The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-01-11
Old Blunder

has just been issued By the commits
sioner Of agriculture Of the State OF
Georgia:
ATLANTA. Jan. ]. 1899.
The beginning of the new year is
upon us and 1898, with all its hopes
and disappoiutments, is thing of the
past. 1t will be well fnr each of US
at this tinre, before we commence our
work for she year, TO take Il calm aud
thoughtful view If the situation: aud
then to act as become sensible men.
What, then, do we 6nd to be the
condition Of the average Georgia
farmer at this time? After working
for months to make and gather large
cotton crop, has he any money left
from its sale? say emphaticaIly no
Those farmers are fortunate indeed
who have been able to pay the debts
incurred BY them in making the last
cotton crop, the vast majority having
unpaid accounts against them either
for guano, meat, corn Or goods OF
other kinds.
Has the average Georgia farmer
supply Of corn. oats, hay and fodder,
with which 80 feed his stock of every
kind until he can make another crop +?
Has he plenty of homemade meat
and -four and syrup with which to
feed all hands on the farm for the
next 10 months? Are his mules,
and horses, and cattle, and hogs, aud
sheep in good order aud we'll cared
for, now in the midst of cold, long
winter? Has he an abundance of
poultry Of all kinds, well housed and
we'll fed? Has he plenty of god
milk and butter from graded Jersey
or Holstein cows? Has he rich
garden from which he can daily gather
the winter vegetable TO add to his bill
of fare? To all these questions |
must regretfully answer no. And
yet I assert positively that all these
are within easy reach of every land
owner in Georgia who will throw off
the curse Of all cotton growing, and
return to the ways of our fathers.
Shall we continue to grow and sell
cotton below the cost Of production
Ito the great delight of the balance Of
mankind, who care nothing for our
suAeriDgs), until total ruin overtakes
US, or shall We make united and de-
termined effort to raise our own sup
plies in abundance, and thus make
our cotton crop an absolute surplus!
[ see no hope for our farmers save to
adopt the latter plan and stick to it
regardless of the price Of cotton.
Don't delude yourself with the idea
that your neighbors will diminish
their cotton acreage and therefore you
will increase yours in the hope of get
ting good price. There could be no
greater mistake of judgment than this,
as the selfish farmer so acting will
find to his cost at the end Of the
season.
1fGeorgia made no cotton this year,
the loss would doubtless be made up
by the yearly increased acreage Of
rich cotton lands brought into cult
,vation west of the Missouri river.
We had better prepare ourselves for a
long period Of priced cotton, for
the outlook promises nothing else,
being prepared, we can better endure
such calamity.
For SO years we have relied on cot
ton alone with which to purchase
everything else. During that time
we have made not less than %, 000,-
600 Of bales, worth at moderate esti-
mate, fully $500, 100000 What has
become Of this vast amount of money,
which, if kept at home, would have
made us one of the richest States in
the Union? 1t has all gone to pay
the farmers and manufacturers of the
north and east for supplies of various
kinds, every item of which we could
and should have produced within our
own borders. Suppose we had made
only 10000, 1000 bales in the past 30
years, and in addition had produced
al the supplies that We have bought
from other States, is it not self evi-
dent that we would be better off by
$500, 100000 than VIC are at present?
The entire property of the State,
cities included, is now but little
over 100000, 900, and the farmers Of
Georgia ought alone to have been
richer BY this vast amount, had they
not been dcluded by the all-cottou
fallacy
Look around you in your different
communities and note the successful