The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1934-04-06
BY JOHN L. SPIVAK

Worryin' about the 'hal1-hanoS %
That's what share choppers are el
called, you know. I'm worse OFF
now than before the gov-ment be- lie
gan to spend money, because the Of
gov'ment paid the landowner not {"
to plow So much. Me an my fam a
ily amt gettin' advances no more, s.
either. The boss says he can't f,
afford it an anyway, I kin go to S
the Red Cross an get me some S
food an clothes" e
"What did you used to get in c
advances ?" S
Before things got pretty bad d
used to get about twelve dollars
between March and August-that t
was for my whole family. But t
since things got purity bad amt
gettin' nothin.' 1 have to get me
a sack O. flour from the Red Cross
or the fed'ral emergency relief
now"
"Why don't you get a C.W.A.
job them"
Mister, them jobs is given to
them that vote" /
"Well why don't you vote them"
"You can't vote unless you pay
your poll tax an l amt never had
enough money to buy me a sack !
of flour, let alone pay poll tax"
That's a pretty hopeless situa- |
ton, isn't it"
at can't last like this much
longer" he said grimly. "All of
| this talk O. helpin' the farmer
that's just talk. All that's gettin'
anything out O. the gov'ment is
the landowner or them millionaires
! up east. All the politicians just
take everything from the poor
] farmer an give it to the million
aires. If this keeps up we'll just
about start revolution-ike them
e Balsheviks."
9 Everywhere 1 went l heard the
: same grim threats to start a revo-
: luton 'like them Bahlsheviks," as
: thew pronounced it. Share crop
/ pers in the depths of despair,
n starving. dependent upon charity
r show signs of unrest greater than
e before federal relief came to quiet
1t things for those who had money
e enuf to pay poll taxes and could
= thus vote. The government does not
: specify that you must vote to be
If eligible for C.W.A. job but local
v. politicians have control of appor-
D tioning the jobs and give them &C
b. those with the vote. They are Dol
re steering their political machine witt
~ government money. The Negro ano
ne the penniless cropper, both being
disfranchised, one for color and thu
of other for being poor, are In thu
On main ignored.
W. The small independent farmer
in even with the governments guar
mt ansee of ten cents a pound for cot
at ton and payment for acreage no
ID, cultivated are bitter because the
er governments scheme to help Their
nd turned out to be really help onl,
GU for the big landowner and the cor
hit poration-owned plantations in tn
ps Delta country.
In Lincoln county, which is tyr
&c. ical of a cotton county in MiSsis
Use sippi or, for that matter, in tn,
Iys whole deep south, one out of ever
'ou five Independent farmers have los
'ut their farms since the depression
ng some for inability to pay as To-
ire as $50 in taxes. Those who sti
ow have their land usually need abol
lot $50 or $75 to see them through tt
M the season.
w. The production credit associate
EN- which the government establisht
ub- to aid the poor farmer, require
he that the farmer, for every 800
EN- fraction thereof, that he borrow
wn take out a share of stock in Il
hey association for SIS. To this
ice added 6 per cent interest, or f
$50, the usual sum borrowed, s
keo Then there is a charge of ST..
nad for registering the loan and So f
nat an inspection fee. Thus, when
uhe small farmer wants to borrow S
MY the government charges him Sill.
AK which whatever it is called, is
you prohibitive rate of interest.
avs cts just good for the big farl
a ers," the small farmer complain
ems bitterly. "The government ju
get makes it impossible for us to be
any row money"
yea They go to the local bank,
one of the two banks crashed
1881 and the remaining one
uhe tight with credit and hasn't enou
to capital anyway to supply t
can wants of the small farmers in t
county.
ana "What'll you do?" you ask.
'hey They shake their heads in {
spair. owe don't know. We q
TOT going to have some change
right quick. There's a lot of I
farmers around here just abol
'rKs ready to start a revolution"
In this representative county |
cropper who comprises about h
H. the population is completely
nored by the government except
the doles of food and clothes. The n
OUT jority of troopers are Negro
!, But even now, with governmel
N money being spent, five out
Dy evrey six citizens in this county
VIM $4,000 are living off charity
Ne charity that grows leaner eve
py day.
heir The fadoral er,ercorcv raj