The Forrest City times., 1892-04-01
Plain Talk About Farming.

Editor Sentlnel-Ine recent eX- pressions given out at the meetings of the Cotton Growers associations at Jackson and Memphis are liable to miSlead great many farmers. These expressions 90 on the idea there is an over-production. This is an erroneous idea not borne out by the statistics. There is not more than two aud half bales per hand produced by those en- gagsd in cotton production This, then, is not more than half d crop and a small one at that. There Is scarcely any corn raised by the people who pro duce this cotton. It will be seen, then, that there is really an under produc- tion of not only cotton, but also of corn. meat and other edlbles. No country under the sun can feed such labor, furnish mules and feed and tools, and live on this sort of crop, even at ten cents for cotton. The average number of days worked by the best labor i'll the country will not exceed ninety days good steady work. No work is pretended to be done until the l st of March, aud ill July the crop is laid by, :" and nothing more done till the middle of September or first of October and the picking ends Decem- bCI l lO IO. oil anu rainy days, and you have about three months work to get five bales;the land- lord is out land, mule and feed and clothing of family that makes it. usually about seven in the family.
 The whole crop does not more than pay the expeiises of the squad that raise it-leaving the landlord without cent. Now when 1t is remembered that loc.. Gat five, nf foA nbtfniA country i'll the United States is in eulti- vati0n the production in the future can readily be seen. We must have more work, more cotton and moIe corn to the hand There is no such thing as regulating the production of cotton by resolutions. Like every other merchantable article it must and will regulate itself We ought with the labor now employed in the cotton fields of the South to produce twenty-five million bales, and plenty of corn, meat and everything else to eat. We are supp0rting too many idlers. The white people have,as q rule gone to town and virtually turned the country ever to the negroes. A negro can raise cotton, but cannot, without intelligent direc- tion produce corn. Ten years hence 8 sale of cotton told of as high as ten cents will hardly be believed. The natural increase in cleared land and new land in the prairies of Texas taken in will amount to at least fifteen per cent. The present crop Will be fully nine million bales, and no pros pect of one ever being smaller. When cotton gets so cheap that it can't bear freight burdens to distant points, the factories will move to it.
 Every farm should be selfSustaining Raise plenty of corn, meat and mules, COWS and sheep, and in addition pro duce, with the same labor, three times as much cotton per hand as is' raised now. It is perfectly clear that with | five cent cotton we can't buy every thing, especially when we produce only half a crop. But there is as much money in five cent cotton, if 1t IS pro- duced on your own meat, bread and mules as there was in fifteen cent cotton made on corn, meat and mules bought at a profit of from 100 per cent tC grand larceny. Don't be misled by these resolutions. Count on a 10000 900 crop and five cents and go to work | Your lands and homes are in jeopardy and if there is not a change we will bt tramps in few more years. Contro the labor-better make it effective ol tuIn it off.
 In conclusion, I think that all these farmers associations are good and an ready to join and aid them so far as can. The problem before the South i
 a tough one. Our labor is composed
 of people, as a general rule, wht
 have neither thrift, ambition nor in
 dustry; no desire to acquire property
 no care for the morrow. Ours Is tn
 only civilized country where the gross products of the soil are annually equa
 Tn value to the land, and with two
 years work and economy, we Will b'
 ill good shape. OBSERVER.