire pro-
duet of that labor will bring. expect
to get my rents"
What is your plan of renting?'
"Well, furnish the land, the agri-
cultural implements, the horse and its
feed, together with two-thirds of the
guano. The renter furnishes the labor
and feeds it, and one. third Of the guuno
At the end of the year take ,wo.thirds
of all of the crops, and give the laborer
one.third. In other words, / rate the
land at one-third, the horse and its feed
and the agricultural implements, black
smithing, &C., Mt one-third, and the labor
at one.third and rent upon this princi-
pie. think this is the faircst system of
renting that can be devised"
Who gathers Inc crop7''
F; ': =: .<...E== :::= :.:o.a- dues ;ii1 gath
eriug. calculate that iii lis part OF the
labor. One of my hands not long ago
gathered his third of the corn and left
my two.thirds standing in the field. AT
the end Of the year, he came back to
rent again. told him no, he had dug
his own grave. Yes, sir, the laborer
must perform the whole of his contract,
which includes the making and gather
ing of the entire crop"
"What is the plan you would advise
the farmers to pursue another year?"
"In the first place would advise
them to increase tho capacity of their
lands. Rich land is the best labor
saving machine know Of for.the pres.
ent generation and for posterity Sec
ond, pay the laborer, if he hires fol
wages, in the products of the land, then
he shares with you the loss occasoned by
| low prices"
"What is hand worth for another
year,"
"The way to estimate that is 10 caleu.
late what an average hand will make nm
average year. l calculate it this way
| One hand will make three bales of cot.
| ton, fifty bushels Of corn and three thou
sand pounds of oats. Now, take the
third of that and you have what an
average hand is WORTH"
| How Is it you can get SO much work
out of your hands? l notice you cult.
vate more land to the plow, and do il
better than anybody else?"
"Well, in the first place, try 10 ge
willing but active hands. / then take
especial pains to train them 10 be ex
pe.ts-to do everything in the shortest
the best, the easiest and the most efhea
cious way. Why, there is akill in farm
ing as there is in everything else. Be
fore the war, when / made n specialt,
of it, my hands cut with more facility
plowed with more accuracy, hoed NOR
rapidly and picked more cotton than an,
hands ever saw. l trained them to d
everything the right way and on scien
tiiic principles. Of course can't man
age free labor so efficiently, but you cal
still see some signs of my old method"
'How is ii you mhke SO much more I
the plow than anybody else ?"
"Well, if that is so, I attribute it t
two causes: First, cultivate more Ian
to the plow my system of shallow cuI
lure, with broad sweeps, allows tha
Second, my methods of cultivation an