The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1893-01-11
'snt. etc. The bill for the support of the

rent, etc. The bill Tor the support OF the
non producing members of the family
must also be paid. Cost of production
thus becomes very different thing from
the cost of the family.
No absolute figures esn be given as to
the cost of production proper. A planter
in Georgia says that after the land has
been brought to high pitch Of cultiVa.
ton, pound of cotton can be made for
four cents. This ia far below the aver
age cost. The most successful culture is
about twenty bales to the mule, but the
average ia probably less than ten. TAX
ing the most favorable case claimed,
cost of four cents end a selling price Of
eight, there will be profit Of two bun.
dred dollars on ten bales. Assuming a
profit of ten dollars q bale, this crop
would yield but one hundred dollars for
The family charge. At the present state
of the market the profit is still less. In
mathematical terms it may be said that
for any fixed standard of living the farm
burden equals the cost of production
comprising the outlay of all kinds need
ed to make the crop) plus the csst of the
family. As the latter charge is to some
extent constant, it follows that the
smaller the farm the heavier the burden
on the farmer. While a profit of ten
dollars each on forty bales will meet
charge of four hundred dollars, such q
profit on ten bales means exceedingly
.tra::sned circumstances. When the
standard of living is lower the fixed
charge is lsss, and for this reason the
white farmer is pressed by bis black
neighbor, who, though less skillfal gen
orally, has fewer needs. In the same
way, with a given standard, the larger
the crop the less the proportion of the
fixed charge. Here comes another ad.
vantage to the large planter. Not only
can he make his crop cheaper per pound
through improved facilities, but
smaller profit on each bale suffices for
outside needs. Such laws of inequality
come from above. They are not found
on our earthly statute-books.
Yet no one can say that farming does
not pay in the sense that other ossupa-
tions aud trades pay. Ifs pound of COT
ton can be produced for five cents and
sold for seven, here is profit of forty
per cent. What other business pays
more? The owrer Of 3 share in national
bank thinks he is doing we'll if be re-
seives dividend of eight per cent. but
he does no. hope to live entirely on an
investment of Ave hundred dollars in
bank stock. In the cotton spinning
business an individual will buy share
of stock, and then he will hire himself to
the concern for wages or 60 into some
other business. The farmer is at once
landlord, capitalist and laborer. He
makes full wages as laborer and fair
rent and fair profit on his Investment;
but the trouble is that his investment is
too small for his family. The fixed
charge of the family falls heavily on all
small producers. But in other industries
the forces of production are generally
classified and the workers are paid in
wages. When they suffer the cause is
easily seen, and the remedy is a rise in
wages. But the small farmer cannot
strike against himself for higher wages.
u
1t may be suggested, in conclusion,
that the small farmer should more and
more endeavor to leave the production OF
the staple crops 10 large planters and
devote himself to "small farming" in
deed. he has muscle and be has land
in plenty. He greatly needs capital to
utilize them to the best advantage. De-
nuuciation of railroads, factories and
banks will hardly make him more pros
porous.