The morning news., 1891-01-03
TRAVEL OF ras rUaPzNr1NnRs.
Thousands Of Them Going Back to the
Farms After ChristKu "A

Thousands OF Them Going Back to the
Farms After Christm ls.
The travel Of the negro turpsntins hands
returning from their homes in North Caro-
lima, where they went to spend Christmas,
to the Georgia turpentine farms ia very
heavy on all the railroads coming into sa-
vannah. aud the roads are finding Il nsces-
essary to run special trains for their ac-
commodation.
All the returning hands passing through
Savannah como into the city over the
Charleston and Savannah railroad aud
continue their journey by the other systems
psnetrating Middle and South Georgia and
| Florida.
An Atlantic Coast Line special train
came IN yesterday morninR With fourteen
carloads Of hands. who were Transferred
TO the Savannah, Florida and Western road
and carried on down to South Georgia and
Florida.
The Savannah, Florida and Western is
transporting hundreds OF these hands every
day nov. They are mostly distributed
through the country contiguous TO the line,
but many OF them 90 up the Brunswic and
W estern and East tennessee roads.
"Ghe Savannah, Florida and West
ern is the naval stores line
OF the world anyway" said a prominent
official of that road yesterday. Savannah
IS the naval stores port Of the world, and it
Is well known that the Savannah. Florida
and western brings In the greater D rtion
OF the naval st res shipped from this port"
The Savannah, Florida and Western is
entitled to the distinction claimed for it.
A great deal OF the naval stores trade Is
tributary TO the Central railroad aud branch
hhes, no vever, and that road is handling q
great deal Of the travel of the hands. The
Central sent out special train from Sa-
VAnnah fiau of II.
to Wadley, from which point they will be
distributed in the turpentine farms along
the lumber railroad lines centering there
The tr ain on the Central for Lyons yester-
day afternoon carried out about 100 hands
A special train was also run from Augusta
to Iennille on the Central yesterday morning
with about 2)0 The naval stores territory
tributary to the Central ex ends along the
Savannah and WesternSiivision, the Savan-
nah, Americus and Montgomery aud the
main line as far up as Tennille The Gen.
trails hues are connected with the interior
territory by numerous branch lines con-
trolled by the lumber and turpentine men.
Several thousand of these turpentine
hands annually pass through Savannah on
their way to spend Christmas In North Caro-
lima, and they return by the same route a
week or two later. IL is fea sure of the
turpentine business. The majority of the
hands on the turpentine farms come
from North Carolina, chiefly from
the section between Weldon and Whining
ton, on the Atlantic Coast Line. The Geor-
gia negro doesn't take to the turpentine
business, somehow. When the business first
began to develop to its present proportions
the turpentiue men sent their agents into
the upper portion OF the ate. who induced
! rgo numbers Of negroes b leave their
homes and emigrats to the turpentine farms
by promises OF big wages. In some portions
OF the state the farmers were left without
hands entirely. In a few mon hs, however,
most of the negroes Jumped their con rae 8,
and footed 1t back to their homes
Money had not been 30 plentiful
and work 80 light as they had anticipated,
ami they preferred to work on the farmA
The turpentile men were compelled to have
hands, and turned for help to the Tarheel
state, where ,ey have been raised to the
turpentine business and prefer it to any
other kind OF wo h. The piney woods Of
North Carolina having been partially
exhausted OF their resinous supplies, the
Georgia turpentine farmers found 1t COM
paratvalv easy work to secure all the ex-
perienced help they wanted.
The contracts for labor are still to a
large extent made in North Carolina
The turpentine mon and their agents
go to North Carolina with the
returning hands. There they contract
with the negroes for the coming years
work, specifying wages and conditions
The contracts are usually verbal. 1t Is al
ways condition that the employer shall
pay the way Of the laborer to the farm, and
also his fare home at Christmas When the
hands are landed back at home at the end
of the year the contract is ended.
A hand who worked in Middle Georgia
last year is very likely TO make a contract
to work in South Georgia or Florida next
year. II doesn't matter, so he gets home
Christmas. The hands are a class peculiar
to themselves. They get good wages, but
are improvident, and seldom have anything
left at the end of the year.