The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-01-18


from the back woods came to our town
with two bales of cotton and sold it
FOR S cents pound. This was his
entire crop, and he was complaining
bitterly to one of our merchants and
said that the farmers would perish to
death in another year if there WASH t
some change for the better. A mis-
ehievous drummer. standing by, said:
swell, MY friend, you must quit
raising cotton or else bay some mon
keys 60 pick it out. Over in India
and Egypt they make the monkeys
pick their cotton, and that is what S
the matter. A monk y will pick a
thousand pounds day and he feeds
on the seeds. So it costs hardly any
thing over there TO raise cotton, and
bur farmers in Mississippi and Texas
have sent over for hundred thou
sand monkeys, and they will be over
here in time to pick the next crop
and the price will go lower still, and
If you don't get you monkey or two
you had better quit growing cotton,
for you can { compete with monkeys.
The old man took it all in seriously
and said "Well, what is poor farm
or to do if he hasn't got the money to
buy the monkey p
ssGrow something else. said the
drummer. ssGrow corn and wheat and
sorghum and potatoes. Plant apple
and peach trees, raise chickens and
eggs, and yearlin calf or two to sell.
Get up soon and stir around lively
and make every member Of your fam
lily work. Work at something, for III
you don't you will perish out. Go
back home and take new start. Don't
sit down and grumble apd-blame some
body else wish'your poverty. Quit
cotton until you can buy half dozen
monkeys"
The man went back home and cir
eulated the monkey story, and for ten
miles around the one-horse farmers
have sworn of from raising any more
cotton. That's what they tell me.
They say that before the war the poor
man couldn' t compete with the rich
man niggers, and now since he has
lost his niggers he is buyin' monkeys
10 take their places, and the poor man
won't have any chance at,all.
OF course there is no truth in this
story, but there is q good deal OF
philosophy. New methods, new plows
and new machinery are the monkeys,
and il the poor farmer does not work
early and late he will keep poor. L
know some country women who make
more money on their chickens and
eggs and butter than their husbands
do on their cotton and wheat. Little
things. well nprsed count up more
than big ones. The thrifty farmer
always brings with him something to
sell when he has to come to town.
Some fowls or eggs or potatoes or q
shote or some fruit in it's season.
There is good home market for all
these little things. In fact, if we
leave ont cotton everything the farm
er grows brings about the same old
prices Of ten years ago, and everything
he has to buy except coffee is much
cheaper now than it was then. Every
thing that is made Of cotton is so per
cent cheaper and everything made Of
iron or steel or tin is 100 per cent
cheaper. Beef and pork and chickens
and turkeys and eggs and wood and
potatoes and apples and peaches have
not come down nickle in ten years.
Labor is little cheaper, not much.
We still pay the same for cooking and
washing and work in the garden. If
anybody has reason for complaining
Of hard times it is the town people,
who have everything TO buy. The
farmer who is not in debt and owns
his farm is better off than he ever was
and the prudent renter can pay rent
and make money farming.
But Of course there is q large class
of shiftless, unthrifty people who will
not succeed at anything: and they
blame everybody for it but themselves.
Cobe says that the Lord had to make
poor folks to keep rich folks in money,
and so Cobe is content in being poor,
for it is the Lord will. know folks
who have never planted 4 fruit tree
and who will not even plant garden.
Poverty makes some folks shifty and
others Indifferent and despairing.
There is an old negro woman comes to
our house every Saturday and brings
us a gallon of big hominy-old-fash
;oned I've hominv. and it is luxury.