St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1899-05-20
FARMER RANDPLANTER.
THE FARM LABOR PROBLEM.
The negro the Best Kind of Lab0FeS
the Southern Farmer Now Has,
and He Must Make Best of Him.

Science with books, and observation
with practical tests enable the soil cul-
tivators and workers to know to some
extent what different soils are COM
posed of and what such soils lack Tor
the production of different crops. All
farmers know something Of what ma
nure is and it's uses, and that land
rick with plant food, either natural or
applied, will bring good and abun-
dant crops when properly and indus
triously worked. The farmer may
have the best of land, the best of seed
and the best of teams and working
iinplt ments, and yet raise Ioor crops.
Why? just because he has no intel
li.cnt, industrious and reliable labor.
The farm labor in this country is quite
exclusively negro labor. All who de-
pend on this class of labor and use it
knox, its character. In his former
(and, as / think, his legitimate and
natural place) he could be relied on
and made to serve as good farm
hand. Of course then, as now, all un-
skilled labor had to be controlled and
directed by intelligent brains. There
is no question but what the negro j.
the best kind of laborer we now have,
ard we have to make the best and
nest of him.
The character and nature of the
negro race is well known by all who
have come in intimate contact with
him. He acts as being dependent on
the white race (quite as much so in
some respects) as when a slave. AS u
farm hand, when Saturday night
comes he wants his weeks work,
whether it be little or much, for he
spends it all by Monday morning, and.
as rule, is no richer then than he
was Saturday night before he got his
pay; and it is too often the case when
Monday morning comes your hand is
not on hand to go to work, and $
either crippled with whisky and
fight, or in the lookup or has hired tn
work to another man. 1 have learned
to find no fault with him for such
conduct, for he is just built this way
and can't reverse the natural law Of
creation. OF course there are many
notable exceptions in the conduct and
character of the race, but these are
only exceptions. ! know negroes who
arc as reliable and worthy as the best
white men. The best hand have had
in 80 years on the farm was negro.
and he continued such for four years.
til, he got to be preacher and put On
a plug hat. spectacles and long-tail
ccat, then ! had to fire him out the
front gate.
We may safely state that the labor
question is the dominant question on
the farm at this time. Good and sue
cessful farming can't be dcne without
good and reliable farm labor. Our
formers are getting brains, but the
great want in Drawn that is sure and
steadfast. Can it be true what ''OII
ST. said that when yoI put a spelling
book in ncgro's hand You lost "a
good field hand?" 1t looks as if this
was true. s..." -y.'-;. ,..:s i
The big question:: is this. Can the
ne gro be made good farm hand, :Or
must we look 20. other sources. for
farm labor? My opinion is. that there
is enough white labor to. do all of the
manual. as it is now doing the mental.
labor of this country. The question
comes in right here-how to make it
available. Must the negro be crowded
aside and become an eNcresence. dam
Ct rous and damaging TO our whole So
cial and economic being. or shall he be
removed beyond our borders to a COM
munity of his own
Thanks to government efforts and
@crk. and to the flood of rural litera-
ture that in recent years has covered
the land, the farmers, us /; rule. are
well equipped on the mental and ma
tcrial side of farm business, but the
tug now is. the manual labor to carry
out and make effective the knowledge
CT the master. This question of farm
labor is big one and is growing cv-
cry day, and the time is not many
wears hence when the acute state of
the question will confront our farm
ers. and then there will be much
.'trouble in the land."-W. Cook, in
Farmers Home journal.