The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1916-12-20

day of March, 1909, will show that
the farmers Of South Carolina were /.
woefully deceived, and that the white
farmers of South Carolina are today
more at the mercy OF the negro farm
hand than ever before in the history
Of the State.
South Carolina is an agricultural
community and the prosperity OF all
vocations, depends, to q very large
extent, on the condition Of the crops,
and the condition Of the crops in
South Carolina depends to a greater
extent on negro labor. Now, in order
to control this negro labor, ever since
the Civil War;, the white farmer in
South Carolina has had a lien for
advances made to a farm hand, with
out a writing OF any kind, and ever
since the freedom of the slave, the
Supreme Court of South Carolina has
sustained the validity Of this unwrit-
ten lien for advances, as can be seen
from a study of the decisions in the
matter Of state VS.. Elmore, 6s S. c.,
145, and NeXsen VS.. Ward, sc S. c.,
313.
However, the Supreme Court of
South Carolina, in the matter of
Cantey VS.. McClary-Broadway Co.,
95 s. c., 80, has limited to some ex-
tent the aforesaid unwritten lien Of
the farmer. by holding that the farm
err could not assert said unwritten lien
FOR advances against a third party,
without compliance with Section 4165
of the Civil Code Of South Carolina
1912. ~
During the 1916 session of the leg
islature, Senator DuRant, at my re-
quest. introduced the aforesaid bills
or amendments, in order that the
white farmer Of South Carolina might
have complete control of his g
labor. and in order to put a stop for
ever to the negro farm hand giving
innumerable chattel mortgages,
which at the end Of the year, the
white farmer must pay off, in order
to get a farm hand for the next
year.
With the view Of showing the fair
ness and necessity of this proposed
legislation in behalf Of the white
farmer, let me illustrate:
For instance, John Doe and Rich
ard Roe are good book keepers and
bank clerks and each get a good sal
airy from their respective banks.
Either Of these distinguished gentle
men could W every merchant in his
home town and decline to pay their
obligations and there is no process of
law by which the salary of either of
them could be attached; and his is
true, for the simple reason. that the
members of the legislature protect
ta TIT. b sA NJ n
operation OF their private affairs by
the absence Of and the refusal to en-
act "a g~arnishment statute.
On the other hand, I have a white
farmer friend in Summerton, who, at
the beginning of the year, rented some
land to a negro farm hand and sup
Piled him with l. horse, guano, pillow
stock, and gears for the horse; this
arrangement between the white
farmer and negro laborer was made
verbally early one morning, and the
negro farm hand agreed to come
back next day execute proper
papers, which he did, but during the
preceding evening, and within the
space Of twenty-four hours, the ne
gro farm hand executes to a Syrian
merchant in Summerton q chattel
mortgage over the aforesaid crop,
horse. guano, pillow stock, and gears
of my white farmer friend, and under
the authority of Cantey VS.. McClary-
broadway Co., 95 S. c., 80, my white
farmer friend is defeated out of any
claim or lien in or on the crops grown
on his w lands and for which he
furnished the fertilizer and the horse
and the gears with which to work
said crop.
1t might be argued that the mcr-
chant will not advance to the negro
farm hand, if the proposed bills are
enacted, but there is nothing in the
proposed pills to prevent the white
farmer releasing or assigning to the
merchant his unwritten lien for ad-
vances, and when the negro farm
hand understands that he must get
the consent of the white farmer be-
fore he can mortgage his crops to
the merchant. a friendly harmony and
understanding will be promoted be-