The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1899-01-28
\ Successful Planter.

planter, Mrs. Leila Setn Wilder,
of Decatur, Alabama, told by her
self in an interview published in
the st Louis Republic. Her eX-
celIent idea of managing negroes
and running her place as nearly MS
possible on the plan of the English
proprietors is already being tried
by one of the most intelligent and
enterprising young planters of
Washington County, and its result
will be watchedwith keen interest,
Two years ago | was offered
body Of land which had been in the
original plantation otny husband ;,
but had been sold Off. | decided
to buy; tins meant that ! could no
longer 90 on in the shlftless man
ner | had been. | was going to in
vest a good deal Of money, and |
must make it pay. My attorney and
aIImy friends advised against the
buying, SAYING there was no money
in farming; that | would have TO
have an overseer, and that that
would take all the profits, etc, But
/ went ON and made my purchase,
and also made up my mind to sue
coed. | would not stand Il CONFESS
ed failure, and so went to work.
| determined to more than Just get
along. | intended to make model
place that would not be known Is
lnosl widows larms ate-oy tao
gates on one hinge and the poor
fences
So | began by putting the best
of wire fences around the planta'
ton. ! have ~ now put ap
several miles, and am an expert. |
know how much wire to buy ior a
mile, what is i noe proof fence,
the best posts to use, size, etc. /
have gone right out and seen every
panel OF fence put up. linen |
have had new roads worked On The
place, under my oWn eyes. | have
had lour new cabins built, all done
by the tenants on the place, with
no oyerseer but myself.
Perhaps my most fortunate
aua.iiieuIion Tor the work | do IS
tue faculty Of managing these ne
groes. / think | can gel more out
of them than ordinary.
My plantation contains LOGO
acres, near Decatur, my boundary
line being that Of the toan. 1t lies
for d mae and Il half along the
tennessee River and the same dis
lance along the Flint River, u small
stream running into the tennessee.
There are about 700 acres IN cult
walton, the balance ia timber OF
magnificent nrst growth hard wood,
principally white oak. we RAISE
cotton principally, bat, on account
of our proximity to IOWA, corn,
hay, some oats and, each tenant,
sorghum cane for his long sweet
eningn during the year. now cul-
tiyate about 100 acres myself, with
hired help; the balance is rented
on what IS known as the tenant
system, only rs the land is 50 nea.
market and very fertile | command
money rent instead Of share crop,
receiving Tor upland 80 ana river
bottom 81 per acre. Each tenant
takes, to use technical expression,
a one, two or three horse crop, ac-
cordlug to the amount OF stock the
man has. A horse is supposed tt
be able TO tend 70 acres.
| have 20 families on the place
but they are not all tenants, a
some OF them are hired by the
year. Each tenant has a cabin
garden spot and pasture free OF
rent and his tirewood. Negroes
are not at all migratory Many O
the Younger men have been borI
on the place, and some have beer
here since the surrender. lhey
look on it as much their home a.
mine. One, for instance, displeas
ed me this summer, and tod MN
he would have to go to town ah'
could not live here any longer