The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1921-01-21
PROFIT SHARING
IN AGRICULTURE
FARMER IN CAPE COLONY IN.
PRODUCES SYSTEM WITH
NATIVE LABORERS AND
ACHIEVES Crafty
ING RESULTS
PRODUCTION INCREASES.
Laborers Show New Interest In
Their Work, Doing More Than
They Are Obliged To


are in favor of giving their employ
ees share OF the profit in agricul-
ture, or in any other kind of BUSH
ness, the results OF an experiment
made by Mr.. John Bickerdyke,
farmer in the Western Province of
Cape Colony, will be OF special in
terest. In the Cape Times, Mr..
Bickerdyke tells how he was led to
begin a system of profit sharing with
his native laborers, and something
of the results that enused. 1T is
sort of proverb in the Cape" he
says, "that the Dutch-speaking farm
ers know better than anyone else
how to handle natives, and for the
first year / adopted local methods.
That is to say, / hardly spoke to
man except to give him an order,
and either supervised work myself
or had an assistant TO do it. AT the
end of the first year, during which
very much had been going out and
very little coming in, reviewed the
whole position, and came TO the con-
clusion that the most important
thing on the farm, viz, the labor,
was very unsatisfactory. The men
were civil and obedient, certainly,
but listless, showing no interest in
their work, and not doing any more
than they were obliged to-"
As the result of a good deal of
thought Mr.. Bickerdyke called his
boys together, told them that he was
going to treat them as free men,
that that he expected to get honest
work from them in return for the
wages paid to them, that he would
trust them, and that if he could no.
run his farm ca these lines he would
give up farming.
His offer TO share profits and how
it was received may best be told in
the farmers own words. "If they
were good to me and acted honestly
! intended to give them share in
the produce of the farm, and if t!lcy
did not under these new conditions
do their best TO make the farm a
success they would be, in my opin-
ion, the stupidest boys in Cape Col
ony. For every lamb or young pig
that reached the age of three months
they would get Cd, for every bull
calf rs. 3D., for every cow calf 5s.,
for every mule los, for every horse
foal SIS; for each sack of wheat, rye
or oats, Cd, Adj, and 3D., respective
ly; and when my young vines and
fruit rtees came into bearing, they
would get their share of that profit
also. On each dozen eggs or pound
of butter they would get Id All
these sums would be Jumped to-
gether and divided equally among
them at Christmas, except that the
small boys would have one man IS
share divided among them.
"This gift, for so I preferred to
call it at the outset of the expert
ment, would be dependent on good
behavior, and no boy would be en-
titled to anything if he left me be-
bore Christmas. The boys, from the
old shepherd down to the stable lad,
listened attentively and gravely-at
first looking somewhat puzzled, then
amazed, and lastly their white teeth
cleaned as delighted srniles showed
on their faces when they realized
that they really were to have an in
terest in the produce of the farm,
and were to be treated as men,
rather than as mules or oxen.
On the outcome Mr.. Bickerdyke
says: 1T is extremely pleasing to
set and record the results far ex-
ceeded my expectations. 1t will have
been noted that each boy was re-
warded, not fof the success of his
own particular department, but in re-
spect OF the farm generally; and, as
l had anticipated, this led to every
man becoming interested in the en-
tire work Of the farm, besides Civ
ing me of his best in his own de-
partment. Eggs are things on which
a heavy toll is levied, for farm
chickens lay all over the place. Many
OF thei- nests are discovered by the
boys children and the contents
taken To the cottages. Now the very
first thing l noticed after Our indaba
was that my hens had apparently be-
gun to lay uncommonly we'll, and
drew my own conclusions. The shep-
herd who had been good before be-
came still better; the calamity oil
sheep left out and killed by jackals
rarely occurred. There came a re-
cord Landing season; mule breeding
which had at first been rather a feal-
ure, began to- improve; right through
the stock there were fewer losses
and cases of illness were immedi.
ately reported to me and much los:
avoided.
In the agricultural work there
was a very marked improvement
During the blowing season, the boys
without any pressure from me. arose
early and did excellent blowing. i
the midday spans of oxen were :
little late, the grumbling was fal
louder on the part of the plowmer
who were Murdered than on the par
OF the master. In the previous veal
it always seemed that the later tn,
oxen the better the plowmen wer.
pleased, for il gave the men a longei
midday rest l noticed too, that tn,
greatest pains were taken to lool
after the oxen at night.
In commenting on this experiment
The Christian Express says that i
does not doubt that other farmer:
who have been working along tn,
same lines have me: with much sue
cess. The gain TO South Afric;
would he 6rumeuse if Sba o-aet;r. n