The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1916-02-05
By w. ANTHONY AERY.

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the Majority.
By w. ANTHONY AERY.
There Is now vast number Of col
ored farmers in the south, working
millions and millions Of acres rich in
possibilities. and yet only small frac-
ton Of this land is rated as improved
land. According to the census of 1910,
there were in the south 800, al colored
farmers (287 per cent Of the total
number of farmers) working 42,6O9,-
III acres az per cent of the total farm
acreage), Of which 27,735,743 acres
Tor 1874 per cent? were reported as i'm
proved land.
Colored farmers control nearly a bill
lion dollars worth Of land and build
ings in the south. and still they control
only one-eighth of the land and build
ingS on all the farms in the south.
The value Of the land and buildings
under the control of all the colorei
farmers was given at $500, 1872, 1884
(12.2 per cent Of the total value of
land and buildings for all farms in the
SOUTH as against $3.50, 2s0.963 ole per
cent? for 1900
That the Negro farmer is going for
ward by leaps and bounds in the pos
session and control of property. how
ever, is clearly shown by the census
figures of 1900 and 1910 Even where
the Negro has many disadvantages to
face he is making progress.
The 21s,467 colored farm owners in
1910 held land and buildings valued at
$272, 992.23S as per cent? as against
$1O6, 619,32s (37 per cent? in 1900. The
owners were distributed as follows:
South Atlantic states. 1O1.981; east
south central 6S.737: west south en-
trail. 57,769.
As long as the colored tenant farm
ers, however, Outnumber the colored
farm owners three to one and as long
a. the tenant farmers have under their
control a proportional amount of land
and buildings which they may use
wisely and well or utterly abuse
through sheer ignorance the tenant
problem and, indeed, the whole land
problem for the white south will be a
pressing and serious one.
The 870,474 colored tenant farmers
In 1910 titled 1885,, 1902 acres. Of which
BIOLOGISTS were reported as improved
land. These tenants were using land
and buildings valued at $616, 768,17
ga per cent? as against $268, 1880
90 per cent? in 1900. These colored
tenants were distributed as follows:
South Atlantic states, 253, 1871; east
south central. 288.232: west south cen
trial. 151,O61.
If the Negro tenant Is not taught
how to treat the land properly and in
crease his earning power the whole
south will suffer tremendous econom-
ic loss. When more than Is per cent
Of the Negro farmers are tenants there
is important work still to be done
along agricultural lines through the
public schools, the private institutions
the state departments Of agriculture
and the press to help the tenants raise
themselves into the class Of owners.
This improvement for many, many
white farmers has 9lready come about
If the south is to make the progress
It should there are still too many
white tenants as compared with white
farm owners.
One of the most hopeful signs Of
progress, however, is the percentile in
crease in Negro farmers. the amount
Of improved land held by them and the
value Of land and buildings they con-
troll. In the south, according to the
census Of 1910. 24.5 per cent of the
colored farmers were owners. Oh per
cent managers and 1853 per cent ten
ants. For 1900 the figures were 25.2,
OF and 74.6 respectively. In 1910 the
white farmers of the south were dis
tributed as follows: Owners, COL per
cent; managers. OF; tenants, 1872. For
1900 the figures were 60 per cent, 90
and 36.1 respectively.
The total number Of Negro farm op-
orators in the south in 1910 was $780,
837, and in 1900 1t was 1872. 1852. From
1900 to 1910 the percentages Of in
crease in the south were: Total white
farmers, ia; colored farmers, 20.2;
white farm owners. II; colored, II;
white tenants. 27.6; colored. 21.4; i'm
proved land in farms. white. 1875; col
ored, 1885,, improved land in farms
owned by white farmers, 1873; colored,
Is; improved land in farms Of white
tenants, 34.6; cOlored, 17.S.
In Virginia. according to the census
Of 1910. there were 1874, 155 native
white farmers who had 17,257,418
acres of land In farms and 4S.114 Ne
groes and other nonwhite farmers who
had 2,23S. 900 acres Of land In farms.
There were lO1, 1876 GAG per cent?
farms operated by white owners and
32,228 (67 per cent, farms operated by
colored owners. The value of land and
buildings of all the white farmers was
$486, 49,, 1858 and that Of all the colored
farmers $45,224,504. The white farm
owners had land and buildings valued
- eo1A to- o~A <hc onIovod Ror,,,