The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1914-10-20
Some Plain Facts
News and Courier.


state in
to the clamor tor such action which
hos been raised by the farmers
themselves.
There can be no question that the
farmers who are urging this action
and who are maintaining at the
state capital an earnest and per-
sistent lobby for that purpose are
convinced that it wurbe their saliva
tion. The thing which to us re-
mains in .coHprehensible is how
they have arrived at such a conclu-
sion.
Only 25 per cent Of the farmers
In South Carolina own the lands they
till. There Is not a state in which
cotton is the principal crop where
majority OF the farmers are not rent
ers. How many Of them, even II
there had been no war and cotton
had brought normal price, would
have done more this year than
break even? ~
Is a map with little or nothing
ahead-perhaps up to his eyes in
debt-able virtually to suspend
work for a year?
The argument Of the eliminators,
OF course, is that the policy they
ing urged was not going to be re-
hand. 1t would do nothing of the
kind, Of course. The price would
not be appreciably affected for at
least six months, or until the plant
ing season had passed and 1t was
certain that the legislation now be-
Ing urged was no tgoing to be re-
pealed. Whose will the cotton be
then? Who will get the benefit Of
rise, II one should come, as pre-
dicted? How many one-horse ten
ant farmers would be able to finance
themselves over this period?
No law requiring a reduction In
acreage next year is needed because
there 's going to be a reduction any
how. But a law denying to the
farmer the right OF growing any
cotton is not only dangerous in prin-
ciple, but it also involves very SER
ious practical problems which so far
have received only the scantest at
tention from those whom they
should concern most.
This newspaper for years has
preached diversitcation, has urged
the growing of other crops besides
cotton, has never wearied of cham
ing the wisdom OF those who made
themselves independent by living at
home. But while 1t is as true as
gospel that almost anything which
will grow at all can be grown in
South Carolina, our whole system Of
agriculture has centered around
cotton. Upset that system violent
ly and without warning and the re-
suits will probably be only less ter
rible than war.
If any farmer is so fortunately sit
uated that he believes he will be
better of by planting no cotton at
all next year. by all means let him
plant none. But there are many
farmers whose lands are but poorly
adapted to growing grain crops, who
might as well be urged to build
warships as to go into the cattle in
dustry. They can plant some grain,
they can raise their own meat, or
most OF 1t, but they have always de-
pended upon cotton for a living.
What will become of them of they
are forbidden to plant any cotton at
all?
One trouble with many OF those
who are urging all sorts OF Ill d.
gested schemes Is that they have
gotten 1t fixed In their minds that
1t costs ten cents a pound to raise
cotton and that unless the producer
gets that he is going to be faced
with starvation. 1t probably has
cost ten cents a pound upon the
basis OF land prices and the cost of
labor during the last few years; but
which Is better. for the landlord to
take a reduced rental for his lands
next year or get nothing at all and
have his tenantry demoralized +?
Lands for the next twelve months
at least will not be worth as much
by half as they were six months ago.
They will 60 back up In value of
course. but for the present they
must not be figured into the cost of
raising cotton at the old figures.
The same thing is true as to labor.