The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-03-05

NAeSV PSANCA4Oet6C VI 1dIIIlB1S VINO
deal with the land agent, according
TO him, now feel less resentful. They
say, Roosevelt is trying, any way,
where under Hoover things Just slid
downhill." The rise in the price of
cotton is.the chief thing that perked
up the landowner. He no longer feels
that he is the underdog made TO be
walked on by the wealthy.
The chief thing that mars the sat-
isfaction Of even this type Of farmer
is the strong suspicion that some
where in this new and comparatively
improved scheme Of things, he is not
really getting the full advantages he
thought he was. The Production
Credit Association, formed allegedly
to help the farmer, is actually help
ing only the big landowners and the
corporation owned plantations in the
Delta country.
That there government credit as
ISOLATION is supposed to help us but
all it's doing is making it impossible
for us small farmers to get any
help" a number Of independent
farmers have told me.
And it is rousing unrest again. not
so strong as before federal aid. but
strong enough to express itself openly
and angrily.
Lincoln County is one of the nine
that the credit association takes in.
in this area. The association is a
branch Of the production credit bank
in New Orleans. This bank includes
for its area Louisiana, Mississippi and
Alabama. Other banks operate for
other states.
During the past year only about
1000 Of the individually owned farms
actually plowed under as agreed to
with the government. Some 500
farms refused to pillow under. grew
as much as possible, and cashed in
on the rise in price, Others agreed
to piow under, collected government
money for it but baled their full crop
just the same, hiding the bales
against rise in price.
This tendency to work" the gov
eminent as much as possible is APP
parent everywhere. here, in the in
dustrial south and in industrial New
England. I haven't tried to find out
why but I imagine I would not be
wrong If guessed that they want
to do what the "millionaires do"
They see It done on every side, by the
rich, by the politician and they want
m crof IN m fIA al
Last year, when the government
made contracts with the farmers,
"half-hands" as the troopers are
called, the neediest class of all, got
something. This year, having realized
that the cropper cannot even pay the
poll tax which entitled him to vote
and is therefor complete loss as
a political factor, the government
completely eliminated the 'half-
hand" in contracts-and it must be
remembered that "half-hands" con-
sist of approximately half the popu-
lation.
The neediest of all farmers here
are receiving no benefit whatever from
the government splurge in millions
and billions. Contracts are made only
with the landowners, cash tenants
and managing share tenants. Crop
pers are not only no better off but,
due to restricted blowing, actually
much worse off.
This average Of two out of every
five farm workers and their families,
have been driven deeper into the
depths of despair. Their only source
of food Is the sack of flour they get
from the Red Cross or the Federal
Emergency Relief These conditions
with some variations, OF course, exist
not only here, but according to the
officials in this county. throughout
the whole cotton area in the south.
For the coming season the living
supplies of those farmers who, by
the grace of being able to pay the
poll tax can vote, is secured by pledg-
ing the rental benefits to the local
banks. Rental benefits work this way:
A farmer is supposed to get $50, let
us say, from the government for not
blowing a certain number of acres.
He goes to the banker and pledges
this $50 for loan. The banker adj
vances it and charges the regular
interest.
The idea is that the land which
the farmer would ordinarily pillow
is rented by the government, which
prevents the blowing. This is done