The farmer and mechanic., 1915-10-12
SOUTHS SLAVERY TO COTTON
would BE vastly Richer and More Populous Had +
Never Raised Bale In Opinion of Richard r, I'd.
mOnds i 49, A1o-

slaves with which 10 cultivate stnl
more cotton land
Thus the cotton gin fastened co+,o,
upon the South, and cotton. with ;ts
dHuTlns prohtS in the early dayS was
largely responsible for fastening slay.
cry With all its train OF evils. more |
hrmly upon this section.
me creation of the cotton growing
industry during the first 60 Years of |
the last century is probably the great
est business achievement made bv anv
Sectlon OF any country during thar
time. 1t represented a much larear
investment of capital than the entire
manufacturing business of New Eng
idnd. 1t had reached a point in inter
nationai affairs where it largely DOM
mated the commerce, the finance and
to considerable extent the politics
or this country and of Great Britain
Inc people of the South had learned
20 tnlnk cotton and measure all of
their business activities by the cotton
boil and bale.
New England's manufacturing in
| terests IN those days were based al
most wholly upon domestic trade: the
South's cotton business was interna-
tlOnal IN its importance and scope and
II brought the business men of the
| Soutn IN intimate touch with all the
| financial and manufacturing interests
OF Europe.
Enchains Entire Southland.
AS cotton chained slavery to the
South, so cotton has chained the
South to the slavery Of thinking and
| acting in terms of cotton.
In the early forties, when overpro-
duction brought about a rapid decline
in the price of cotton, the average
New York middling price for 1844-'45
being 5.63c, there was a very quick
turn of the South back to industrial
activities. Stimulated by the new
spirit created by the development Of
railroads, and turning from cotton by
reason Of low prices, the South, hand
icapped as it was by slavery promptly
turned it's thought to industrial pur-
suits. In the decade 1850 to 1860 the
South made remarkable progress in
the revival Of its manufacturing in
terests, but, Of course, during the SO
years in which the South had concen-
trated it's thought upon cotton New
England had concentrated it's activi-
ties upon manufactures. 1t had ir
this way created such extensive man
ufacturing interests that the Soutf
was far in the rear in industrial pur.
! suits. The South did, however. dur
, ing the decade Of 1850 to 1860 throw
tremendous energy into the discussion
| of industrial work and into the actua
= railroad interests. But the war came
: and when in 1865 the long, gray line
S which was then only she'll fadet
l. away the South was utterly and appa
:, rently hOpelessly bankrupt. Its labo
e system had been completely chang ee
and those who as slaves had been di
g rected by master minds in their farm
S work now suddenly found themselve
left to their own initiative. They ha,
= never learned to think for themselves
y They had always depended upon thei
owners to think for them. They ha'
= been directed what to do and how t
IS do it, They knew that when they lef
II the field they had nothing else to thinl
:, about, for a home. food and clothe
# were provided for them.
It Industrial Chaos After War.
II today great machine shop en-
plOying a thousand men workin
e under the control Of a few foreme
# and superintendents were suddenl
J. broken up and every man was told I
s. go out and start little machine sho
VI for himself, the local confusion woul
il not be as great relatively as that Whic
le confronted the agriculture Of th
Il, whole South by reason Of the chang
l. from slave to free labor and the cor
"a ditions under which the changes WeT
Sc made. The negro had neither the e2
l. perience nor the ability to operate f(
h himself which would be found at lea:
le among some Of the thousand M
Ks chanics suddenly turned loose an
D. told to start a thousand small ma
d. chine shops. Nevertheless, there W.
o. an abundance of land available, al
,n cotton factors and money lende
Of were ready to aid the negroes as we
as others for a profit, and very b
TO one at that, in renting few acres {
in which to raise cotton, "SrubStaklns
Id them until the cotton was picked. TT
he land owners OF the South also we
Sc compelled, by reason OF their power
sh following the war, likewise to p
so themselves in the hands Of the mon'
Of lenders who helped them to NAL
ed a crop by advancing money ana taI
.ly ing a mortgage on the crop in advan
es of the ploughing of the land in whif
ITS it was to be planted
Is. Prior to the war the central Sou
or had been very largely selfsustainii