Morning journal and courier., 1883-03-14
Negro and White Man rhrfvtng.

from Arkansas.l
 John c. Calhoun came to Arkansas from New York city in 1869. He was strongly impressed with the steadiness of the rents paid for the agricultural lands lying in the bends. Before the war these lands were val ued at from $75 to $10o per acre. It was seldom they changed hands at any price. The first thing that recovered it's value after the war, and recovered almost instantly, was the value of these lands, as indicated by the rent paid. Promptly the rental of these best of cotton lands was fixed at $1O per acre. As I said, before the war the lands were valued at from $75 to $1OO per acre, and the rent paid directly after the war plainly showed that these lands had not de- preciated in value. It is true that these lands could be bought for $2o per acre from the discouraged and impoverished owners but 1t must be remembered that in many cases the owners were women who felt that they were unable to maIiage the property and in addition the rent of $1O per acre was not for rent alone. It included the use of a house and free frewood, and the certainty of being carried by the planter until the crop was made So it was $1O and privileges |; but at any rate the rent indicated the value of the land. Mir. Calhoun saw that these lands were sold at far less than their intrin- sic value. He acquired possession of the Flowrence plantation in 1870. This planta- tion contains 3, 600 acres When he bought
 
 and but twenty hands were employed on the place. Determined to interest the negro, to try to have him stick steadily to the same land year after year, he adopted an enlight- ened policy. He sold goods to his own hands at fair profit only. He strove to confne their purchases to the necessities of life. He talked to his hands. explaining the | conditions of life and the habits essential to success, and thus gave them something to | talk about. He brought from the old Cal houn plantations in Alabama 150 of the ne- groes who once belonged to the family. These men were dead broke and in debt. Under the management of MT. Calhoun they have prospered, and he has prospered. To | day there are 260 full hands on this planta- l tion, and 1,600 acres are under cultivation. l The houses are clean and comfortable and | surrounded by well-kept gardens that are | fenced. The fields are well titled and most | excellently fenced. All the improvements ! have been paid for out of the profits of the | farm. Every expense connected with the plantation or family has been met with mon- | ey received for cotton grown on these lands. | It must be borne in mind that these are aIlu- | vial lands lying in the heart of the cotton | belt and capable of producing five hundred pounds of cotton to the acre as an average ! yield. The negroes who were brought from l Alabama are now entirely out of debt, and ! have accumulated stock and tools and 8 store | of money. So also of all the hands em ! pIOy6U on GQ0 pldntatlOQ. DOZenS or run ners visit them annually and strive to draw them away from MT. Calhoun Not man | leaves. They are contented. The policy is l to sell these negroes goods at an advance of l 9 per cent. on their cost. By buying in ! large quantities TOO hands are employed on all his plantations-and for cash, Mir | Calhoun obtains discount of 15 per cent
 In other words, buying $100 worth of goods for 1885, he charges an advance of 25 per | cent. on the $85, making the cost of $1OO ! worth of goods bought by the negroes $1O6. Every bargain made with negro is religious | ly lived up to. Every inducement is held | out to them to work with their hearts back ing their hands, Land is rented to the men ! for cotton rent almost exclusively. The \ negro takes more interest in the crop when ! he is to have portion of it. No negro is I too poor to obtain land !; none so rich but l what terms to suit his prosperity are made. | That these negroes are doing well is indicated | by the many applications for houses and land l received daily. No agents are sent out from I these plantations to induce negroes to come l to them. MT. Calhoun pays no transporta ton bills for agents or hands, and still mer 1 travel two hundred miles to get to a place where they can have chance to get ahead ir 1 the world. Yes, ''the shiftless, drunken | gambling, idle niggers' have found out that on the Calhoun plantations they can earn g 1 good living, save money and accumulate property. Many of the tenants hire large
 tracts of land, sixty, seventy, eighty acres
 and, having acquired mules enough to culti vate the tracts, they hire other negroes fol l monthly wages to assist them in their opera I tions Some of them are very successful
 managers and are rapidly accommodating little l fortunes.
 1 Let the books of the store speak and tel ! the story of the prosperity of these ignorant black men. opened the books at random and copied the accounts as I found them | FOrr7 fha of he great overflow. William Clayton owed $31 His crop was twenty-six bales, two-thirds of ! which were his. After paying his debts he
 had $635 coming to him. Six years ago he l owed MT. Calhoun $9OO. This debt was caused by overfowed lands; his crops being
 ruined for two years. To-day he owns three ! horses, two mules, five COWS and some young
 cattle, also tools, wagon and buggy; and
 he has store of money laid by. Edward ! Clark, who works on halves. Mir. Calhoun I supplying everything, made twenty-one bales I of cotton. Two poor men worked together
 under this name. Clark owed $95 for goods
 He had five bales of cotton that sold for $5C
 per bale. His net earnings were $155. IT ! addition to the cotton, he made corn and DO
 tatoes. All the food crops belong to the ne
 gro.
 Alexander Moss owed $42. The first gin
 ming (the cotton first picked is the best cot l ton, and is known on the plantations as 'tfirst ginning;'' that which ripens later is poorer
 in quality and is called ''second ginning"
 paid his debt and drew $144 in cash. He hal
 eight bales more to sell, which will be wort1
 about $16O. This man came from Alabams in 1875, without a cent in his pocket. H.
 now owns two teams, has 8 sufficient number
 of COWS to keep his family in butter and
 milk, raises hogs, and he told me that here l after he would be able to raise all the vegeta
 bles, meat and bread his family consumed.
 A man named Jackson owed $21O. His
 crop paid his debt and he drew 8 balance ot
 $24O in cash.
 Another man, whose name is blurred ir
 my notebook, who had been deeply in debt
 on another plantation for six years, ran away
 from his debts in the fall of 1SS1 With one
 crop he has paid his store account and has paid for good horse and wagon, and is now l making bargain for mule to cost $150. l This man came from southern Alabama He
 told me that he was greatly encouraged and
 now believed he could get ahead in the world