Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1892-03-10
THE SOUTHERN PLANTER
Why His Condition Shows SO Lit
tie Improvement,
He Has Failed to Put Into Practice the
Lessons Taught by Experience,
and is Stlll Slave TO the
Storekeeper.


ticeable among their brethren engaged
in agricultural pursuits in other por-
tons OF the country:
The men who brought about the convention
recently held in this city for the purpose OF in
quiring into the causes OF and providing
remedy for the prevailing agricultural and
business depression in the cotton states uncon-
sciously suggested the underlying cause in the
name selected for that body. They called II
the Cotton Planters convention That word
"planter" tells the story, at least so far as the
Mississippi valley is concerned. II is inherited
from the time before the war, and represents In
two syllables the evils Of the economic system
that obtained under the institution of slavery
without the counterbalance. of its advantages.
There were then no farmers in the cotton
country except among the poor white trash,
who didn't count The producer of the great
staple insisted upon the high sounding title OF
planter" and, as general thing his expendi.
ture and business method, or, rather lack OF
method, were in keeping Herewith. The labor
that titled his lands was the most docie on
earth, and perfectly adapted to the climate and
the nature Of the service required Of it. But
for that and the fertility of the soil he would
not have been able to keep afioat at all Them
crease Of his slave property represented his
growth in tangible wealth, for he had but little
except his negroes and his realty which would
have been valueless without them. This dis
agreeable fact was brought home to him before
the war was two years old, and within six
months after the emancipation proclamation
was a bankrupt, and that in the most compre-
hsnsive sense of the term.
He had broad acres that produced only a
tythe of the former abundance, for lack of
those strong black hands, and worse still, there
was nothing for him TO eat; for the planter of
the valley raised nothing but negroes and cot
ton, together with corn enough for his slaves
and mules, when the season was kind enough to
make ii for him. This did not happen more
than three years out of five, and in consequence
the western fiat boatmen waxed rich on the
sale of their cargoes of grain aud forage. The
planter considered the breeding of stock and
the production of food crops only as incidental
to the main purpose, and not worth considera-
ton in comparison with cotton The plodding
farmers of the west relieved him Of all trouble
on that score So, year after year the lion S
share Of the profits realized from his pet crop
found its way into the pockets of the 20O-acre
man in Ohio, Illinois and Iowa, while the
remainder went for pleasure or the pur'
chase of more land or negroes. These values
nulli1ed in the tremendous reckoning that came
at last, he found himself with empty barns and
no meat-perhaps without so much as chicken
for his dinner
There were exceptions but the rule was as
stated. Nowhere else was there class Of peo-
pie so abundantly favored by nature, and yet SC
destitute Of substantial resources and material
comforts; and when the bottom Of the indus
trial system in vogue dropped out, their facti-
tious prosperity stood exposed as barren ideal
| ity. zee r ta
nh +,ro,,t,, ,,o o,,,;,,s tto ,,,,so 90 tte
| war have seen the cotton producer of the valley
rehabitate himself to some extent. He has found
| that free negro labor is not the bugaboo he had
| expected. His houses and fences have been re-
| stored, after a fashion and he Is
| to-day just as well off as he was IL
| 1861, barring the loss of his slave property
| But he has learned little in the school of ad
versty, or else he will not turn the lesson t.
account. The substance of his former state be
ing swept away he grasps at the shadow. Tn,
aggregate value of his principal crop has, in
| deed, increased, but that was inevitable from
the natural growth of the negro population
coupled with the addition of hundreds Of thou
| sands Of white men, whom stern necessity com
| peied TO seek support from their own labor ii
| the cotton fields. But most of these latter be
longed to the class of small land owners in 9TH,
hills The large plantations in the valley havt
remained practically intact, and they are con
| Quoted in much the same way as before thu
war. Then it was negroes and cotton; now it il
| cotton. The corn crop is still an incident IL i
| cultivated with "a lick and promise" as o
yore, and when Heaven pleases enough is pro
duced to feed the mules. The grinding of corr
for bread is not thought of. The reliance is OF
| western meal-an item of expense which ever
the improvident ante bellum planter avoided
when he could, No care is taken of the few
hogs and cattle on the place. They are lief
to pick up living as best they may and II
winter and times Of drought their scanty mum
bers are still further reduced by cold an,
starvation. The beeves and hogs are scarcsll
fit for food six months out of the twelve, and
half dozen of the cows will give about as mucl
milk as one well-fed Jersey does.
The standing excuse for this state of things /
that nobody can have any luck with stock OF
account of the thieying niggers" Truly, it i
| altogether matter of luck, for not more thai
| one planter in a hundred pays any attention Il
| his stock. 1t Is allowed to run wild, and O
course, gets scattered and lost. A hog killing
| in the bottoms means hunt with dog and gul
| in traditional Black Forest style, and, like Ora
tiano's reasons, the animals, when found. ar
not worth the hunting One may travel 20
miles through the delta without seeing sngl
sheep. They can not be raised ION account o
the dogs" The hawks and minks are response
BILE for the dearth of poultry, And so it goes t
the end of the chapter
The natural consequence of such disregard o
| the ordinary resources of country life is tina
| the people have no variety in their food Their
| is no civilized people of equal pretensions VIII
| so lack the materials for a wholesome and ap
| petizing meal as do the jewellers on large plan
tations in this region. The staple diet is cor
or wheaton bread, salt meat and coffee, say
| with those who have the means and incNnatio
to procure other things at the groceries.
Passing along the streets of this city wher
the groceries and produce houses are situate
one stumbles against packages ready for shT
ment to the country that would make a north
ern or western farmer open his eyes in astonist
ment. He would see coops of chickens, boxe
of eggs, crates of cabbage, boxes of condense
milk, buckets of butter-in brief, a general as
sortment of articles which every tiller Of til
soil should produce at home and the vale
folk could produce it if they would. But the
are content to have their dairy in Iowa the
poultry yard in Missouri, and their vegetab
garden anywhere, except on their own land
Such lack Of thrift could have but one result
The planter who, has credit enough spend IL
proceeds of his cotton crop before II is gathere
and sometimes before it is made. If the vie
proves good one and prices fair he pays o,
OF debt. but only to plunge in again at the opel
ing of next season, Should the crop be shor
he must begin buying on time at high price
with balance against him before furrow hi
been turned. For several years the price
cotton has steadily declined as the productic
has increased, and when the crop of the averas
individual planter turns out less than he h'
anticipated the combination of shortage vii
low values completes his undoing
Cotton is worth less to-day than at any tin
in the last forty years, 1t nets the produc
about six cents pound for middling, and nut
less for the lower grades. The crop of 1891
in the valley is from 5 to 20 per Ger
less than that of the preceding yea
Hence it is that the new year finds not mo
than one planter inI200 out of debt. The 9th
l99 are either "a little behind seriously en-
barassed or hopelessly involved. Anoth
year like the last and they will find themselv
managing their property for their creditors.
These creditors are the persons who advan
the means to make the crop. They are secure
by lien on the cotton, and, in most instance
by mortgage on the land also Failure to p;
brings a foreclose and sale in due season, al
the mortgage becomes the owner There
no commission firm of any consequence
| Memphis or New Orleans that has not thus a