The Louisiana Democrat., 1891-04-01
FARMER AND PLANTER,
THE LABOR PROBLEM.

Something Must be Done to Meet the De-
ficiency in the Labor Market.
If there is deficiency of labor, there
Ire but two ways of remedying it. One
is to supply the deficiency by importing
labor; and if this can not be done, the
next is to curtail our crops to the quan,
tity of labor we can secure. If we can
only have laborers enough to cultivate
one hundred acres, the crop must be re-
duced to one hundred acres That is a
settled problem. There is labor enough
in the country if it could be procured,
but a lare amount of that labor
is lost to the farmers; they have
branched out and are employed at
other occupations, and where highest
paid for their labor, there is where they
will work. That is but natural, and it
is what the farmers must count on. The
farmers are now brought in competition
with other pursuits, and if they can not
afford to pay the same prices that others
pay, they must expect to be short of
hands. Heretofore no class of men
have ever procured labor as cheap as
the farmers have, hence when brought
in competition with other pursuits, and
the price of labor is raised upon them,
they think they can not pay such prices.
As such, the farmers must calculate on
having to pay higher wages in future,
and consequently they had best begin
to arrange the mode of farming to meet
those conditions.
| shall make no suggestions to the
changes that must be made, for that is
a matter that every farmer must study
out, and make his plans to suit his own
circumstances; but this will say, high
priced labor demands intensive farming,
and diversity of crops that can be cul-
tivated and harvested with machinery.
With the young men of the country,
both white and black, the tendency is to
leave the farms and seek other occupa-
tions. They seem to have an aversion
to farming, and will accept employment
where the work is harder, the situation
less independent and more confning,
and monotony and drudgery is the dali
ly routine. And why so? Because
the wages they are offered do
not compensate for the labor per-
formed. Thus, they can live on less
and dress as well as the boys employed
in the cities, but six and eight and even
ten dollars a month seems very small,
and lessons his occupation in his own
estimation when he hears of the CITY
boys getting ten, fifteen to twenty dol
lars month that work no harder than
he does, and less exposed to the weather.
The pride of youth, when he starts out
to work for himself, is the expectancy
to make something for himself, and be-
come enabled to make as good an ap-
pearance in the world as other youths
do who are also at work for themselves.
Seeing others more prosperous that
work at other pursuits than himself.
he becomes discouraged at farming and
is for change that will better his con-
dition.
The time is fast approaching that,
to great extent, negro labor for the
farms will have to be substituted by
white labor 1t is now being done in
some of our oldest southern states, and
it will also be done in Georgia. The
system adopted by the government, as
well as by our own southern states,
which has reached state of fanaticism
in educating the negroes. will incapaci-
tate the negroes as farm laborers.
They are being taught that they are
to reach higher sphere
han that of common farm la
oorer, and after their schooling
hey will look upon farm work as
beneath their calling, and even if the |
necessities of some will drive them to
he farm to keep them from starving
hey will be apt to make the most |
worthless of laborers, merely creatures
IT discomfort and ripe for strife. AS
heir educators are teaching them, they
Ire being educated to elevate them and
lot to make laborers of them. 1t has
'een said: ga little learning is dan
'erous thing" and 1 apprehend it will
'rove so to this negro race.
There is a great evolution going on
n all temporal matters Just now.
What the end will be there is
10 prophet among us to make a reve-
alton, but changes must take place
rom what now exists, and the
armers of the south will also experience
!. Would it not be best for more of our
armers to encourage their sons to be-
ONE farmers, and choose farming for
heir occupation? We are writing farm
ng up, speak of it as noble pursuit,
nd say it affords us one of the best and
lost independent homes, and pointing
the happiness and surroundings of
arm life, and at the same time we are
tucating our sons for other pursuits.
here seems to be some inconsistency
such, as we are not carrying out what
e preach.-Jno. H. Dent, in Southern
ultivator.