Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1905-12-20

COAI1nue 10 increase. MOI OnTy IN
North, but also in Middle and South
ern Georgia, lands, that once could be
bought for four or five dollars an acre,
are now bringing from twenty to
twenty-five dollars an acre.
The question may be asked, "Why
tnen the scarcity of labor?" This can
be accounted for in more ways than
one. Our large and rapidly growing
cities and towns, with their various
manufacturing enterprises, our rail
roads and workshops, the work re.
quired on the streets of our cities,
such as grading and paving and dig
pipes and water connections for
streets and buildings, both public and
private, by offering high wages for
even ordinary labor, draw able-bodied
negroes away from the country Be-
sides, many of the negro men have
bought land and are farming for them.
selves. They work on their own farms
and find too much at home for their
wives and children to do, to hire out
either themselves or their children
Many others are too lazy anS thrift
less to do anything and will work only
long enough to get a little money in
hand, when they WHY stop work AMI
leave the farmer to shift for himself
Wages for farm-laborers, that used to
be from so to rs cents day, are now
from rs cents to $1.25 per diem, and
it is often difficult to hire help at even
those prices.
One remedy for this state of things
is intensive or scientific farming, in
which the farmer reduces the acreage
planted but by skillful preparation,
fertilization and cultivation makes one
acre produce as much as three di
under the old methods, and in this
way requires smaller number of
hands, thus saving expense for pay
of laborers. OF course this means
smaller farms and lands to SELL But
no man cares to sell to negroes and
then have lot of neighbors of that
class. But he would like to sell to a
good Wnite man either for cash or on
time and good security. He would
also be glad to part with some of his
land to white men, who have not the
money but will pay for the land by
service rendered in return, until the
value of what they purchase has been
paid for.
All Europeans of good character are
welcome, but as we have said often
before, we prefer immigration from
Americans Of the United States. We
wish these immigrants to come here
and be bona fide citizens, who intend
to make Georgia their home and help
us build up grand and prosperous
commonwealth. We want no foreign
landlord system inaugurated by men
who wish to exploit our lands and
their products to fill their own pockets
or add to the wealth of distant states
in our own Union, or of nations across
the Atlantic. An immigration of goot
white people who come to be of us and
with us, to build up our farms and
manufactures, is what we want
One of the greatest needs of Geor-
gia to-day is skilled labor for our
fields and skilled labor for our fac
tories, so that here at home we can
manufacture our cotton, our lumber,
our wheat and our corn into the
finished product, so that we can buy
what we need here at home without
extra charges that come from freights
and tariffs
We have a grand country, with good
lands AMI nealthful climate and every
privilege, religious and educational,
offered by any state within the bounds
of the United States.
We say to the desirable immigrant,
Come and help us to make Georgia
what her variety of soil, climate and
productions can make ner, if properly
improved, the brightest star that
shines in the grand constellation OF
our Federal Union"
T. G. HUDSON,
Commissioner of Agriculture.