The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1900-10-17

at HIM. When you want your horse
hitched up Sunday morning you call
out Here, Moses, catch up my
horse, will you,n and shortly the horse
comes around well-groOmed and shiny,
with Moses holding him, hat in hand,
and smiling as you come out. You
may give him II cigar or toss him a
nickel, you may not give HIM anything
it is all the same TO him. The
''bOss" wants his horse, and that is
enough.
How different with your white man.
1T he is where you can get ut him,
you say "Mr. Johnson, will you be
kind enough to hitch the bay up to the
buggy 2" and Mr.. Johnson goes about
the task modify, muttcring that he
wasn't hired to wait on people. But
when pay day comes, he expects all
these little extras to be settled for.
You may run of your negroes if you
will but for me, [ will keep nine for
a while YET, for L consider the negroes,
on the whole, very much superior as
farm laborers TO the class of white
men you will be able to hire.
We have negroes on our place who
car do anything in our garden or farm,
from running a seed sower or moving
machine to setting out plants and pre-
pairing vegetables for market, and do
it as well as | would myself. They
live III homes on the place and board
themselves. | made up my mind
when | married that my wife should
lever III a negro boarding house, or
white one, either, for hat matter, and
| have ncverhad reason to think other
wise.
We hire IL men by the month and
pay them cash. They like to have
their money to spend as they please.
II makes them feel that they are set.
ting something for their work, even if
they do throw it away as fast as they
make it; it Is theirs to spend as they
please. We find this very much more
satisfactory than issuing rations, or
giving orders on the store; for when
you do this, the men are apt to feel
that they are being charged too much
and become dissatisfied.
The farm labor question is really as
much a question of employer as of
employee. What the South needs is
men to put brains into the farm and
manage it like any other successful
business, so as to make it pay. Then
employ the mass of ignorant labor
who arc AT present trying to crop, but
who arc incapable Of managing any
thing successfully, and pay them cash.
The trouble down here is we have al
lowed these people to boss themselves
until they are about to starve to death
and ruin us into the bargain. This is
the kind of emigration the South needs,
practical men who come here prepared
to purchase farms, and who are capa-
bic of working them successfully when
acquired.
a large portion of our inhabitants
will always be incapable of managing
their W affairs successfully. This
class must necessarily work for wages,
and it is the duty of the intelligent
Southern land owner to 80 manage his
farm as not only to make money for
himself, but to furnish profitable en-
ployment for the labor of his locality.
1t may be easier to sit on the front
porch reading your paper while your
renters manage for themselves, but
you neglect your duty to yourself and
your nclghbors when you do it.
While | am on the subject of land
lord or employer, l want to say a few
words to those people who hire help.
DO you ever have any trouble with
your hands If so, whose fault is it b?
Yours, or the hands? One of the best
hands on Il place is a man who my
next door neighbor could not get along
with. 1t Is not Away an easy matter
to put yourself in the other fellows
place and to see things from your
hands standpoint. But it has one
great advantage. 1t helps him to see
things from your standpoint. Did you
ever think of that? To treat others
as you would like to be treated your
self, is wonderfully good policy, my
friends.
| had a friend once who went into
the dairy business near me. He was a
very nice fellow, but quick tempered.
and was always having trouble with
his help. If things did not 90 Just as
he thought they should, he would get
mad and fire into the hands. The men
would say something that he could not
take, and the result would be that the
men would be discharged. In this
manner his help dwindled away until
he finally had to give up the business.
1t is indeed a gift to know how to
manage men successfully, but the ne
gro, If you understand him and treat
him fairly, is the easiest managed of
any race [ know. Naturally of q sunny
aud easy and equitable disposition, he
is easily led, and becomes greatly at
tached to his white folks after he has
been with you a year or two; especial,
if you are doing well. He will brag
about "our stock and our CROP" as if
they belong to him. He does not
work altogether for pay. If he likes
you, tempting offers and higher wag
will not induce him to leave, and if he
does dislikes you, no amount of money
you can offer will hire him.
TO manage the negro, or any other
help for that matter, you must first
know your W business thoroughly,
and be able to tell exactly what you
want done, and how you want it done.
Hands have no respect for an employer
who hesitatcs when giving his COM
mands and is uncertain how he wants
them carried out BE cheerful and
pleasant with your men, without being
too familiar, and above all do not fret.
Tor this ruins your own disposition as
well as your hands. 1t puts the ne
GRO in a sullcp atoto IN ,yb;,b .1: