Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-11-01
Cotton Farmers
Gloomy Letter.

l
of the conditions existing throughout
the cotton belt, is brought out in the
letter. full of human interest, which
has just been received by officials of
the United States Department of Agri-
culture from Georgian farmer who
evidently owns a number of tenant
| farms. is fairly well-to-do and is hay
ing his problems with poor tenants,
whom he would like to help, but who.
because of their lack of understand
| ing, blame him for the conditions which
exist:
Il spent yesterday having cotton
hauled to the gin. I met a lot of peo-
pie, heard them talk. many of them say
| they can't get. seed oats and wheat to
plant. Cotton was selling from 2ls to
| 6 cents. We have no credit here, no
sale for anything. Can't sell chickens
for any sort of price. l have $4,000 in
notes. Can't borrow money on them.
Can't get money from bank any way.
They say they will let people have
money next year to make a new crop,
| but can't help now, even to get seed
Il have forty bushels OF oats and
| three OF rye. I am sowing. but / need
wheat. Much of the crop will be plowed
in. l have forty negroes on my land
They owe me more than they have got
and they won't gather crops but hunt
jobs and work off much of the time
l have them to feed. They need shoes
and clothes for the winter and 1 don't
know how they can get them. They
have cotton plenty, but can't sell it,
In fact. there is but few men able to
make enough to farm next year.
AS l see it. see no way to pay my
debts at the price of cotton. My hands
harass me. They can't pay for what
they have used. They need shoes and
clothes. I have white man at my
elbow wanting money to buy shoes
that can't pay me by a long amount
what the family has used. / had one
another owing $125, one. SIS. I just
let them go. Negroes think the fault
is in the landlord. Can't convince
them that the landlord is in the same
bad fix. They say that men will pillow
in much cotton as fertilizer for
| wheat and oats.
Last year 1 had 1000 bushels of
! wheat and oats to sell. but could not
find market for it. l let it go for
barter and loaned it out together. Cot
ton is the only cash market we have.
Nothing but cotton brings money
here. Other things is bartered. I can't
see how these people can make a crop
next year. Landlords can't feed them.
| They can't feed themselves. No vtsl-
| BILE source for it to come from. This
may not interest you, but it is the case
now"
| The outlook is much more hopeful
today for this Georgian and other cot,
ton farmers The decision of England
| to permit the shipment of cotton 10
Germany and Austria. providing the
product is carried in American Dol
toms, has started movement IN thls
years cotton crop which governmiesn1e
experts believe will make 1t possloie
for farmers to sell their products at a
nroflt If Great Britain had continued
TO look upon cotton as contrapa
there is no telling how bad the situa-
ton might have become. accolu,ns ~
in the south. The general feeling OIL
ontimism nov, it is said. is little ap.
preciated by persons living OUTSIDE "
the cotton belt. because they nave no.
lived under the cloud of gloom wh.Sn
has overhung most sectiohs VI >N
south for many weeks.
x
.why is it that the United States
with all it's experts and equipment
for statistical investi-
Tndustria1 CATION, does not collect
complete statistics for
dcclueHtS. industrial accidents of
all kinds in the United States? why
| Is it that the only attempt to keep
| a record of industrial accidents OF
all kinds is made by a private cor
poration-an insurance company-and
why is it that the government which
recently tried to make a census of
birds. and which keeps track of the
hogs which die from cholera. fails at
the same time to keep track of the
men who are killed and injured III
| industry"
These questions are often asked by
persons who are interested in getting
accurate information on the results of
the safety first" movement, which
| has swept over the country during
| the last few years. 1t is known that
/ the movement to promote safety IN
all Industries is lessening the number
of accidents and deaths. but to what
degree no one knows at the present
time, because of the failure Of the
government to keep complete statistics
| on accidents in all industries.
The fact that the government does
keep statistics on railroad accidents,
mining and quarry accidents, and acct
dents in the steel industry. and yet
fails to complete the work by listing
the accidents in other industries. is
something which advocates of safety
first measures and social workers
In the United States fail to understand
The incomplete accident statistics now
gathered by the government are CD
tanned by three bureaus In three dif-
ferent departments. The United states
bureau of mines of the Interior De-
partment collects statistics each year
for the number of accidental deaths
in the coal and metal mining INDUS
tries and in quarrying; the interstate
commerce commission keeps account
of the railroad accidents. and the
United States bureau of labor statistics
of the Department of Labor Is gath
ering figures each year on the deaths
| in the steel industry and is gradually
extending the work to other lines.
Persons interested in the prevention
of Industrial accidents say that some
effort should be made to co-ord1nate
the work and give either the bureau
of the census Of the Department OF
Commerce or the bureau of labor sta
tistics of the Department OF Laoor
the responsibility for bringing to-
eether the most accurate statistics to
be obtained on industrial accidents OF
ali kinds in all Industries from agri-
culture to steel-making, and through
ont all lines of business and trades
! in which a considerable number OF
naonle are killed and injured each
year.
| The first literary society organized
under Uncle Sans auspices is just
about ready to
National Reading start work. Dr.
Circle Formed. commissioner OF
the United States bureau or educatioh,
has prepared letters to all hlgh scHooi
nrincinals and officials of the smalier
| ,,- +bro,0bouf the United States