file was produced from images produced  
by ,core ,historical ,literature in     
,agriculture 7,,chla71 ,cornell         
,university47              ,,the ,,negro
 ,,farmer    ,by ,,carl ,,kelsey     ,a 
,,thesis ,,submitted ,,to ,,the         
,,university ,,of ,,pennsylvania ,,in   
,,partial ,,fulfillment ,,of ,,the      
,,requirements ,,for   ,,the ,,degree   
,,of ,,ph4 ,d4     ,printed and on sale 
by    ,,jennings  ,,pye    ,,chicago    
#aijc    ,,price ,,fifty ,,cents        
,,table ,,of ,,contents     ,,chapter   
,,page      ,i4 ,introduction           
#e     ,,ii4 ,geographic ,location      
#i    ,,iii4 ,economic ,heritage        
#bb     ,,iv4 ,present ,situation       
#bi           ,virginia                 
#cb           ,sea ,coast               
#ch           ,central ,district        
#dc           ,alluvial ,region         
#eb      ,v4 ,social ,environment       
#fa     ,,vi4 ,the ,outlook             
#fg    ,,vii4 ,agricultural ,training   
#ga         ,population ,maps           

#hj    ,,old-,,time ,,negroes4          
,,chapter ,i4 ,,introduction4   ,in the 
last three hundred years there have been
 many questions of general interest     
before the ,american people4 ,it is     
doubtful1 however1 if there is another  
problem1 which is as warmly debated     
to-day as ever and whose solution is yet
 so uncertain1 as that of the ,negro4   
,in the second decade of the seventeenth
 century protests were being filed      
against black slavery1 but the system   
was continued for nearly #bej years4    
,the discussion grew more and more      
bitter1 and to participation in it      
ignorance1 then as now1 was no bar4 ,the
 ,north had less and less direct contact
 with the ,negro4 ,the religious        
hostility to human bondage was          
strengthened by the steadily increasing 
difference in economic development which
 resulted in the creation of sectional  
prejudices and jealousies4 ,the ,north  
held the negro to be greatly wronged1   
and accounts of his pitiable condition  

and of the many individual cases of ill 
treatment fanned the flames of wrath4   
,the reports of travelers1 however1 had 
little influence compared with the      
religious sentiments which felt outraged
 by the existence of bond servitude in  
the land4 ,through all the years there  
was little attempt to scientifically    
study the character of the problem or   
the nature of the subject4 ,a mistaken  
economic sentiment in the ,south and a  
strong moral sentiment at the ,north    
rendered such studies unnecessary1 if   
not impossible4 ,the ,south1 perceiving 
the benefits of slavery1 was blind to   
its fundamental weaknesses1 and the     
,north1 unacquainted with ,negro        
character1 held to the natural equality 
of all men4 ,thus slavery itself became 
a barrier to the getting of an adequate 
knowledge of the needs of the slave4    
,the feeling grew that if the shackles  
of slavery were broken1 the ,negro would
 at once be as other men4 ,the economic 
differences finally led to the war4 ,it 

is not to be forgotten that slavery     
itself was not the cause of the war1 nor
 was there any thought on the part of   
the ,union leaders to make the blacks   
citizens4 ,that this was done later was 
a glowing tribute to their ignorance of 
the real demands of the situation4 ,the 
,republican party of to-day shows no    
indication of repeating this mistake in 
the newly acquired islands4 ,i would not
 be understood as opposing suffrage of  
the blacks1 but any thoughtful observer 
must agree that as a race they were not 
prepared for popular government at the  
time of their liberation4 ,the folly of 
the measures adopted none can fail to   
see who will read the history of ,south 
,carolina or ,mississippi during what is
 called ,reconstruction4  ,immediately  
after the war1 new sources of           
information regarding the ,negro were   
afforded the ,north4 ,the leaders of the
 carpet-bag regime1 playing political   
games1 circulated glowing reports of the
 progress of the ex-slaves4 ,a second   

class of persons1 the teachers1 went    
,south1 and back came rose-colored      
accounts4 ,it might seem that the       
teacher could best judge of the capacity
 of a people4 ,the trouble is that in   
the schools they saw the best specimens 
of the race1 at the impressionable      
period of their lives1 and under        
abnormal conditions4 ,there is in the   
school an atmosphere about the child    
which stimulates his desire to advance1 
but a relapse often comes when ordinary 
home conditions are renewed4 ,moreover1 
it is well known that the children of   
all primitive races are very quick and  
apt up to a certain period in their     
lives1 excelling often children of      
civilized peoples1 but that this        
disappears when maturity is reached4    
,hence1 the average teacher1 not coming 
in close contact with the mass of the   
people under normal surroundings1 gives1
 although sincerely1 a very misleading  
picture of actual conditions4 ,a third  
class of informants were the tourists1  

and their ability to get at the heart of
 the situation is obvious4 ,there remain
 to be mentioned the ,negro teachers and
 school entrepreneurs4 ,naturally these 
have presented such facts as they       
thought would serve to open the purses  
of their hearers4 ,some have been       
honest1 many more unintentionally       
dishonest1 and others deliberately      
deceitful4 ,the relative size of these  
classes it is unnecessary to attempt to 
ascertain4 ,they have talked and sung   
their way into the hearts of the hearers
 as does the pitiful beggar on the      
street4 ,the donor sees that evidently  
something is needed1 and gives with     
little1 if any1 careful investigation as
 to the real needs of the case4 ,the    
result of it all has been that the      
testimony of those who knew far more    
than was possible for any outsider1 the 
southern whites1 has gone unheeded1 not 
to say that it has been spurned as      
hostile and valueless4 ,the blame1 of   
course1 is not always on one side1 and  

as will be shown later1 there are many  
southern whites who have as little to do
 with the ,negro1 and consequently know 
as little about him1 as the average ,new
 ,yorker4 ,this situation has been most 
unfortunate for all concerned4 ,it      
should not be forgotten that the        
question of the progress of the ,negro  
has far more direct meaning for the     
southerner1 and that he is far more     
deeply interested in it than is his     
northern brother1 the popular impression
 to the contrary notwithstanding4 ,it is
 unnecessary to seek explanations1 but  
it is a pleasure to recognize that there
 are many indications that a better day 
is coming1 and indications now point to 
a hearty co-operation in educational    
efforts4 ,there are many reasons for the
 change1 and perhaps the greatest of    
these is summed up in ,industrial       
,training4  ,the ,north is slowly       
learning that the ,negro is not a       
dark-skinned ,yankee1 and that thousands
 of generations in ,africa have produced

 a being very different from him whose  
ancestors lived an equal time in        
,europe4 ,in a word1 we now see that    
slavery does not account for all the    
differences between the blacks and      
whites1 and that their origins lie      
farther back4 ,our acquaintance with the
 ancestors of the ,negro is meager4 ,we 
do not even know how many of the        
numerous ,african tribes are represented
 in our midst4 ,a good deal of ,semitic 
blood had already been infused into the 
more northern tribes4 ,what influence   
did this have and how many descendants  
of these tribes are there in ,america8  
,tribal distinctions have been          
hopelessly lost in this country1 and the
 blending has gone on so continuously   
that perhaps there would be little      
practical benefit if the stocks could be
 determined to-day4 ,it is1 however1 a  
curious commentary on the turn          
discussions of the question have taken1 
that not until #aijb did any one find it
 advisable to publish a comprehensive   

study of the ,african environment and to
 trace its influence on subsequent      
development4 ,yet this is one of the    
fundamental preliminaries to any real   
knowledge of the subject4  ,in close    
connection with the preceding is the    
question of the mulatto4 ,besides the   
blending of ,african stocks there has   
been a good deal of intermixture of     
white blood4 ,we do not even know how   
many full blooded ,africans there are in
 ,america1 nor does the last census seek
 to ascertain4 ,mulattoes have almost   
entirely been the offspring of white    
fathers and black mothers1 and probably 
most of the fathers have been boys and  
young men4 ,without attempting a        
discussion of this subject1 whose       
results ethnologists cannot yet tell1 it
 is certain that a half breed is not a  
full blood1 a mulatto is not a ,negro1  
in spite of the social classification to
 the contrary4 ,the general belief is   
that the mulatto is superior1 either for
 good or bad1 to the pure ,negro4 ,the  

visitor to the ,south cannot fail to be 
struck with the fact that with rare     
exceptions the colored men in places of 
responsibility1 in education or in      
business1 are evidently not pure        
negroes4 ,even in slavery times1 the    
mulattoes were preferred for certain    
positions1 such as overseers1 the blacks
 as field hands4 ,attention is called to
 this merely to show our ignorance of an
 important point4 ,some may claim that  
it is a matter of no consequence4 ,this 
,i cannot admit4 ,to me it seems of some
 significance to know whether mulattoes 
7and other crosses7 form more than their
 relative percentage of the graduates of
 the higher schools2 whether they are   
succeeding in business better than the  
blacks2 whether town life is proving    
particularly attractive to them2 whether
 they have greater or less moral and    
physical stamina1 than the blacks4 ,the 
lack of definite knowledge should at    
least stop the prevalent practice of    
taking the progress of a band of        

mulattoes and attempting to estimate    
that of the ,negroes thereby4 ,it may be
 that some day the mulatto will entirely
 supplant the black1 but there is no    
immediate probability of this4 ,until we
 know the facts1 our prophecies are but 
wild guesses4 ,it should be remembered  
that a crossing of white and black may  
show itself in the yellow negro or the  
changed head and features1 either1 or   
both1 as the case may be4 ,a dark skin  
is1 therefore1 no sure indication of    
purity and blood4#a  ,it is often taken 
for granted that the ,negro has         
practically equal opportunities in the  
various parts of the ,south1 and that a 
fairly uniform rate of progress may be  
expected4 ,this assumption rests on an  
ignorance of the geographical location  
of the mass of blacks4 ,it will be shown
 that they are living in several        
distinct agricultural zones in which    
success must be sought according to     
local possibilities4 ,development always
 depends upon the environment1 and we   

should expect1 therefore1 unequal       
progress for the ,negroes4 ,even the    
highest fruits of civilization fail if  
the bases of life are suddenly changed4 
,the ,congregational ,church has not    
flourished among the ,negroes as have   
some other denominations1 in spite of   
its great activity in educational work4 
,the ,american mode of government is    
being greatly modified to make it fit   
conditions in ,porto ,rico4 ,the        
manufacturers of ,pennsylvania and the  
farmers of ,iowa do not agree as to the 
articles on which duties should be      
levied1 and it is a question if the two 
have the same interpretation of the     
principle of protection4 ,different     
environments produce different types4   
,so it will be in the case of the       
,negro4 ,if we are to understand the    
conditions on which his progress        
depends1 we must pay some attention to  
economic geography4 ,that this will     
result in a recognition of the need for 
shaping plans and methods according to  

local needs is obvious4 ,the present    
thesis does not pretend to be a         
completed study1 much less an attempt to
 solve the ,negro problem4 ,it is       
written in the hope of calling attention
 to some of the results of this         
geographic location as illustrated in   
the situation of the ,negro farmer in   
various parts of the ,south4  ,the      
attempt is made to describe the         
situation of the average man4 ,it is    
fully recognized that there are numbers 
of exceptions among the ,negroes as well
 as among the white school teachers1    
referred to above4 ,that there is much  
in the present situation1 both of       
encouragement and discouragement1 is    
patent4 ,unfortunately1 most of us shut 
our eyes to one or the other set of     
facts and are wildly optimistic or      
pessimistic1 accordingly4 ,that there   
may be no misunderstanding of my        
position1 let me say that ,i agree with 
the late ,dr4 ,j4 ,l4 ,m4 ,curry in     
stating that3 ,i have very little       

respect for the intelligence or the     
patriotism of the man who doubts the    
capacity of the negro for improvement or
 usefulness4     ,,chapter ,,ii4        
,,geographic ,,location4   ,the great   
,appalachian system1 running parallel to
 the ,atlantic coast1 and ending in     
northern ,alabama1 forms the geological 
axis of the southern states4 ,bordering 
the mountains proper is a broad belt of 
hills known as the ,piedmont or         
,metamorphic region1 marked by granite  
and other crystalline rocks1 and having 
an elevation decreasing from #a1jjj to  
#ejj feet4 ,the soil varies according to
 the underlying rocks1 but is thin and  
washes badly1 if carelessly tilled4 ,the
 oaks1 hickories and other hardwoods1   
form the forests4 ,in ,virginia this    
section meets the lower and flatter     
country known as ,tide-,water ,virginia4
 ,in the southern part of this state we 
come to the ,pine ,hills1 which follow  
the ,piedmont and stretch1 interrupted  
only by the alluvial lands of the       

,mississippi1 to central ,texas4 ,the   
,pine ,hills seldom touch the ,piedmont 
directly1 but are separated by a narrow 
belt of ,sand ,hills1 which run from    
,north ,carolina to ,alabama1 then swing
 northward around the coal measures and 
spread out in ,tennessee and ,kentucky4 
,this region1 in general of poor soils1 
marks the falls of the rivers and the   
head of navigation4 ,how important this 
is may easily be seen by noticing the   
location of the cities in ,georgia1 for 
instance1 and remembering that the      
country was settled before the day of   
railroads4 ,in ,alabama the ,black      
,prairie is interposed between the ,pine
 ,hills and the ,sand ,hills1 and this  
prairie swings northward into           
,mississippi4 ,the ,pine ,hills give way
 to the more level ,pine ,flats1 which  
slope with a gradient of a few feet a   
mile to the ocean or the gulf1 which    
usually has a narrow alluvial border4   
,going west from ,alabama we cross the  
oak and hickory lands of ,central       

,mississippi1 which are separated from  
the alluvial district by the cane hills 
and yellow loam table lands4 ,beyond the
 bottom lands of the ,mississippi 7and  
,red river7 we come to the oak lands of 
,missouri1 ,arkansas and ,texas which   
stretch to the black prairies of ,texas1
 which1 bordering the red lands of      
,arkansas1 run southwest finally1       
merging in the coast prairies near      
,austin4 ,in the northern part of       
,arkansas we come to the foothills of   
the ,ozarks4 ,these different regions   
are shown by the dotted lines on the    
population maps4  ,the soils of these   
various regions having never been       
subjected to a glacial epoch1 are very  
diverse1 and it would be a thankless    
task to attempt any detailed            
classification on the basis of          
fertility4 ,the soils of the ,atlantic  
side being largely from the crystalline 
rocks and containing therefore much     
silica1 are reputed less fertile than   
the gulf soils4 ,the alluvial lands of  

the ,mississippi and other rivers are   
beyond question the richest of all4     
,shaler says3 ,the delta districts of   
the ,mississippi and its tributaries and
 similar alluvial lands which occupy    
broad fields near the lower portion of  
other streams flowing into the gulf have
 proved the most enduringly fertile     
areas of the country4 ,next to these    
probably stand the black prairies4 ,in  
all states there is more or less        
alluvial land along the streams1 and    
this soil is always the best4 ,it is the
 first land brought into cultivation    
when the country is settled1 and remains
 most constantly in use4 ,each district 
has its own advantages and its own      
difficulties4 ,in the metamorphic       
regions1 the trouble comes in the       
attempt to keep the soil on the hills1  
while in the flat lands the problem is  
to get proper drainage4 ,in the present 
situation of the ,negro farmer the      
adaptability of the soil to cotton is   
the chief consideration4  ,the first    

slaves were landed at ,jamestown1       
,virginia1 in #afai4 ,the importation   
was continued in spite of many protests1
 and the practice soon came into favor4 
,almost without interruption1 in spite  
of various prohibitions1 the slave      
traffic lasted right up to the very     
outbreak of the war1 most of the later  
cargoes being landed along the gulf     
coast4 ,slavery proved profitable at the
 ,south2 not so at the ,north1 where it 
was soon abandoned4 ,it was by no means1
 however1 equally profitable in all     
parts of the ,south1 and as time went on
 this fact became more noticeable4 ,thus
 at the outbreak of the war1 ,kentucky  
and ,virginia were largely employed in  
selling slaves to the large plantations 
further south4 ,few new slaves had been 
imported into ,virginia in the last one 
hundred years4 ,the center of slavery   
thus moved southwest because of changing
 economic conditions1 not because of any
 inherent opposition to the system4     
,this gradual weeding out of the slaves 

in ,virginia may very possibly account  
for the general esteem in which         
,virginia negroes have been held4 ,to   
indicate the character of those sold    
,south1 ,bracket#b gives a quotation    
from a ,baltimore paper of #ahea which  
advertised some good ,negroes to be     
exchanged for servants suitable for the 
,south with bad characters4  ,to trace  
the development of the slave-holding    
districts is not germain to the present 
study1 interesting as it is in itself4  
,it may be worth while to trace the     
progress in one state4 ,in ,georgia1 in 
#ahjj1 the blacks outnumbered the whites
 in the seacoast counties1 excepting    
,camden1 and were also in the majority  
in ,richmond4 ,in #ahcj they also       
outnumbered the whites along the        
,savannah river and were reaching       
westward as far as ,jones county4 ,in   
#ahej1 besides the coast and the river1 
they were in a majority in a narrow belt
 crossing the state from ,lincoln to    
,harris counties4 ,by #ahfj they had    

swung southward in the western part of  
the state and were in possession of most
 of the counties south of ,troup1 while 
the map of #aijj shows that they have   
added to this territory4 ,in other parts
 of the state they have never been      
greatly in evidence4 ,the influence of  
the rivers is again evident when we     
notice that they moved up to the head of
 navigation1 then swung westward4  ,as  
slavery developed1 it was accompanied by
 a great extension of cotton growing1   
or1 perhaps1 it were truer to say that  
the gradual rise of cotton planting made
 possible the increased use of slaves4  
,the center of the cotton industry had  
reached the middle of ,alabama by #ahej1
 was near ,jackson1 ,mississippi1 in    
#ahfj1 and has since moved slowly       
westward4 ,the most prosperous district 
of the ,south in #ahfj was probably the 
alluvial lands of the ,mississippi4     
,this gives us the key to the westward  
trend of slavery4 ,let it be remembered1
 too1 that the system of slavery demands

 an abundance of new lands to take the  
place of those worn out by the          
short-sighted cultivation adopted4 ,thus
 in the ,south little attention was paid
 to rotation of crops or to fertilizers4
 ,as long as the new land was abundant1 
it was not considered1 and probably was 
not profitable to keep up the old4 ,the 
result was that the wild and reckless   
system of extensive cultivation         
practiced prior to the war had          
impoverished the land of every          
cotton-producing state east of the      
,mississippi river4 ,as cotton became   
less and less profitable in the east the
 opening up of the newer and richer     
lands in the west put the eastern       
planter in a more and more precarious   
situation4 ,had cotton fallen to        
anything like its present price in the  
years immediately preceding the war1 his
 lot would have been far worse4         
,another influence should be noted4     
,slavery tended to drive out of a       
community those who opposed the system1 

and also the poor whites1 non-slave     
holders4 ,the planters sought to buy out
 or expel this latter class1 because of 
the temptation they were under to incite
 the slaves to steal corn and cotton and
 sell it to them at a low price4 ,there 
was also trouble in many other ways4    
,there was thus a tendency to separate  
the mass of the blacks from the majority
 of the whites4 ,that this segregation  
actually arose a map of the             
proportionate populations for ,alabama  
in #ahfj shows4 ,it may be claimed that 
there were other reasons for this       
separation1 such as climatic conditions1
 etc4 ,this may be partially true1 but  
it evidently cannot be the principal    
reason1 for we find the whites in the   
majority in many of the lowest and      
theoretically most unhealthful regions1 
as in the pine flats4 ,this is the      
situation to-day also4  ,the influence  
of the rivers in determining the        
settlement of the country has been      
mentioned4 ,nowhere was this more the   

case than in the alluvial lands of the  
,mississippi1 the so-called ,delta4     
,this country was low and flat1 subject 
to overflows of the river4 ,the early   
settlements were directly on the banks  
of the navigable streams1 because this  
only was accessible1 and because the    
land immediately bordering the streams  
is higher than the back land4 ,levees   
were at once started to control the     
rivers1 but not until the railroads     
penetrated the country in #ahhd was     
there any development of the back land4 
,even to-day most of this is still wild4
  ,the war brought numerous changes1 but
 it is only in place here to consider   
those affecting the location of the     
people4 ,the mobility of labor is one of
 the great changes4 ,instead of a fixed 
labor force we now have to deal with a  
body relatively free to go and come4    
,the immediate result is that a stream  
of emigration sets in from the border   
states to the cities of the ,north1     
where there was great opportunity for   

servants and all sorts of casual labor4 
,the following table shows the number of
 negroes in various northern cities in  
#ahfj and also in #aijj3                
#ahfj4         #aijj4   ,washington     
#aj1ihc         #hf1gjb   ,baltimore    
#bg1hih         #gi1beh   ,philadelphia 
#bb1ahe         #fb1fac   ,new ,york    
#af1ghe         #fj1fff   ,st4 ,louis   
#c1big         #ce1eaf   ,chicago       
#iee         #cj1aej   ,coincident with 
the movement to the more distant towns  
came a development of southern cities4  
,city life has been very attractive to  
,negroes here also1 as the following    
table indicates3                        
#ahfj4         #aijj4   ,new ,orleans   
#bd1jgd         #gg1gad   ,atlanta      
#a1ici         #ce1gbg   ,richmond      
#ad1bge         #cb1bcj   ,charleston   
#ag1adf         #ca1ebb   ,savannah     
#h1dag         #bh1jij   ,montgomery    
#d1ejb         #ag1bbi   ,birmingham    
444         #af1ege   ,other cities show
 the same gains4 ,as a rule1 the negro  

has been the common laborer in the      
cities and in the trades does not seem  
to hold the same relative position he   
had in #ahfj4 ,in recent years there has
 been quite a development of small      
tradesmen among them4  ,a comparison of 
the two tables shows that ,washington   
and ,baltimore have more ,negroes than  
,new ,orleans2 that ,st4 ,louis has more
 than ,atlanta and ,richmond1 while ,new
 ,york and ,philadelphia contain double 
the number of ,savannah and ,charleston4
 ,this emigration to the ,north has had 
great effect upon many districts of the 
,south4 ,it seems also to be certain    
that the ,negroes have not maintained   
themselves in the northern cities1 and  
that the population has been kept up by 
constant immigration4 ,what this has    
meant we may see when we find that in   
#ahfj the ,negroes were in the majority 
in five counties in ,maryland1 in two in
 #aijj2 in #dc in ,virginia in #ahfj1 in
 #ce in #aijj2 in ,north ,carolina in   
#ai in #ahfj1 in #ae in #aijj4  ,the map

 on page #ac shows the movement of the  
,negro population in ,virginia between  
#ahij and #aijj4 ,the shaded counties1  
#fj in number1 have lost in actual      
population 7,negro74 ,the total actual  
decrease in these counties was over     
#bg1jjj4 ,even in the towns there has   
been a loss1 for in #ahij the twelve    
towns of over #b1ejj population         
contained #cb1fib ,negroes4 ,in #aijj   
only #bi1ege4 ,the only section in which
 there has been a heavy increase is the 
seacoast from ,norfolk and ,newport     
,news to the north and including        
,richmond4 ,a city like ,roanoke also   
makes its presence felt4 ,when we       
remember that the ,negroes in ,virginia 
number over #fjj1jjj1 and that the total
 increase in the decade was only        
#be1jjj1 a heavy emigration becomes     
clear4   ,,virginia1 #ahij-aijj4        
,,movement ,,of ,,negro ,,population4   
,shaded ,counties show decrease4 ,white 
,counties indicate increase4 ,figures   
show extent of change4   ,as a common   

laborer also the negro has borne his    
part in the development of the          
economical resources of the ,south4 ,he 
has built the railroads and levees2 has 
hewn lumber in the forests2 has dug     
phosphate rock on the coast and coal in 
the interior4 ,wherever there has been a
 development of labor industry calling  
for unskilled labor he has found a      
place4 ,all these have combined to turn 
him from the farm1 his original         
,american home4 ,the changing           
agricultural conditions which have had a
 similar influence will be discussed    
later4  ,having thus briefly reviewed   
the influences which have had part in   
determining his general habitat we are  
ready to examine more closely his       
present location4 ,the maps of the      
,negro population will show this for the
 different states4 ,a word regarding    
these maps4 ,they are drawn on the same 
scale1 and the shading represents the   
same things for the different states4   
,the density map should always be       

compared with the proportionate map to  
get a correct view of the actual        
situation4 ,if this is not done1        
confused ideas will result4 ,on the     
density maps if a county has a much     
heavier shading than surrounding ones1 a
 city is probably the explanation4 ,the 
reverse may be true on the proportionate
 maps where the lighter shading may     
indicate the presence of numbers of     
whites in some city1 as in ,montgomery  
,county1 ,alabama1 or ,charleston       
,county1 ,south ,carolina4  ,beginning  
with ,virginia1 we find almost no       
,negroes in the western mountain        
districts1 but their numbers increase as
 we approach the coast and their center 
is in the southeast4 ,the heavy district
 in ,north ,carolina adjoins that in    
,virginia1 diminishing in the southern  
part of the state4 ,entering ,south     
,carolina we discover a much heavier    
population1 both actually and           
relatively4 ,geographical foundations   
unfortunately 7for our purpose7 do not  

follow county lines4 ,it is very likely1
 however1 that could we get at the      
actual location of the people1 we should
 find that they had their influence4    
,evidently the ,sand ',hills have some  
significance1 for the density map shows 
a lighter negro population4 ,so does the
 ,pine ,flats district1 although in this
 state the ,negroes are in the majority 
in the region1 having been long settled 
in the race districts4 ,in no other     
state do the blacks outnumber the whites
 in the ,pine ,flats4 ,in ,georgia the  
northern part is in possession of the   
whites1 as are the ,pine ,flats4 ,the   
,negroes hold the center and the coast4 
,in ,florida the ,negroes are in the    
,pine ,hills4 ,in ,alabama they center  
in the ,pine ,hills and ,black ,prairie4
 ,in ,mississippi1 ,arkansas and        
,louisiana they are in the alluvial     
regions1 and in ,texas they find their  
heaviest seat near ,houston4 ,outside of
 the city counties we do not find a     
population of over #cj negroes to the   

square mile until ,south ,carolina is   
reached1 and the heaviest settlement is 
in the black prairie of ,alabama and the
 alluvial region of ,mississippi1 and   
part of ,louisiana4 ,in ,tennessee they 
are found along the river and in the red
 lands of the center1 while in ,kentucky
 they are chiefly located in the        
,limestone district4 ,summarizing their 
location1 we may say that they start in 
the east-central portion of ,virginia   
and follow the line of the ,pine ,hills 
to ,alabama1 only slightly encroaching  
upon the ,metamorphic district1 and     
except in ,south ,carolina1 on the pine 
flats4 ,they occupy the black prairie of
 ,alabama and ,mississippi1 and the     
lands of the river states with a smaller
 population in the ,oak ,hills of       
,texas1 the red lands of ,tennessee and 
some of the limestone district of       
,kentucky4 ,it is worth while to examine
 one state more in detail and ,alabama  
has been selected as being typical4 ,the
 ,negro proportion in the state in #ahfj

 was #de4d per cent1 and in #aijj was   
#de4b per cent4  ,an examination of a   
proportionate map for #ahfj would show  
that the slave owners found two parts of
 the state favorable to them4 ,the first
 is along the ,tennessee river in the   
,north1 and the second1 the black       
prairie of the center4 ,of these the    
latter was by far the seat of the       
heavier population4 ,it has already been
 suggested that this was probably the   
best land in the slave states1 save the 
alluvial bottoms4 ,both districts were  
accessible by water4 ,the ,tombigbee and
 ,alabama rivers reached all parts of   
the prairie1 the ,tennessee forming the 
natural outlet of the ,north4 ,by       
referring now to the map of #aijj1 it is
 evident that some changes have taken   
place4 ,the prairie country1 the ,black 
,belt1 is still in the possession of the
 ,negroes1 and their percentage is      
larger1 having increased from #ga to    
#hj4 ,the population per square mile is 
also heavier4 ,dallas1 ,sumter and      

,lowndes counties had a ,negro          
population of #bc4f per square mile in  
#ahfj1 and #ci4b in #aijj4 ,in the      
northern district an opposite condition 
exists4 ,in #ahfj the region embracing  
the counties of ,lauderdale1 ,limestone1
 ,franklin1 ,colbert1 ,lawrence and     
,morgan had a colored population forming
 #dd4e per cent of the total4 ,in #aijj 
the ,negroes were but #cc per cent of   
the total4 ,the district contains some  
#d1fji square miles1 and had in #ahfj a 
,negro population of #aa to the square  
mile2 in #aijj1 #ac4e4 ,of this increase
 of #b4e per mile1 about one-half is    
found to be in the four towns of the    
district whose population is over #b1ejj
 each4 ,the smaller villages would      
probably account for most of the        
balance1 so it seems safe to say that   
the farming population has scarcely     
increased in the last forty years4      
,meantime the whites in the district    
have increased from #ab per square mile 
to #be4d4 ,the census shows that between

 #ahij and #aijj six counties of ,north 
,alabama lost in the actual ,negro      
population1 and two others were         
stationary1 while in the black belt the 
whites decreased in four counties and   
were stationary in two4 ,it will be seen
 that the ,negroes have gained in       
,jefferson 7,birmingham7 and ,talladega 
counties4 ,the opportunities for        
unskilled labor account largely for     
this1 and ,talladega is also a good     
cotton county4 ,in ,winston and ,cullman
 counties there are practically no      
,negroes1 the census showing but #bh in 
the two4 ,in #ahfj they formed #c per   
cent of the total in ,winston and #f    
percent in ,blount1 which at that time  
included ,cullman4 ,the explanation of  
their disappearance is found in the fact
 that since the war these counties have 
been settled by ,germans from about     
,cincinnati1 and the ,negroes have found
 it convenient to move4 ,roughly        
speaking1 the poor land of the ,sand    
,hills separates the white farmers from 

the colored4 ,from #ahij to #aijj the   
,negroes lost relatively in the         
,metamorphic and ,sand ,hills1 were     
about stationary in the ,prairie1 from  
which they have overflowed and gained in
 the ,oak ,hills1 and more heavily in   
the ,pine ,hills4 ,this statement is    
based on an examination of five or six  
counties1 lying almost wholly within    
each of the districts1 and which1 so far
 as known1 were not affected by the     
development of any special industry4    
,the period is too short to do more than
 indicate that the separation of the two
 races seems to be still going on4 ,a   
similar separation exists in            
,mississippi1 where the ,negroes hold   
the ,black ,prairie and the ,delta1 the 
whites the hill country of the center4  
,it is evident that there is a          
segregation of the whites and blacks1   
and that there are forces which tend to 
perpetuate and increase this4 ,it is    
interesting to note that whereas in     
slavery the cabins were grouped in the  

quarters1 in close proximity to the big 
house of the master1 they are now       
scattered about the plantation so that  
even here there is less contact4 ,in the
 cities this separation is evident the  
blacks occupy definite districts1 while 
the social separation is complete4 ,it  
seems that in all matters outside of    
business relations the whites have less 
and less to do with the blacks4 ,if this
 division is to continue1 we may well   
ask what is its significance for the    
future4  ,this geographical segregation 
evidently had causes which were largely 
economic4 ,probably the most potent     
factor to-day in perpetuating it is     
social1 i4 e41 race antagonism4 ,the    
whites do not like to settle in a region
 where they are to compete with the     
,negro on the farms as ordinary field   
hands4 ,moreover1 the ,negroes retain   
their old-time scorn of such whites and 
despise them4 ,the result is friction4  
,mr4 ,a4 ,h4 ,stone cites a case in     
point4 ,he is speaking of a ,negro      

serving a sentence for attempted rape3  
,i was anxious to know how1 if at all1  
he accounted for his crime1 but he was  
reluctant to discuss it4 ,finally he    
said to me3 ',you don't                 
understand--things over here are so     
different4 ,i hired to an old man over  
there by the year4 ,he had only about   
forty acres of land1 and he and his old 
folks did all their own work--cooking1  
washing and everything4 ,i was the only 
outside hand he had4 ,his daughter      
worked right alongside of me in the     
field every day for three or four       
months4 ,finally1 one day1 when no one  
else was round1 hell got into me1 and ,i
 tried to rape her4 ,but you folks over 
there can't understand--things are so   
different4 ,over here a nigger is a     
nigger1 and a white man is a white man1 
and it's the same with the women4' 444  
,her only crime was a poverty which     
compelled her to do work which1 in the  
estimation of the ,negro1 was reserved  
as the natural portion of his own race1 

and the doing of which destroyed the    
relation which otherwise constituted a  
barrier to his brutality4#c  ,mr4 ,stone
 has touched upon one of the most       
delicate questions in the relationship  
of the races4 ,it would be out of place 
to discuss it here1 but attention must  
be called to the fact that there is the 
least of such trouble in the districts  
where the ,negro forms the largest      
percentage of the population4 ,i would  
not be so foolish as to say that        
assaults upon white women may not take  
place anywhere1 but as a matter of fact 
they seem to occur chiefly in those     
regions where white and black meet as   
competitors for ordinary labor4         
,beaufort ,county1 ,south ,carolina1 has
 a black population forming about #ij   
per cent of the total1 yet ,i was told  
last summer that but one case of rape   
had been known in the county1 and that  
took place on the back edge of the      
county where there are fewest ,negroes1 
and was committed by a non-resident     

black upon a non-resident white4        
,certain it is that in this county1     
which includes many islands1 almost     
wholly inhabited by blacks1 the white   
women have no fear of such assaults4    
,this is also the case in the           
,mississippi ,delta4 ,mr4 ,stone says3  
,yet here we hear nothing about an      
ignorant mass of ,negroes dragging the  
white man down2 we hear of no black     
incubus2 we have few midnight           
assassinations and fewer lynchings4 ,the
 violation by a ,negro of the person of 
a white woman is with us an unknown     
crime2 nowhere is the line marking the  
social separation of the races more     
rigidly drawn1 nowhere are the relations
 between the races more kindly4 ,with us
 race riots are unknown1 and we have but
 one ,negro problem--though that        
constantly confronts us--how to secure  
more ,negroes4 ,evidently when we hear  
reports of states of siege and rumors of
 race war1 we are not to understand that
 this is the normal1 typical condition  

of the entire ,south4 ,if this is the   
real situation1 it seems clear that the 
geographical segregation plays no mean  
part in determining the relation of the 
two races4 ,it is safe to say that there
 is a different feeling between the     
races in the districts where the white  
is known only as the leader and those in
 which he comes into competition with   
the black4 ,what is the significance of 
this for the future8  ,the same         
condition exists in the cities1 and of  
this ,professor ,dubois has taken note3 
,savannah is an old city where the class
 of masters among the whites and of     
trained and confidential slaves among   
the ,negroes formed an exceptionally    
large part of the population4 ,the      
result has been unusual good feeling    
between the races1 and the entrance of  
,negroes into all walks of industrial   
life1 with little or no opposition4     
,atlanta1 on the other hand1 is quite   
opposite in character4 ,here the poor   
whites from ,north ,georgia who neither 

owned slaves nor had any acquaintance   
with ,negro character1 have come into   
contact and severe competition with the 
blacks4 ,the result has been intense    
race feeling4#d ,in one of the large    
towns of the ,delta last summer1 a      
prosperous ,negro merchant said to me1  
in discussing the comparative           
opportunities of different sections3 ,i 
would not be allowed to have a store on 
the main street in such a good location 
in many places4 ,yet1 his store is      
patronized by whites2 and this would be 
true in many towns in the black belt4   
,other evidences of the difference in   
feeling towards the ,negroes is afforded
 by the epithets of hill-billies and    
red-necks applied to the whites of the  
hill country by the lowland planters1   
and the retaliatory compliments         
yellow-bellies and nigger-lovers4 ,does 
this geographical segregation help to   
explain the strikingly diverse reports  
coming from various parts of the ,south 
regarding the ,negro8 ,why does ,dr4    

,paul ,barringer1 of ,virginia1 find    
that race antagonism is rapidly growing1
 while ,mr4 ,stone of ,mississippi1 says
 that their problem is to get more      
,negroes8  ,the influence that this     
segregation has upon school facilities  
for both races should not be overlooked4
 ,the separation of the two races in the
 schools is to be viewed as the settled 
policy of the ,south4 ,here1 then1 is a 
farming community in which there are    
only a few ,negroes4 ,what sort of a    
separate school will be maintained for  
their children8 ,probably they are      
unable to support a good school1 even   
should they so desire4 ,the             
opportunities of their children must    
necessarily be limited4 ,will they make 
greater progress than children in the   
districts where the blacks are in large 
numbers and command good schools8 ,if   
the situation be reversed and there are 
a few whites in a black community1 the  
whites will be able to command excellent
 private schools for their children1 if 

necessary4 ,at present among the males  
over #ba1 the greatest illiteracy is    
found in the black counties4 ,this may  
be accounted for by the presence of the 
older generation1 which had little      
chance in the schools1 and by the fact  
that perhaps those moving away have been
 the more progressive4 ,it is a matter  
of regret that the census does not      
permit us to ascertain the illiteracy   
among the children from #aj to #ba years
 of age1 to see if any difference was   
manifest4 ,it would seem1 however1 that 
this segregation1 coupled with race     
antagonism1 is bound to affect the      
educational opportunities for the       
blacks4 ,a problem which becomes more   
serious as the states waken to the needs
 of the case and attempt to educate     
their children4  ,yet again1 this fact  
of habitat should lead us to be very    
chary of making local facts extend over 
the entire ,south and of making         
deductions for the entire country based 
on observations in a few places4        

,neglect of this precaution often leads 
to very erroneous and misleading        
conceptions of actual conditions4 ,for  
instance1 on page #dai1 ,vol4 ,,vi1     
,census of #aijj1 in discussing the fact
 that ,negro receives nearly as much per
 acre for his cotton as does the white1 
it is stated3 ,considering the fact that
 he emerged from slavery only one-third 
of a century ago1 and considering also  
his comparative lack of means for       
procuring the best land or for getting  
the best results from what he has1 this 
near approach to the standard attained  
by the white man's experience for more  
than a century denotes remarkable       
progress4 ,this may or may not be true1 
but the reason and proof are open to    
question4 ,it assumes that the land     
cultivated by the ,negroes is of the    
same quality as that farmed by the      
whites4 ,this certainly is not true of  
,arkansas1 of which it is stated that   
,arkansas shows a greater production per
 acre by colored farmers for all three  

tenures4 ,the three tenures are owners1 
cash-tenants1 share-tenants4            
,mississippi agrees with ,arkansas in   
showing higher production for both      
classes of tenants4 ,are we to infer    
that the ,negroes in ,arkansas and      
,mississippi are better farmers than the
 whites1 and that1 therefore1 their     
progress has infinitely surpassed his8  
,by no means4 ,the explanation is that  
in the two states mentioned the ,negroes
 cultivate the rich bottom land while   
the white farmers are found in the      
hills4 ,the alluvial land easily raises 
twice the cotton1 and that of a better  
quality1 commanding about a cent a pound
 more in the market4 ,there may possibly
 be similar conditions in other states2 
certainly in ,alabama the black prairie 
tilled by the ,negroes is esteemed      
better than the other land4 ,since this 
was first written ,i have chanced upon  
the report of the ,geological ,survey of
 ,alabama for #ahha and #ahhb1 in which 
,mr4 ,e4 ,a4 ,smith sums up this same   

problem as follows3       7#a7 ,that    
where the blacks are in excess of the   
whites1 there are      the originally   
most fertile lands of the state4 ,the   
natural      advantages of the soils    
are1 however1 more than counterbalanced 
by      the bad system prevailing in    
such sections1 viz42 large farms        
rented out in patches to laborers who   
are too poor and too much in      debt  
to merchants to have any interest in    
keeping up the fertility      of the    
soil1 or rather the ability to keep it  
up1 with the natural      consequence of
 its rapid exhaustion1 and a product per
 acre on      these1 the best lands of  
the state1 lower than that which is     
realized from the very poorest4         
7#b7 ,where the two races are in nearly 
equal proportions1 or where      the    
whites are in only a slight excess over 
the blacks1 as is the      case in all  
sections where the soils are of average 
fertility1      there is found the      
system of small farms1 worked generally 

by the      owners1 a consequently      
better cultivation1 a more general use  
of      commercial fertilizers1 a       
correspondingly high product per acre   
and a partial maintenance of the        
fertility of the soils4       7#c7      
,where the whites are greatly in excess 
of the blacks 7three to      one and    
above7 the soils are almost certain to  
be far below the      average in        
fertility1 and the product per acre is  
low from this      cause1               
notwithstanding the redeeming influences
 of a comparatively      rational system
 of cultivation4       7#d7 ,the        
exceptions to these general rules are   
nearly always due to      local causes  
which are not far to seek and which     
afford generally a      satisfactory    
explanation of the discrepancies4   ,if 
we are to base our reasoning on the     
table cited we might argue that land    
ownership is a bad thing for ,negroes1  
for tenants of both classes among them  
produced more than did the owners4 ,the 

white cash tenants also produced more   
than white owners4 ,in explaining this  
it is said3 ,the fact that cash tenants 
pay a fixed money rental per acre causes
 them to rent only such area as they can
 cultivate thoroughly1 while many owners
 who are unable to rent their excess    
acreage to tenants attempt to cultivate 
it themselves1 thus decreasing the      
efficiency of cultivation for the entire
 farm4 ,this may be true of the whites1 
but it is a lame explanation for the    
blacks4 ,negro farmers who own more land
 than they can cultivate appear to be   
better known at ,washington than they   
are locally4 ,the trouble with the      
entire argument is that it assumes that 
the ,negro is an independent cultivator 
of cotton4 ,this is not quite the case4 
,in all parts of the ,south the ,negro1 
tenant or owner1 usually receives       
advances from white factors1 and these  
spend a good part of their time riding  
about to see that the land is cultivated
 in order to insure repayment of their  

loans4 ,if their advice and suggestions 
are not followed1 or if the crop is not 
cultivated1 the supplies are shut off4  
,on many plantations even the portion of
 the land to be put in cotton is        
stipulated4 ,the great bulk of the      
cotton crop is thus raised under the    
immediate oversight of the white man4   
,there is little call for any great     
skill on the part of the laborer4 ,no   
wonder the crop of the ,negro           
approximates that of the white man4 ,it 
is to be further remembered that cotton 
raising has been the chief occupation of
 the ,negro in ,america4 ,the ,census   
gives another illustration of the       
unhappy effects of attempting to cover  
very diverse conditions in one statement
 in the map ,vol4 ,,vi1 plate #c4 ,from 
this one would be justified in believing
 that the average farm under one        
management in the alluvial lands of     
,mississippi and ,louisiana was small4  
,as a matter of fact they are among the 
largest in the country4 ,the map gives a

 very misleading conception and it      
results wholly from attempting to       
combine divergent conditions4  ,the     
quotation from ,mr4 ,smith touched upon 
another result of this segregation4     
,where the whites are the farmers the   
farms are smaller and better cared for1 
more fertilizers are used1 and better   
results are obtained4 ,the big          
plantation system has caused the        
deterioration of naturally fertile      
soils4 ,of course1 there must come a day
 of reckoning wherever careless         
husbandry prevails4  ,city conditions   
are more or less uniform in all         
sections4 ,the geographical location of 
the farmer1 however1 is a matter of     
considerable importance not only as     
determining in large measure the crop he
 must raise1 but as limiting the advance
 he may be able to make under given     
conditions4 ,it is estimated that about 
#he per cent of the men 7,negroes7 and  
#dd per cent of the women in productive 
pursuits are farmers4 ,their general    

location has been shown4 ,for           
convenience we may divide the territory 
into five districts3 7#a7 ,virginia and 
,kentucky1 above the limit of profitable
 cotton culture4 7#b7 ,the ,atlantic    
,sea ,coast4 7#c7 ,the ,central belt    
running from ,virginia to ,central      
,mississippi4 ,this includes several    
different soils1 but general conditions 
are fairly uniform4 7#d7 ,the ,alluvial 
,lands1 which may be subdivided into the
 cotton and cane districts4 7#e7 ,texas4
 ,these different districts will be     
treated separately1 except ,texas1 which
 is not included4  ,in summing up this  
chapter it may be said that the location
 of the mass of the ,negro farmers has  
been indicated1 and also the fact that  
there is a separation between the whites
 and the blacks which promises to have  
important bearing on future progress1   
while the various agricultural districts
 offer opportunities by no means        
uniform4     ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,economic
 ,,heritage4   ,,in ,,plowing ,,time4   

,previous to the appearance of the      
,european1 ,west ,central ,africa for   
untold hundreds of years had been almost
 completely separated from the outside  
world4 ,the climate is hot1 humid1      
enervating4 ,the ,negro tribes living in
 the great forests found little need for
 exertion to obtain the necessities of  
savage life4 ,the woods abounded in     
game1 the rivers in fish4 ,by cutting   
down a few trees and loosening the      
ground with sharpened sticks the        
plantains1 a species of coarse banana1  
could be made to yield many hundred     
fold4 ,the greater part of the little   
agricultural work done fell on the      
women1 for it was considered degrading  
by the men4 ,handicrafts were almost    
unknown among many tribes and where they
 existed were of the simplest4 ,clothing
 was of little service4 ,food           
preparations were naturally crude4      
,sanitary restrictions1 seemingly so    
necessary in hot climates1 were unheard 
of4 ,the dead were often buried in the  

floors of the huts4 ,miss ,kingsley     
says3 ,all travelers in ,west ,africa   
find it necessary very soon to accustom 
themselves to most noisome odors of many
 kinds and to all sorts of revolting    
uncleanliness4 ,morality1 as we use the 
term1 did not exist4 ,chastity was      
esteemed in the women only as a         
marketable commodity4 ,marriage was     
easily consummated and with even greater
 ease dissolved4 ,slavery1 inter-tribal1
 was widespread1 and the ravages of the 
slave hunter were known long before the 
arrival of the whites4 ,religion was a  
mass of grossest superstitions1 with    
belief in the magical power of witches  
and sorcerers who had power of life and 
death over their fellows4 ,might was    
right and the chiefs enforced obedience4
 ,it is not necessary to go more into   
detail4 ,in the words of a recent       
writer3       ,it is clear that any     
civilization which is based on the      
fertility      of the soil1 and not on  
the energy of man1 contains within      

itself      the seed of its own         
destruction4 ,where food is easily      
obtained1      where there is little    
need for clothing or houses1 where1 in  
brief1      unaided nature furnishes all
 man's necessities1 those elements      
which produce strength of character and 
vigor of mind are wanting1      and man 
becomes the slave of his surroundings4  
,he acquires no      energy of          
disposition1 he yields himself to       
superstition and      fatalism2 the very
 conditions of life which produced his  
civilization set the limit of its       
existence4   ,it is evident from the    
foregoing that there had been almost    
nothing in the conditions of ,africa to 
further habits of thrift and industry4  
,the warm climate made great provision  
for the future unnecessary1 not to say  
impossible1 while social conditions did 
not favor accumulation of property4 ,it 
is necessary to emphasize these ,african
 conditions1 for they have an important 
influence on future development4 ,under 

these conditions ,negro character was   
formed1 and that character was not like 
that of the long-headed blonds of the   
,north4  ,the transfer to ,america      
marked a sharp break with the past4 ,one
 needs but to stop to enumerate the     
changes to realize how great this break 
was4 ,a simple dialect is exchanged for 
a complex language4 ,a religion whose   
basic principle is love gradually       
supplants the fears and superstitions of
 heathenhood4 ,the black passes from an 
enervating1 humid climate to one in     
which activity is pleasurable4 ,from the
 isolation and self-satisfaction of     
savagery he emerges into close contact  
with one of the most ambitious and      
progressive of peoples4 ,life at once   
becomes far more secure and wrongs are  
revenged by the self-interest of the    
whites as well as by the feeble means of
 self-defense in possession of the      
blacks4 ,that there were cruelties and  
mistreatment under slavery goes without 
saying1 but the woes and sufferings     

under it were as nothing compared to    
those of the life in the ,african       
forests4 ,this fact is sometimes        
overlooked4 ,with greater security of   
life came an emphasis1 from without1 to 
be sure1 on better marital relations4   
,in this respect slavery left much to be
 desired1 but conditions on the whole   
were probably in advance of those in    
,africa4 ,marriage began to be something
 more than a purchase4 ,sanitation1 not 
the word1 but the underlying idea1 was  
taught by precept and example4 ,there   
came also a dim notion of a new sphere  
for women4 ,faint perceptions ofttimes1 
but ideas never dreamed of in ,africa4  
,i would not defend slavery1 but in this
 country its evil results are the       
inheritance of the whites1 not of the   
blacks1 and the burden today of         
,american slavery is upon white         
shoulders4  ,many of the changes have   
been mentioned1 but the greatest is     
reserved for the last4 ,this is embraced
 in one word--,,work4 ,for the first    

time the ,negro was made to work1 not   
casual work1 but steady1 constant labor4
 ,from the ,negro's standpoint this is  
the redeeming feature of his slavery as 
perhaps it was for the ,israelites in   
,egypt of old4 ,booker ,washington has  
written3#e ,american slavery was a great
 curse to both races1 and ,i would be   
the last to apologize for it1 but1 in   
the providence of ,god1 ,i believe that 
slavery laid the foundation for the     
solution of the problem that is now     
before us in the ,south4 ,during slavery
 the ,negro was taught every trade1     
every industry1 that constitutes the    
foundation for making a living4  ,dr4   
,h4 ,b4 ,frissell has borne the same    
testimony3       ,the southern          
plantation was really a great trade     
school where      thousands received    
instruction in mechanic arts1 in        
agriculture1 in      cooking1 sewing and
 other domestic occupations4 ,although  
it may be      said that all this       
instruction was given from selfish      

motives1 yet      the fact remains that 
the slaves on many plantations had good 
industrial training1 and all honor is   
due to the conscientious men      and   
still more to the noble women of the    
,south who in slavery times      helped 
to prepare the way for the better days  
that were to come4   ,work is the       
essential condition of human progress4  
,contrast the training of the ,negro    
under enforced slavery with that of the 
,indian1 although it should not be      
thought that the characters were the    
same1 for the life in ,america had made 
the ,indian one who would not submit to 
the yoke1 and all attempts to enslave   
him came to naught4 ,dr4 ,frissell out  
of a long experience says3       ,when  
the children of these two races are     
placed side by side1 as      they are in
 the school rooms and workshops and on  
the farms at      ,hampton1 it is not   
difficult to perceive that the training 
which      the blacks had under slavery 
was far more valuable as a preparation  

for civilized life than the freedom from
 training and service      enjoyed by   
the ,indian on the ,western             
reservations4 ,for while      slavery   
taught the colored man to work1 the     
reservation pauperized      the ,indian 
with free rations2 while slavery brought
 the black into      the closest        
relations with the white race and its   
ways of life1 the      reservation shut 
the ,indian away from his white brothers
 and gave      him little knowledge of  
their civilization1 language or         
religion4   ,the coddled ,indian1 with  
all the vices of the white man open to  
him1 has made little1 if any1 progress1 
while the ,negro1 made to work1 has held
 his own in large measure at least4     
,under slavery three general fields of  
service were open to the blacks4 ,the   
first comprised the domestic and body   
servants1 with the seamstresses1 etc41  
whose labors were in the house or in    
close personal contact with masters and 
mistresses4 ,this class was made up of  

the brightest and quickest1 mulattoes   
being preferred because of their greater
 aptitude4 ,these servants had almost as
 much to do with the whites as did the  
other blacks and absorbed no small      
amount of learning4 ,yet the results    
were not always satisfactory4 ,a        
southern lady after visiting for a time 
in ,new ,york said on leaving3#f        
,i cannot tell you how much1 after being
 in your house so long1 ,i      dread to
 go home1 and have to take care of our  
servants again4 ,we      have a much    
smaller family of whites than you1 but  
we have twelve      servants1 and your  
two accomplish a great deal more and do 
their      work a great deal better than
 our twelve4 ,you think your girls are  
very stupid and that they give much     
trouble1 but it is as nothing4          
,there is hardly one of our servants    
that can be trusted to do the           
simplest work without being stood over4 
,if ,i order a room to be      cleaned1 
or a fire to be made in a distant       

chamber1 ,i can never be      sure ,i am
 obeyed unless ,i go there and see for  
myself4444 ,and when      ,i reprimand  
them they only say that they don't mean 
to do anything      wrong1 or they won't
 do it again1 all the time laughing as  
though      it were a joke4 ,they don't 
mind it at all4 ,they are just as       
playful      and careless as any wilful 
child2 and they never will do any work  
if you don't compel them4   ,the second 
class comprised the mechanics1          
carpenters1 blacksmiths1 masons and the 
like4 ,these were also a picked lot4    
,they were well trained ofttimes and had
 a practical monopoly of their trades in
 many localities4 ,in technical         
knowledge they naturally soon           
outstripped their masters and became    
conscious of their superiority1 as the  
following instance related by ,president
 ,g4 ,t4 ,winston shows3       ,i       
remember one day my father1 who was a   
lawyer1 offered some      suggestions to
 one of his slaves1 a fairly good       

carpenter1 who was      building us a   
barn4 ,the old ,negro heard him with    
ill-concealed      disgust1 and replied3
 ',look here1 master1 you'se a          
first-rate      lawyer1 no doubt1 but   
you don't know nothin' 'tall 'bout      
carpentering4 ,you better go back to    
your law books4'   ,the training        
received by these artisans stood them in
 good stead after the war1 when1 left to
 themselves1 they were able to hold     
their ground by virtue of their ability 
to work alone4  ,the third class was    
made up of all that were left1 and their
 work was in the fields4 ,the dullest1  
as well as those not needed elsewhere1  
were included4 ,some few became         
overseers1 but the majority worked on   
the farms4 ,as a rule little work was   
required of children under #ab1 and when
 they began their tasks were about of   
the adult's4 ,thence they passed to     
half1 three-quarter and full hands4     
,olmsted said3#g       ,until the ,negro
 is big enough for his labor to be      

plainly      profitable to his master he
 has no training to application or      
method1 but only to idleness and        
carelessness4 ,before children          
arrive at a working age they hardly come
 under the notice of their              
owner4444 ,the only whipping of slaves  
,i have seen in ,virginia has      been 
of these wild1 lazy children1 as they   
are being broke in to      work4 ,they  
cannot be depended upon a minute out of 
sight4 ,you will      see how difficult 
it would be if it were attempted to     
eradicate the      indolent1 careless1  
incogitant habits so formed in youth4   
,but it is      not systematically      
attempted1 and the influences that      
continue to      act upon a slave in the
 same direction1 cultivating every      
quality      at variance with industry1 
precision1 forethought and providence1  
are innumerable4   ,in many places the  
field hands were given set tasks to do  
each day1 and they were then allowed to 
take their own time and stop when the   

task was completed4 ,in ,georgia and    
,south ,carolina the following is cited 
by ,olmsted as tasks for a day3#g       
,in making drains in light clean meadow 
land each man or woman of      the full 
hands is required to dig one thousand   
cubic feet2 in swamp      land that is  
being prepared for rice culture1 where  
there are not      many stumps1 the task
 for a ditcher is five hundred feet2    
while in      a very strong cypress     
swamp1 only two hundred feet is         
required2 in      hoeing rice1 a certain
 number of rows equal to one-half or    
two-thirds of an acre1 according to the 
condition of the land2 in      sowing   
rice 7strewing in drills71 two acres2 in
 reaping rice 7if it      stands well71 
three-quarters of an acre1 or1 sometimes
 a gang will      be required to reap1  
tie in sheaves1 and carry to the stack  
yard      the produce of a certain area 
commonly equal to one-fourth the        
number of acres that there are hands    
working together2 hoeing      cotton1   

corn or potatoes1 one-half to one acre2 
threshing1 five to      six hundred     
sheaves4 ,in plowing rice land 7light1  
clean1 mellow      soil71 with a yoke of
 oxen1 one acre a day1 including the    
ground      lost in and near the drains1
 the oxen being changed at noon4 ,a     
cooper also1 for instance1 is required  
to make barrels at the rate      of     
eighteen a week2 drawing staves1 #ejj a 
day2 hoop-poles1 #abj2      squaring    
timber1 #ajj feet2 laying worm fence1   
#ej panels per day2      post and rail  
fence1 posts set two and a half to three
 feet deep1      nine feet apart1 nine  
or ten panels per hand4 ,in getting fuel
 from      the woods 7pine to be cut and
 split71 one cord is the task for a     
day4 ,in 'mauling rails1' the taskman   
selecting the trees 7pine7      that he 
judges will split easiest1 #ajj a day1  
ends not sharpened4       ,in allotting 
the tasks the drivers are expected to   
put the weaker      hands where1 if     
there is any choice in the appearance of

 the      ground1 as where certain rows 
in hoeing corn would be less weedy      
than others1 they will be favored4      
,these tasks would certainly not be     
considered excessively hard by      a   
northern laborer1 and1 in point of fact1
 the more industrious and      active   
hands finish them often by two o'clock4 
,i saw one or two      leaving the field
 soon after one o'clock1 several about  
two1 and      between three and four ,i 
met a dozen women and several men coming
      to their cabins1 having finished  
their day's work4444 ,if1 after a       
hard day's labor he 7the driver7 sees   
that the gang has been      overtasked1 
owing to a miscalculation of the        
difficulty of the      work1 he may     
excuse the completion of the tasks1 but 
he is not      allowed to extend them4  
,in other places the work was not laid  
out in tasks1 but it is safe to say     
that1 judging from all reports and all  
probabilities1 the amount of work done  
did not equal that of the free labor of 

the ,north1 then or now4 ,if it had the 
commercial supremacy of the ,south would
 have been longer maintained4  ,some    
things regarding the agricultural work  
at once become prominent4 ,all work was 
done under the immediate eye of the task
 master4 ,thus there was little occasion
 for the development of any sense of    
individual responsibility for the work4 
,as a rule the methods adopted were     
crude4 ,little machinery was used1 and  
that of the simplest4 ,hoes1 heavy and  
clumsy1 were the common tools4 ,within a
 year ,i have seen grass being mowed    
with hoes preparatory to putting the    
ground in cultivation4 ,even today the  
,negro has to be trained to use the     
light1 sharp hoe of the ,north4 ,corn1  
cotton and1 in a few districts1 rice or 
tobacco were the staple crops1 although 
each plantation raised its own fruit and
 vegetables1 and about the cabins in the
 quarters were little plots for gardens4
 ,the land was cultivated for a time1   
then abandoned for new1 while in most   

places little attention was paid to     
rotation of crops or to fertilizers4    
,the result was that large sections of  
the ,south had been seriously injured   
before the war4 ,as some one has said3  
,the destruction of the soils by the    
methods of cultivation prior      to the
 war was worse than the ravages of the  
war4 ,the post bellum      farmer       
received as an inheritance large areas  
of wornout and      generally           
unproductive soils4   ,yet all things   
were the master's4 ,a failure of the    
crop meant little hunger to the black4  
,refusal to work could but bring bodily 
punishment1 for the master was seldom of
 the kind who would take life--a live   
,negro was worth a good deal more than a
 dead one4 ,clothing and shelter were   
provided1 and care in sickness4 ,the    
master must always furnish tools1 land  
and seed1 and see to it that the ground 
was cultivated4 ,there was thus little  
necessity for the ,negro to care for the
 morrow1 and his ,african training had  

not taught him to borrow trouble4 ,thus 
neither ,africa nor ,america had trained
 the ,negro to independent1 continuous  
labor apart from the eye of the         
overseer4 ,the requirements as to skill 
were low4 ,the average man learned      
little of the mysteries of fruit        
growing1 truck farming and all the      
economies which make diversified        
agriculture profitable4  ,freedom came1 
a second sharp break with the past4     
,there is now no one who is responsible 
for food and clothing4 ,for a time all  
is in confusion4 ,the war had wiped out 
the capital of the country4 ,the whites 
were land poor1 the ,negroes landless4  
,it so happened that at this time the   
price of cotton was high4 ,the ,negro   
knew more about cotton than any other   
crop4 ,raise cotton became the order of 
the day4 ,the money lenders would lend  
money on cotton1 even in advance1 for it
 had a certain and sure ready sale4     
,thus developed the crop-lien system    
which in essence consists in taking a   

mortgage on crops yet to be raised4 ,the
 system existed among the white planters
 for many years before the war4  ,a     
certain amount of food and clothing was 
advanced to the ,negro family until the 
crop could be harvested1 when the money 
value of the goods received was returned
 with interest4 ,perhaps nothing which  
concerns the ,negro has been the subject
 of more hostile criticism than this    
crop-lien system4 ,that it is easily    
abused when the man on one side is a    
shrewd and cunning sharpster and the    
borrower an illiterate and trusting     
,negro is beyond doubt4 ,that in        
thousands of cases advantage has been   
taken of this fact to wrest from the    
,negro at the end of the year all that  
he had is not to be questioned4         
,certainly a system which makes it      
possible is open to criticism4 ,it      
should not be forgotten1 however1 that  
the system grew out of the needs of the 
time and served a useful purpose when   
honestly administered1 even as it does  

today4 ,no money could be gotten with   
land as security1 and even today the    
land owner often sees his merchant with 
far less capital get money from the bank
 which has refused his security4 ,the   
system has enabled a poor man without   
tools and work animals without food to  
get a start and be provided with a      
modicum of necessities until the crops  
were harvested4 ,thousands have become  
more or less independent who started in 
this way4 ,the evil influences of the   
system1 for none would consider it      
ideal1 have probably been that it has   
made unnecessary any saving on the part 
of the ,negro1 who feels sure that he   
can receive his advances and who cares  
little for the fact that some day he    
must pay a big interest on what he      
receives4 ,secondly1 this system has    
hindered the development of diversified 
farming1 which today is one of the      
greatest needs of the ,south4 ,the      
advances have been conditioned upon the 
planting and cultivating a given amount 

of cotton4 ,during recent years no other
 staple has so fallen in price1 and the 
result has been hard on the farmers4    
,all else has faded into insignificance 
before the necessity of raising cotton4 
,the result on the fertility of the soil
 is also evident4 ,luckily cotton makes 
light demands on the land1 but the thin 
soil of many districts has been unable  
to stand even the light demands4 ,guano 
came just in time and the later         
commercial fertilizers have postponed   
the evil day4 ,the development of the   
cotton mills has also served to give a  
local market1 which has stimulated the  
production of cotton4 ,it seems rather  
evident1 however1 that the increasing   
development of western lands will put a 
heavier burden upon the ,atlantic slope4
 ,this1 of course1 will not affect the  
culture of sea-island cotton1 which is  
grown in only a limited area4 ,to meet  
this handicap a more diversified        
agriculture must gradually supplant in  
some way the present over-attention to  

cotton4 ,in early days ,virginia raised 
much cotton1 now it stands towards the  
bottom of the cotton states4 ,perhaps it
 is safe to say that ,virginia land has 
been as much injured by the more        
exhaustive crop1 tobacco1 as the other  
states by cotton4 ,large areas have been
 allowed to go back to the woods and    
local conditions have greatly changed4  
,how this diversification is to be      
brought about for the ,negro is one of  
the most important questions4 ,recent   
years have witnessed an enormous        
development of truck farming1 but in    
this the ,negro has borne little part4  
,this intensive farming requires a      
knowledge of soil and of plant life1    
coupled with much ability in marketing  
wares1 which the average ,negro does not
 possess4 ,nor has he taken any great   
part in the fruit industry1 which is    
steadily growing4 ,the question to which
 all this leads may be stated as        
follows4 ,to what extent is the ,negro  
taking advantage of the opportunities he

 now has on the farm8 ,what is his      
present situation8     ,,chapter ,,iv4  
,,the ,,present ,,situation4   ,the     
southern states are not densely         
populated4 ,alabama has an average of   
#ce per square mile2 ,georgia1 #cg2     
,south ,carolina1 #dd4 ,these may be    
compared with ,iowa1 #dj2 ,indiana1 #gj1
 taking two of the typical northern     
farming states1 while ,connecticut has  
#ahg4 ,in the prairie section of        
,alabama the ,negro population ranges   
from #cj to #ej per square mile1 and    
this is about the densest outside of the
 city counties4 ,there is thus an       
abundance of land4 ,as a matter of fact 
there is not the least difficulty for   
the ,negro farmer to get plenty of land1
 and he has but to show himself a good  
tenant to have the whites offering him  
inducements4   ,a ,,cabin ,,interior4   
,negroes on the farms may be divided    
into four classes3 ,owners1 cash        
tenants1 share tenants1 laborers4 ,share
 tenants differ from the same class in  

the ,north in that work animals and     
tools are usually provided by the       
landlord4 ,among the laborers must also 
be included the families living on the  
rice and cane plantations1 who work for 
cash wages but receive houses and such  
perquisites as do other tenants and     
whose permanence is more assured than an
 ordinary day hand4 ,they are paid in   
cash1 usually through a plantation      
store1 that debts for provisions1 etc41 
may be deducted4 ,both owners and       
tenants find it generally necessary to  
arrange for advances of food and        
clothing until harvest4 ,the advances   
begin in the early ,spring and continue 
until ,august or sometimes until the    
cotton is picked4 ,in the regions east  
of the alluvial lands advances usually  
stop by the first of ,august1 and in the
 interim until the cotton is sold odd   
jobs or some extra labor1 picking       
blackberries and the like1 must furnish 
the support for the family4 ,the        
landlord may do the advancing or some   

merchant4 ,money is seldom furnished    
directly1 although in recent years banks
 are beginning to loan on crop-liens4   
,the food supplied is often based on the
 number of working hands1 irrespective  
of the number of children in the family4
 ,this is occasionally a hardship4 ,the 
customary ration is a peck of corn meal 
and three pounds of pork per week4      
,usually a crop-lien together with a    
bill of sale of any personal property is
 given as security1 but in some states  
landlords have a first lien upon all    
crops for rent and advances4 ,in all    
districts the tenant is allowed to cut  
wood for his fire1 and frequently has   
free pasture for his stock4 ,there is   
much complaint that when there are      
fences about the house they are         
sometimes burned1 being more accessible 
than the timber1 which may be at a      
distance and which has to be cut4 ,the  
landlords and the advancers have found  
it necessary to spend a large part of   
their time personally1 or through agents

 called riders1 going about the         
plantations to see that the crops are   
cultivated4 ,the ,negro knows how to    
raise cotton1 but he may forget to plow1
 chop1 or some other such trifle1 unless
 reminded of the necessity4 ,thus a     
considerable part of the excessive      
interest charged the ,negro should      
really be charged as wages of           
superintendence4 ,if the instructions of
 the riders are not followed1 rations   
are cut off1 and thus the recalcitrant  
brought to terms4  ,for a long time     
rations have been dealt out on          
,saturday4 ,so ,saturday has come to be 
considered a holiday1 or half-holiday at
 least4 ,early in the morning the roads 
are covered with blacks on foot1 horse  
back1 mule back and in various vehicles1
 on their way to the store or village1  
there to spend the day loafing about in 
friendly discussion with neighbors4 ,the
 condition of the crops has little      
preventive influence1 and the handicap  
to successful husbandry formed by the   

habit is easily perceived4 ,many efforts
 are being made to break up the custom1 
but it is up-hill work4 ,another habit  
of the ,negro which militates against   
his progress is his prowling about in   
all sorts of revels by night1 thereby   
unfitting himself for labor the next    
day4 ,this trait also shows forth the   
general thoughtlessness of the ,negro4  
,his mule works by day1 but is expected 
to carry his owner any number of miles  
at night4 ,sunday is seldom a day of    
rest for the work animals4 ,it is a     
curious fact that wherever the ,negroes 
are most numerous there mules usually   
outnumber horses4 ,there are several    
reasons for this4 ,it has often been    
supposed that mules endure the heat     
better than horses4 ,this is            
questionable4 ,the mule1 however1 will  
do a certain amount and then quit1 all  
inducements to the contrary             
notwithstanding4 ,the horse will go till
 he drops2 moreover1 will not stand the 
abuse which the mule endures4 ,the      

,negro does not bear a good reputation  
for care of his animals4 ,he neglects to
 feed and provide for them4 ,their looks
 justify the criticism4 ,the mule1      
valuable as he is for many purposes1 is 
necessarily more expensive in the long  
run than a self-perpetuating animal4    
,in all parts it is the custom for the  
,negroes to save a little garden patch  
about the house1 which1 if properly     
tended1 would supply the family with    
vegetables throughout the year4 ,this is
 seldom the case4 ,a recent ,tuskegee   
catalog commenting on this says3        
,if they have any garden at all1 it is  
apt to be choked with weeds      and    
other noxious growths4 ,with every      
advantage of soil and      climate1 and 
with a steady market if they live near  
any city or      large town1 few of the 
colored farmers get any benefit from    
this1      one of the most profitable of
 all industries4   ,as a matter of fact 
they care little for vegetables and     
seldom know how to prepare them for the 

table4 ,the garden is regularly started 
in the ,spring1 but seldom amounts to   
much4 ,i have ridden for a day with but 
a glimpse of a couple of attempts4 ,as a
 result there will be a few collards1   
turnips1 gourds1 sweet potatoes and     
beans1 but the mass of the people buy   
the little they need from the stores4 ,a
 dealer in a little country store told  
me last summer that he would make about 
#ge an acre on three acres of           
watermelons1 although almost every      
purchaser could raise them if he would4 
,in many regions wild fruits are        
abundant1 and blackberries during the   
season are quite a staple1 but they are 
seldom canned4 ,some cattle are kept1   
but little butter is made1 and milk is  
seldom on the bill of fare1 the stock   
being sold when fat 7874 ,many families 
keep chickens1 usually of the variety   
known as dunghill fowls1 which forage   
for themselves4 ,but the market supplied
 with chickens by the small farmers1 as 
it might easily be4 ,whenever           

opportunity offers1 hunting and fishing 
become more than diversions1 and the    
fondness for coon and 'possum is        
proverbial4  ,in a study of dietaries of
 ,negroes made under ,tuskegee          
,institute and reported in ,bulletin    
,no4 #ch1 ,office of ,experimental      
,stations1 ,u4 ,s4 ,dept4 of            
,agriculture1 it is stated3             
,comparing these negro dietaries with   
other dietaries and dietary             
standards1 it will be seen that--       
7#a7 ,the quantities of protein are     
small4 ,roughly speaking1 the      food 
of these negroes furnished one-third to 
three-fourths as much      protein as   
are called for in the current           
physiological standards      and as are 
actually found in the dietaries of well 
fed whites in      the ,united ,states  
and well fed people in ,europe4 ,they   
were1 indeed1      no larger than have  
been found in the dietaries of the very 
poor      factory operatives and        
laborers in ,germany and the laborers   

and      beggars in ,italy4       7#b7  
,in fuel value the ,negro dietaries     
compare quite favorably with      those 
of well-to-do people of the laboring    
classes in ,europe and      the ,united 
,states4   ,this indicates the ignorance
 of the ,negro regarding the food he    
needs1 so that in a region of plenty he 
is underfed as regards the muscle and   
bone forming elements and overfed so far
 as fuel value is concerned4 ,one cannot
 help asking what effect a normal diet  
would have upon the sexual passions4 ,it
 is worthy of notice that in the schools
 maintained by the whites there is      
relatively little trouble on this       
account4 ,possibly the changed life and 
food are in no small measure responsible
 for the difference4  ,under diversified
 farming there would be steady          
employment most of the year1 with a     
corresponding increase of production4   
,as it is there are two busy seasons4   
,in the ,spring1 planting and           
cultivating cotton1 say from ,march to  

,july1 and in the ,fall1 cotton picking1
 ,september to ,december4 ,the balance  
of the time the average farmer does     
little work4 ,the present system entails
 a great loss of time4  ,the absence of 
good pastures and of meadows is         
noticeable4 ,this is also too true of   
white farmers4 ,yet the grasses grow    
luxuriantly and nothing but custom or   
something else accounts for their       
absence2 the something else is cotton4  
,the adaptability of cotton to the      
,negro is almost providential4 ,it has a
 long tap root and is able to stand     
neglect and yet produce a reasonable    
crop4 ,the grains1 corn and cane1 with  
their surface roots1 will not thrive    
under careless handling4  ,the average  
farmer knows1 or at least utilizes few  
of the little economies which make      
agriculture so profitable elsewhere4    
,the ,negro is thus under a heavy       
handicap and does not get the most that 
he might from present opportunities4 ,i 
am fully conscious that there are many  

farmers who take advantage of these     
things and are correspondingly          
successful1 but they are not the average
 man of whom ,i am speaking4 ,with this 
general statement ,i pass to a          
consideration of the situation in the   
various districts before mentioned4     
,,tide ,,water ,,virginia4  ,the        
,virginia sea shore consists of a number
 of peninsulas separated by narrow      
rivers 7salt water74 ,the country along 
the shore and the rivers is flat1 with  
low hills in the interior4 ,north of    
,old ,point ,comfort the district is    
scarcely touched by railroads and is    
accessible only by steamers4            
,gloucester ,county1 lying between ,york
 ,river and ,mob ,jack ,bay1 is an      
interesting region4 ,the hilly soil of  
the central part sells at from #e to #aj
 per acre1 while the flat coast land1   
which is richer although harder to      
drain1 is worth from #be to #ej4 ,the   
immediate water front has risen in price
 in recent years and brings fancy prices

 for residence purposes4 ,curiously     
enough some of the best land of the     
county is that beneath the waters of the
 rivers--the oyster beds4 ,land for this
 use may be worth from nothing to many  
hundreds of dollars an acre1 according  
to its nature4 ,the county contains #bej
 square miles1 #f1bbd whites and #f1fjh 
blacks1 the latter forming #ea per cent 
of the population4  ,this sea coast     
region offers peculiar facilities for   
gaining an easy livelihood4 ,there are  
few negro families of which some member 
does not spend part of the year fishing 
or oystering4 ,there has been a great   
development of the oyster industry4 ,the
 season lasts from ,september #a to ,may
 #a1 and good workmen not infrequently  
make #b a day or more when they can work
 on the public beds4 ,this last clause  
is significant4 ,it is stated that the  
men expect to work most of ,september1  
,october and ,november2 one-half of     
,december and ,january2 one-third of    
,february2 any time in ,march is clear  

gain and all of ,april4 ,according to a 
careful study#h of the oyster industry  
it was found that the oystermen1 i4 e41 
those who dig the oysters from the      
rocks1 make about #h a month1 while     
families occupied in shucking oysters   
earn up to #djj a year1 three-fourths of
 them gaining less than #bej4 ,the      
public beds yield less than formerly and
 the business is gradually going into   
the hands of firms maintaining their own
 beds1 with a corresponding reduction in
 possible earnings for the oystermen4   
,the effect of this industry is twofold2
 a considerable sum of money is brought 
into the county and much of this has    
been invested in homes and small farms4 
,this is the bright side2 but there is a
 dark side4 ,the boys are drawn out of  
the schools by the age of #ab to work at
 shucking oysters1 and during the winter
 months near the rivers the boys will   
attend only on stormy days4 ,the men are
 also taken away from the farms too     
early in the fall to gather crops1 and  

return too late in the spring to get the
 best results from the farm work4 ,the  
irregular character of the employment   
reacts on the men and they tend to drift
 to the cities during the summer1       
although many find employment in berry  
picking about ,norfolk4 ,another result 
has been to make farm labor very scarce4
 ,this naturally causes some complaint4 
,i do not say that the bad results      
outweigh the good1 but believe they must
 be considered4  ,the population is     
scattered over the county1 there being  
no towns of any size1 and is denser     
along the rivers than inland4 ,the      
relations between the two races are most
 friendly1 although less satisfactory   
between the younger generation4 ,the    
,negroes make no complaints of ill      
treatment4 ,in the last ten years there 
have been only four ,negroes sentenced  
to the state prison1 while in the twelve
 months prior to ,may #a1 #aijc1 ,i was 
told that there was but one trial for   
misdemeanor4 ,it may be that the absence

 of many of the young men for several   
months a year accounts in part for the  
small amount of crime4 ,the jail stands 
empty most of the time4 ,the chief      
offenses are against the fish and oyster
 laws of the state4 ,whites and blacks  
both claim that illegitimate children   
are much rarer than formerly4 ,i was    
told of a case in which a young white   
man was fined for attempting to seduce a
 colored girl4 ,the races have kept in  
touch4 ,white ministers still preach in 
negro churches1 address ,sunday-schools1
 etc4  ,in all save a few of the poorer 
districts the old one-roomed cabin has  
given place to a comfortable house of   
several rooms4 ,the houses are often    
white-washed1 although their completion 
may take a good many years4 ,stoves have
 supplanted fireplaces4 ,the fences     
about the yards are often neat and in   
good repair4 ,so far as housing         
conditions are concerned1 ,i have seen  
no rural district of the ,south to      
compare with this4 ,the old cabin is    

decidedly out of fashion4  ,turning to  
the farm proper1 there are other        
evidences of change4 ,there are no women
 working in the fields1 their time being
 spent about the house and the garden4  
,the system of crop liens is unknown4   
,each farmer raises his own supplies1   
smokes his own meat or buys at the store
 for cash or on credit4 ,wheat and corn 
are ground in local mills4 ,the heavy   
interest charges of other districts are 
thus avoided4 ,it is stated that a great
 number of the ,negroes are buying      
little places1 and this bears out the   
census figures1 which show that of the  
,negro farmers #ij4i per cent in this   
county are owners or managers2 the      
average for the negroes as a whole is   
#bg4a per cent4  ,although so many earn 
money in the oyster business1 there are 
others who have gotten ahead by sticking
 to the farm4 ,t---- now owns part of   
the place on which he was a slave1 and  
his slave-time cabin is now used as a   
shed4 ,he began buying land in #ahgc1   

paying from #aj to #aa4ej per acre1 and 
by hard work and economy now owns sixty 
acres which are worth much more than    
their first cost4 ,with the help of his 
boys1 whom he has managed to keep at    
home1 he derives a comfortable income   
from his land4 ,his daughter1 now his   
housekeeper1 teaches school near by     
during the winter4 ,what he has done    
others can do1 he says4  ,y---- is      
another who has succeeded4 ,his first   
payments were made from the sale of wood
 cut in clearing the land4 ,in #aijc his
 acres were planted as follows3         
,orchard          #b acres4   ,woodland 
#h acres4   ,pasture         #aj acres4 
,corn             #h acres4   ,rye      
#c_/d acres4   ,potato patch   ,garden  
and yard4   ,his children are being     
trained at ,hampton1 and he laughingly  
says that one boy is already telling him
 how to get more produce from his land4 
,b---- is an oysterman during the       
winter4 ,he has purchased a small place 
of four acres1 for which he paid #ah per

 acre4 ,this ground he cultivates and   
has a few apple1 plum and peach trees in
 his yard4 ,his case is typical4  ,wages
 in the county are not high4 ,house     
servants get from #c to #h per month4   
,day laborers are paid from #ej to #ge  
cents a day4 ,farm hands get about #aj a
 month and two meals daily 7breakfast   
and dinner74 ,i have already mentioned  
that farm laborers were getting fewer1  
and those left are naturally the less   
reliable4 ,many white farmers are having
 considerable difficulty in carrying on 
their places4 ,the result is that many  
are only partially cultivating the      
farms1 and many of the younger men are  
abandoning agriculture4 ,what the final 
result will be is hard to tell4  ,in    
summarizing it may be said that         
agriculture is being somewhat neglected 
and that the opportunity to earn money  
in the oyster industry acts as a        
constant deterrent to agricultural      
progress1 if it is not directly         
injurious4 ,here1 as elsewhere1 there is

 room for improvement in methods of     
tilling the soil and in rotation of     
crops1 use of animal manures1 etc4  ,the
 general social and moral improvement   
has been noted4 ,it is a pleasure to    
find that one of the strongest factors  
in this improvement is due to the       
presence in the county of a number of   
graduates of ,hampton who1 in their     
homes1 their schools and daily life1    
have stood for better things4           
,,central ,,virginia4  ,the difficulty  
of making general statements true in all
 districts has elsewhere been mentioned4
 ,the reader will not be surprised1     
therefore1 to find many things said in  
the immediately preceding pages         
inapplicable to conditions in the       
tobacco districts4 ,the little town of  
,farmville1 ,va41 is the market for some
 #ab1jjj1jjj pounds of tobacco yearly4  
,the county ,prince ,edward contained in
 #ahij #i1ibd ,negroes and in #aijj but 
#i1gfi1 a decrease of #aee4 ,the county 
does not give one the impression of     

agricultural prosperity4 ,the surface is
 very rolling1 the soil sandy and thin  
in many places4 ,along the bottoms there
 is good land1 of less value than       
formerly because of freshets4           
,practically all of the land has been   
under cultivation at some time1 and in  
heavily wooded fields the corn rows may 
often be traced4 ,on every side are     
worn-out fields on which sassafras soon 
gets a hold1 followed by pine and other 
trees4  ,labor conditions have been     
growing worse1 according to common      
report4 ,it is harder to get farm hands 
than formerly1 and this difficulty is   
most felt by those who exact the most4  
,the day laborer gets from #dj to #ej   
cents and his meals1 while for special  
work1 such as cutting wheat1 the wage   
may rise to #a4ej4 ,women no longer work
 in the fields1 and about the house get 
#ce cents per day4 ,formerly women      
worked in the fields1 and wages for both
 sexes were lower4 ,hands by the month  
get #g to #h and board4 ,in this county 

are many small white farmers who work in
 the fields with the men1 and the white 
housewife not infrequently cooks the    
food for the ,negroes--quite a contrast 
to typical southern practice4  ,the     
movement from the farm is not an unmixed
 evil in that it is compelling the      
introduction of improved machinery1 such
 as mowing machines1 binders4 ,on many a
 farm only scythes and cradles are      
known4  ,another element in the problem 
is the fact that many negroes have been 
getting little places of their own and  
therefore do less work for others4      
,there are many whites who think this   
development a step forward and believe  
that the land owners are better         
citizens4 ,there are others who claim   
that the net result is a loss1 in that  
they are satisfied merely to eke out    
some sort of an existence and are not   
spurred on to increased production4 ,it 
is quite commonly reported that there   
were some organizations among the       
,negroes whose members agreed not to    

work for the whites1 but ,i cannot vouch
 for their existence4  ,although        
agriculture here is much more           
diversified than in the cotton belt1 the
 ,negro finds it necessary to get       
advances4 ,these are usually supplied by
 commission merchants1 who furnish the  
fertilizers and necessary food1 taking  
crop liens as security4 ,advances begin 
in the spring and last until the        
following ,december1 when the tobacco is
 marketed4 ,the interest charged is #f  
per cent1 but the goods sold on this    
plan are much enhanced in price2        
interest is usually charged for a year1 
and the merchant receives a commission  
of #b-a_/b per cent for selling the     
tobacco1 so the business appears fairly 
profitable4  ,it is difficult to        
estimate the average value of an acre of
 tobacco1 as it varies so much in       
quality as well as quantity4 ,it is     
probably safe to say that the ,negroes  
do not average over #bj per acre1       
ranging from #ae to #be1 and have       

perhaps three or four acres in tobacco4 
,it is generally expected that the      
tobacco will about pay for the advances4
 ,this would indicate1 and the          
commission men confirm it1 that the     
average advance is between #ej and #ge  
per year4 ,the rations given out are no 
longer merely pork and meal1 with which 
it is stated that the ,negroes are not  
now content1 but include a more varied  
diet4  ,the customary rent is one-fourth
 of all that is produced1 the landlord  
paying one-fourth of the fertilizer     
7universally called guano in this       
district74 ,tobacco makes heavy demands 
on the soil and at least #djj pounds1 a 
value of about #d4ej per acre1 should be
 used4 ,when the landlord furnishes the 
horse or mule he pays also one-half of  
the fertilizer and gets one-half of the 
produce4 ,the rent on tobacco land is   
thus large1 but the average cash rental 
is between #b and #c4  ,the standard    
rotation of crops is tobacco1 wheat1    
clover1 tobacco4 ,the clover is not     

infrequently skipped1 the field lying   
fallow or uncultivated until exhausted4 
,the average farmer thus has about as   
many acres in wheat as in tobacco and   
raises perhaps twelve bushels of wheat  
per acre4 ,some corn is also raised1 and
 ,i have seen fields so exhausted that  
the stalk at the ground was scarcely    
larger than my middle finger4 ,the corn 
crop may possibly average #aj to #ae    
bushels per acre1 or1 in ,virginia      
terminology1 #b to #c barrels4  ,the    
average farmer under present conditions 
just about meets his advances with the  
tobacco raised4 ,he has about enough    
wheat to supply him with flour2 perhaps 
enough corn and hay for his ox or horse2
 possibly enough meat for the family4   
,the individual family may fall short on
 any of these4 ,the hay crop is         
unsatisfactory1 largely through neglect4
 ,in ,may1 #aijc1 on a ,saturday1 ,i saw
 wagon after wagon leaving ,farmville   
carrying bales of western hay4 ,this is 
scarcely an indication of thrift4  ,the 

impression one gets from traveling about
 is that the extensive cultivation of   
tobacco1 in spite of the fact that it is
 the cash crop and perhaps also the most
 profitable1 is really a drawback in    
that other possibilities are obscured4  
,it may be that the line of progress    
will not be to abandon tobacco1 but to  
introduce more intensive cultivation1   
for the average man1 white or black1    
does not get a proper return from an    
acre4 ,to-day there is always a         
likelihood that more tobacco will be    
planted than can be properly cultivated1
 for it is a plant which demands        
constant and careful attention until it 
is marketed4  ,b---- has a big family of
 children and lives in a large cabin1   
one room with a loft4 ,he owns a pair of
 oxen and manages to raise enough to    
feed them4 ,he also raises about enough 
meat for his family4 ,during the season 
of #aijb he raised #age worth of        
tobacco2 corn valued at #cg4ej and #af  
bushels of wheat1 a total of about #bba4

 ,deducting one-fourth for rent and     
estimating his expenses for fertilizer  
at #be1 he had about #adj out of which  
to pay all other expenses4 ,b---- is    
considered a very good man1 who tends   
carefully and faithfully to his work4   
,it is evident1 however1 that his margin
 is small4  ,the farmer has             
opportunities to supplement his         
earnings4 ,cordwood finds ready sale in 
the towns at #b per cord1 and ,i have   
seen many loads of not over one-fourth  
of a cord hauled to market by a small   
steer4 ,butter1 eggs and chickens yield 
some returns and the country produces   
blackberries in profusion4  ,there are  
some ,negroes who are making a          
comfortable living on the farms and     
whose houses and yards are well kept4   
,as has been said1 this is not the      
general impression made by the district4
 ,considerable sums of money are sent in
 by children working in the northern    
cities4 ,this is offset1 however1 by    
those who come back in the winter to    

live off their parents1 having          
squandered all their own earnings       
elsewhere4  ,the situation in a word is3
 ,a generation or more of reliance on   
one crop1 neglect of other crops and of 
stock1 resulting in deteriorated land4  
,the labor force attracted to the towns 
and the ,north by higher wages4 ,natural
 result3 ,decadence of agricultural     
conditions1 affording at the same time a
 chance for many ,negroes to become land
 owners4 ,when the process will stop or 
the way out ,i know not4 ,perhaps the   
,german immigrants who are beginning to 
buy up some of the farms may lead the   
way to a better husbandry4  ,for an     
interesting account of conditions in the
 town of ,farmville see ,the ,negroes of
 ,farmville1 by ,w4 ,e4 ,b4 ,du,bois1   
,bulletin ,department of ,labor1        
,january1 #ahih4   ,,the ,,sea ,,coast4 
,a ,,sea-,,island ,,cabin4  ,the        
low-lying coast of ,south ,carolina and 
,georgia1 with its fringe of islands1   
has long been the seat of a heavy ,negro

 population4 ,of the counties perhaps   
none is more interesting than ,beaufort1
 the southernmost of ,south ,carolina4  
,the eastern half of the county is cut  
up by many salt rivers into numerous    
islands4 ,broad ,river separates these  
from the mainland4 ,the ,plant ,system  
has a line on the western edge of the   
county1 while the ,georgia ,railroad    
runs east to ,port ,royal4 ,according to
 the census1 the county contains #idc   
square miles of land and a population of
 #cb1acg blacks and #c1cdi whites1 the  
,negroes thus forming #ij per cent of   
the total4 ,there are #cg persons to the
 square mile4 ,with the exception of    
,beaufort and ,port ,royal1 the whites  
are found on the western side of the    
county4 ,the islands are almost solid   
black4 ,just after the war many of the  
plantations were sold for taxes and fell
 into the hands of the ,negroes1 the    
funds realized being set apart for the  
education of the blacks1 the interest   
now amounting to some #b1jjj a year4 ,in

 the seventies there was a great        
development of the phosphate industry1  
which at its height employed hundreds of
 ,negroes1 taken from the farms4        
,enormous fertilizer plants were        
erected4 ,most of this is now a thing of
 the past and the dredges lie rotting at
 the wharves4 ,it is the general opinion
 that the influence of this industry was
 not entirely beneficial1 although it   
set much money in circulation4 ,it drew 
the men from the farms1 and now they    
tend to drift to the cities rather than 
return4  ,a livelihood is easily gained4
 ,the creeks abound with fish1 crabs and
 oysters4 ,there is plenty of work on   
the farms for those who prefer more     
steady labor4 ,land valued at about #aj 
per acre may be rented for #a4 ,more    
than ten acres to the tenant is not     
usual1 and ,i was told that it is very  
common for a family to rent all the land
 it wants for #aj per year1 the         
presumption being that not over ten     
acres would be utilized4 ,the staple    

crop for the small farmer is the sea    
island cotton4 ,under the present       
culture land devoted to this lies fallow
 every other year4 ,the islands are low 
and flat1 subject to severe storms1 that
 of #ahic having destroyed many lives   
and much property4 ,the county was      
originally heavily wooded and there is  
still an abundance for local purposes1  
though the supply is low in places4 ,on 
the islands the blacks have been almost 
alone for a generation and by many it is
 claimed that there has been a decided  
retrogression4 ,by common consent ,st4  
,helena ,island1 which lies near        
,beaufort1 is considered the most       
prosperous of the ,negro districts4 ,on 
this island are over #h1jjj blacks and  
some #bjj whites4 ,the cabins usually   
have two rooms1 many having been        
partitioned to make the second4 ,they   
are of rough lumber1 sometimes          
whitewashed1 but seldom painted4 ,there 
are few fences and some damage is done  
by stock4 ,outbuildings are few2 privies

 are almost unknown--even at the schools
 there are no closets of any kind4 ,the 
wells are shallow1 six feet or so in    
depth with a few driven to #ab or #ag   
feet4 ,a few have pumps1 the rest are   
open4 ,at present there is no dispensary
 on the island but there are a number of
 blind tigers4 ,the nearest physician is
 at ,beaufort and the cost of a single  
visit is from five to ten dollars4 ,the 
distance from the doctors is said not to
 be an unmixed evil as it saves much    
foolish expenditure of money in fancied 
ills4  ,in slavery times there were #fa 
plantations on the island and their     
names1 as ,fripps ,corner1 ,oaks1 still 
survive to designate localities4 ,there 
was in olden times little contact with  
the whites as ,negro drivers were       
common4 ,each plantation still has its  
prayer house at which religious services
 are held4 ,meetings occur on different 
nights on the various plantations to    
enable the people to get all the        
religion they need4 ,these meetings are 

often what are known as shouts1 when    
with much shouting and wild rhythmic    
dancing the participants keep on till   
exhausted4 ,the suggestion of ,africa is
 not vague4 ,the ,virginia ,negro views 
these gatherings with as much           
astonishment as does any white4 ,many of
 the blacks speak a strange dialect hard
 to understand4 ,shum1 for instance1    
being the equivalent for see them4  ,the
 land is sandy and should have skillful 
handling to get the best results4 ,yet  
the farming is very unscientific4 ,the  
first plowing is shallow and subsequent 
cultivation is done almost entirely with
 hoes4 ,when a ,hampton graduate began  
some new methods last year the people   
came for miles to see his big plow4 ,it 
is said that there was more plowing than
 usual as a result4 ,the daily life of  
the farmer is about as follows3 ,rising 
between four and five he goes directly  
to the field1 eating nothing until eight
 or nine1 when he has some grits1 a sort
 of fine hominy cooked like oat meal4   

,many eat nothing until they leave the  
field at eleven for dinner1 which also  
consists of grits with some crabs in    
summer and fish in winter4 ,some have   
only these two meals a day4 ,corn bread 
and molasses are almost unknown and when
 they have molasses it is eaten with a  
spoon4 ,knives and forks are seldom     
used4 ,one girl of eighteen did not know
 how to handle a knife4 ,there are      
numbers of cows on the island1 but milk 
is seldom served1 the cattle being sold 
for beef4 ,the draft animals are usually
 small oxen or ponies1 called salt marsh
 tackies1 as they are left to pick their
 living from the marshes4 ,some chickens
 and turkeys are raised1 but no great   
dependence is placed on them4 ,there are
 no geese and few ducks4 ,little        
commercial fertilizer is used1 the marsh
 grass1 which grows in great abundance1 
being an excellent substitute of which  
the more progressive take advantage4    
,the following statement will illustrate
 the situation of three typical         

families1 an unusual1 a good1 and an    
average farmer4 ,the figures are for    
#aijb3                            ,no4  
#a4       ,no4 #b4         ,no4 #c4     
,number in family          #h           
#ac              #d   ,number rooms     
#f            #e              #b        
,number outbuildings       #e           
#c              #j   ,number horses     
#d            #a              #j        
,number cows               #i           
#e              #a   ,number hogs       
#aj            #c              #j       
,number other animals      #a dog       
#b goats        #a dog                  
#a dog   ,number fowls             #ij  
#cj             #aj   ,acres of land    
owned      #ee           #ba            
#j   ,acres of land rented      #j      
#j             #aj-e_/h   ,acres in     
cotton          #aj            #c4e     
#e   ,acres in corn             #h      
#e              #e   ,acres in sweet    
potatoes   #c            #c4e           
#c_/h   ,acres in white potatoes        

#a_/d         #j              #j        
,acres in peas 7cow7       #e4e         
#a4e             #a_/d   ,acres in rice 
#a4e          #j              #j        
,garden                 ,very small     
,poor           ,none  ,the rice is     
grown without flooding and known as     
,providence ,rice4  ,with the great ease
 of getting a livelihood the advances   
necessarily are small4 ,from ,january   
#a1 #aijb1 to ,july #ae 7which is near  
the close of the advancing season7      
several average families had gotten     
advances averaging #ae4jj4 ,the firm    
which does most of the advancing on the 
island writes3 ,we have some that get   
more4 ,a few get #ej4jj or about that   
amount1 but we make it a point not to   
let the colored people or our customers 
get too much in debt4 ,we have to       
determine about what they need and we   
have always given them what was         
necessary to help them make a crop      
according to their conditions and       
circumstances as they present themselves

 to us4 ,the firm reports that they     
collect each year about #ij per cent of 
their outstanding accounts4  ,below are 
given the customary forms of the ,bill  
of ,sale and the ,crop ,lien given to   
secure advances3      ,,the ,,state ,,of
 ,,south ,,carolina1         ,,county   
,,of ,,beaufort4       ,know all men by 
these presents1 that 444444444444 of the
 said      ,county1 in consideration of 
the sum of 444444444444 dollars1 to be  
advanced in merchandise by 4444444444441
 of ,beaufort ,county and      ,state1  
have bargained and sold unto the said   
444444444444 the      following personal
 property1 4444444444441 now in my      
possession1      and which ,i promise to
 deliver on demand of the said          
444444444444       7,signed7            
444444444444444444444       444444444444
        ,on the 4444 day of #ai441 ,i   
promise to pay to the order of          
444444444444 444444444441 at ,beaufort1 
,south ,carolina1 444444444444          
dollars for money and supplies to be    

advanced and furnished me by      the   
said 4444444444441 merchants1 ,beaufort1
 ,south ,carolina1 for use      in the  
cultivation of crops on the plantation  
or farm cultivated by      me in        
,beaufort ,county1 ,south ,carolina1    
known as the 444444444444               
plantation1 and containing about        
444444444444 acres1 during the      year
 #aij444       ,and in consideration of 
the said advance made me ,i hereby give1
      make and grant to the said        
444444444444 a lien to the extent of    
said advance on all the crops which may 
be grown on the said      plantation or 
farm during the year #aij441 wherever   
said crops or      parts of them are    
found4       ,this lien hereby given is 
executed and to be enforced in          
accordance      with the laws of the    
,state of ,south ,carolina4       ,i1   
the said 4444444444441 in consideration 
of the foregoing1 do      hereby agree  
to advance to the said 44444444444 44444
 dollars1 as      above stated4         

,witness the hands and seals of both    
parties4      ,in the presence of       
4444444444441 ,l4 ,s4                   
444444444444                            
4444444444441 ,l4 ,s4  ,this is then    
recorded in the ,county ,court as is an 
ordinary mortgage4  ,on this island     
considerable money has been saved and is
 now deposited with a firm of merchants 
in whom the people have confidence4 ,in 
,july1 #aijb1 there were about #ajj     
individual depositors having some #d1jjj
 to their credit4 ,the money can be     
withdrawn at any time1 all debts to the 
firm being first settled4 ,interest at  
five per cent4 is allowed4 ,some of this
 money comes from pensions4 ,there are  
round about ,beaufort a considerable    
number of ,u4 ,s4 pensioners1 as the    
city was headquarters for ,union        
soldiers for a long time4 ,the effect of
 the pensions is claimed both by whites 
and blacks to be bad4  ,a great deal of 
the credit for the good conditions1     
relatively speaking1 which prevail on   

,st4 ,helena is given to the ,penn      
,school which for years has come into   
close touch with the lives of the       
people4 ,the ,negroes have also been in 
touch with a good class of whites1 who  
have encouraged all efforts at          
improvement4 ,wherever the credit lies1 
the visitor is struck by the difference 
between conditions here and on some     
other islands1 for instance1 ,lady's    
,island1 which lies between ,st4 ,helena
 and ,beaufort4 ,even here it is claimed
 that the older generation is more      
industrious4  ,in the trucking industry1
 which is very profitable along the     
coast1 the ,negroes have only been      
engaged as ordinary laborers4 ,on the   
main land1 wherever fresh water can be  
obtained1 is the seat of a considerable 
rice industry4 ,in recent years1 owing  
to the cutting of the forests in the    
hills1 the planters are troubled by     
freshets in the spring and droughts in  
the summer4 ,the work is done by        
,negroes under direction of white       

foremen4 ,the men work harder on        
contract jobs1 but work by the day is   
better done4 ,women are in better repute
 as laborers than the men and it is     
stated that more women support their    
husbands than formerly was the case4    
,wages range from 4#ce to 4#ej per day1 
varying somewhat according to the work  
done4 ,they are paid in cash and the    
planters have given up the plantation   
store in many cases4 ,all work must be  
constantly supervised and it is said to 
be harder and harder to get work done4  
,a planter found it almost impossible in
 the winter of #aija to get fifty cords 
of wood cut1 the work being considered  
too heavy4 ,when ,i left the train at   
,beaufort and found twelve hacks waiting
 for about three passengers it was      
evident where some of the labor force   
had gone4  ,in this county there is a   
great development of burial and sick    
benefit societies4 ,the ,morning ,star1 
,star of ,hope1 ,star of ,bethlehem are 
typical names4 ,the dues are from five  

to ten cents a week4 ,many of the       
societies have good sized halls1        
rivaling ofttimes the churches1 on the  
various islands1 which are used for     
lodge and social purposes4  ,beaufort   
and the other towns offer the country   
people an opportunity to dispose of fish
 and any garden produce they may raise1 
while it is not uncommon to see a little
 ox dragging a two-wheeled cart and     
perhaps a quarter of a cord of wood to  
be hawked about town4 ,during part of   
the summer a good many gather a species 
of plant which is used in adulterating  
cigarettes and cigars4  ,this little    
account indicates that1 so far as the   
farmers are concerned1 there are few    
evidences of any decided progress save  
in the district which has been under the
 influence of one school4 ,the ease of  
getting a livelihood acts as a deterrent
 to ambition4 ,yet the old families say 
that they have the best niggers of the  
,south and certain it is that race      
troubles are unknown4   ,,central       

,,district4  ,,the ,,old ,,cabin4  ,in  
the central district life is a little   
more strenuous than on the sea coast4   
,the cabins are about the same4 ,the    
average tenant has a one mule farm1 some
 thirty or thirty-five acres4           
,occasionally the tenant has more land1 
but only about this amount is cultivated
 and no rent is paid for the balance4   
,the area of the land is usually        
estimated and only rarely is it         
surveyed4 ,this land ranges in value    
from #e4jj to #ae4jj per acre on the    
average4 ,the customary rental for a one
 mule farm is about two bales of cotton1
 whose value in recent years would be in
 the neighborhood of #ge4jj1 thus making
 the rental about #c4jj per acre4 ,on   
this farm from four to six bales of     
cotton are raised4 ,the soil has been   
injured by improper tillage and requires
 an expenditure of #a4ge to #b4jj per   
acre for fertilizers if the best results
 are to be obtained4 ,as yet the        
,negroes do not fully appreciate this4  

,the farmer secures advances based on #a
 peck of meal and #c pounds of side     
meat1 fat salt pork1 per week for each  
working hand4 ,about six dollars a month
 is the limit for advances and as these 
are continued for only seven months or  
so the average advance received is      
probably not far from #ej4jj per year4  
,an advance of #aj4jj per month is      
allowed for a two horse farm4 ,the      
advancer obligates himself to furnish   
only necessities and any incidentals    
must be supplied from sale of poultry1  
berries and the like4 ,clothing may     
often be reckoned as an incidental4 ,the
 luxuries are bought with cash or on the
 installment plan and are seldom        
indicated by the books of the merchant4 
,the cost of the average weekly advances
 for a family in #aijb was3    #aj      
pounds meat 7salt port sides7           
#ac-a_/b;c   #a4ce    #a bushel corn    
meal                            4#ij    
#a plug tobacco 7reckoned a necessity7  
4#aj                                    

------                                  
#b4ce   ,,the ,,new ,,house4            
,conditions throughout this district are
 believed to be fairly uniform1 but the 
following information was gathered in   
,lowndes ,county1 ,alabama1 so has      
closest connection with the prairie     
region of that state3  ,lowndes ,county 
lies just southwest of ,montgomery and  
there are #dg persons to the square     
mile4 ,the ,negroes form #hf per cent4  
of the population4 ,east and ,west      
throughout the county runs the          
,chennenugga ,ridge1 a narrow belt of   
hills which separate the prairie from   
the pine hills to the ,south4 ,the ridge
 is quite broken and in places can not  
be tilled profitably4 ,the county is of 
average fertility1 however4  ,there are 
not an unusual number of one-room       
cabins4 ,out of #gd families1 comprising
 #daf people1 the average was #g to the 
room1 the greatest number living in one 
room was #aa4 ,the families were housed 
as follows3       ,no4        ,no4      

,largest ,no4       ,average ,no4       
,families4    ,rooms4        ,persons4  
,persons4      #ag          #a          
#aa                 #f      #ca         
#b              #ab 7#c fam47        #f 
#af          #c               #i        
#e       #g          #d              #ad
                 #f       #c          #e
               #i                 #e    
,the cabins are built of both boards and
 logs as indicated by cuts on pages #dc 
and #dd while the interior economy is   
well shown by the photograph on page    
#bi4  ,field work is from sun to sun    
with two hours or so rest at noon4 ,the 
man usually eats breakfast in the field1
 the wife staying behind to prepare it4 
,it consists of pork and corn bread4    
,the family come from the field about   
noon and have dinner consisting of pork 
and corn bread1 with collards1 turnip   
greens1 roasting ears1 etc4 ,at sundown 
work stops and supper is eaten1 the menu
 being as at breakfast4 ,the pork eaten 
by the ,negroes1 it may be said1 is     

almost solid fat1 two or three inches   
thick1 lean meat not being liked4 ,the  
housewife has few dishes1 the food being
 cooked in pots or in small ovens set   
among the ashes4 ,stoves are a rarity4  
,lamps are occasionally used1 but if the
 chimney be broken it is rarely         
replaced1 the remainder being quite good
 enough for ordinary purposes4 ,the     
cabins seldom have glass windows1 but   
instead wooden shutters1 which swing    
outward on hinges4 ,these are shut at   
night and even during the hottest summer
 weather there is practically no        
ventilation4 ,how it is endured ,i know 
not1 but the custom prevails even in    
,porto ,rico ,i am told4 ,in winter the 
cabins are cold4 ,to meet this the      
thrifty housewife makes bed quilts and  
as many as #be or #cj of these are not  
infrequently found in a small cabin4    
,the floors are rough and not always of 
matched lumber1 while the cabins are    
poorly built4 ,the usual means of       
heating1 and cooking1 is the big        

fireplace4 ,sometimes the chimney is    
built of sticks daubed over with mud1   
the top of the chimney often failing to 
reach the ridge of the roof4 ,fires     
sometimes result4 ,tables and chairs are
 rough and rude4 ,sheets are few1 the   
mattresses are of cotton1 corn shucks or
 pine straw1 and the pillows of home    
grown feathers4  ,the following         
regarding the cooking of the ,alabama   
,negro is taken from a letter published 
in ,bulletin ,no4 #ch1 ,u4 ,s4          
,department of ,agriculture1 ,office of 
the ,experiment ,stations3       ,the   
daily fare is prepared in very simple   
ways4 ,corn meal is mixed      with     
water and baked on the flat surface of a
 hoe or griddle4 ,the      salt pork is 
sliced thin and fried until very brown  
and much of the      grease tried out4  
,molasses from cane or sorghum is added 
to the      fat1 making what is known as
 'sap1' which is eaten with the corn    
bread4 ,hot water sweetened with        
molasses is used as a beverage4         

,this is the hill of fare of most of the
 cabins on the plantations      of the  
'black belt' three times a day during   
the year4 ,it is1      however1 varied  
at times2 thus collards and turnips are 
boiled with      the bacon1 the latter  
being used with the vegetables to supply
 fat      'to make it rich4' ,the corn  
meal bread is sometimes made into       
so-called 'cracklin bread1' and is      
prepared as follows3 ,a piece of        
fat bacon is fried until it is brittle2 
it is then crushed and      mixed with  
corn meal1 water1 soda and salt1 and    
baked in an oven      over the          
fireplace4444 ,one characteristic of the
 cooking is that      all meats are     
fried or otherwise cooked until they are
 crisp4      ,observation among these   
people reveals the fact that very many  
of      them suffer from indigestion in 
some form4   ,as elsewhere the advances 
are supplied by the planter or some     
merchant4 ,the legal rate of interest is
 #h per cent1 but no ,negro ever borrows

 money at this rate4 ,ten per cent4 per 
year is considered cheap1 while on short
 terms the rate is often #aj per cent4  
per week4 ,the average tenant pays from 
#ab4e per cent4 to #ae per cent4 for his
 advances1 which are sold at an average 
of #be per cent4 higher than cash prices
 on the average4 ,to avoid any possible 
trouble it is quite customary to reckon 
the interest and then figure this into  
the face of the note so that none can   
tell either the principal or the rate4  
,below is an actual copy of such a note1
 the names being changed3       #bb4jj4 
,calhoun1 ,alabama1 ,june #b1 #aijj4    
,on the first day of ,october1 #aijj1 ,i
 promise to pay to the order of      ,a4
 ,b4 ,see ,twenty ,two ,dollars at      
444444444444       ,value received4     
,and so far as this debt is concerned1  
and as part of the      consideration   
thereof1 ,i do hereby waive all right   
which ,i or      either of us have under
 the ,constitution and ,laws of this or 
any      other ,state to claim or hold  

any personal property exempt to me      
from levy and sale under execution4 ,and
 should it become necessary      to     
employ an attorney in the collection of 
this debt ,i promise to      pay all    
reasonable attorney's fees charged      
therefor4       ,,attest3 ,c4 ,w4       
,,james4                   his          
,a4 ,t4 ,,jones4              ,,john    
,x4  ,,smith4                           
mark4  ,the possibility of extortion    
which this method makes possible is     
evident4  ,it is worth while also to    
reproduce a copy1 actual with the       
exception of the names1 of one of the   
blanket mortgages often given4 ,the     
italics are mine4       ,,the ,,state   
,,of ,,alabama1         ,,lowndes       
,,county4       ,on or before the first 
day of ,october next ,i promise to pay  
,jones      and ,co41 or order1 the sum 
of #gg4jj at their office in ,fort      
,deposit1 ,alabama4 ,and ,i hereby waive
 all right of exemption secured      to 
me under and by the ,laws and           

,constitution of the ,state of          
,alabama as to the collection of this   
debt4 ,and ,i agree to pay all      the 
costs of making1 recording1 probating or
 acknowledging this      instrument1    
together with a reasonable attorney's   
fee1 and all      other expenses        
incident to the collection of this debt1
 whether by      suit or otherwise4 ,and
 to secure the payment of the above     
note1 as      well as all other         
indebtedness ,i may now owe the said    
,jones and ,co41      and all future    
advances ,i may purchase from the said  
,jones and ,co4      during the year    
#aijj1 whether due and payable during   
the year #aijj      or not1 and for the 
further consideration of one ,dollar to 
me in      hand paid by ,jones and ,co41
 the receipt whereof ,i do hereby       
acknowledge1 ,i do hereby grant1        
bargain1 sell and convey unto said      
,jones and ,co4 the entire crops of     
corn1 cotton1 cotton seed1      fodder1 
potatoes1 sugar cane and its products   

and all other crops      of every kind  
and description which may be made and   
grown during      the year #aijj on     
lands owned1 leased1 rented or farmed on
 shares      for or by the undersigned  
in ,lowndes ,county1 ,alabama1 or       
elsewhere4      ,also any crops to or in
 which the undersigned has or may have  
any      interest1 right1 claim or title
 in ,lowndes ,county or elsewhere       
during and for each succeeding year     
until the indebtedness secured      by  
this instrument is fully paid4 ,also all
 the corn1 cotton1      cotton seed1    
fodder1 peas1 and all other farm produce
 now in the      possession of the      
undersigned4 ,also all the live stock1  
vehicles      and farming implements now
 owned by or furnished to the           
undersigned      by ,jones and ,co4     
during the year #aijj4 ,also one red    
horse ,lee1      one red neck cow       
,priest1 and her calf1 one red bull     
yearling4      ,said property is        
situated in ,lowndes ,county1 ,alabama4 

,if1 after      maturity1 any part of   
the unpaid indebtedness remains unpaid1 
,jones      and ,co41 or their agents or
 assigns1 are authorized and empowered  
to seize and sell all or any of the     
above described property1 at            
private sale or public auction1 as they 
may elect1 for cash4 ,if at      public 
auction1 before their store door or     
elsewhere1 in ,fort      ,deposit1      
,alabama1 after posting for five days   
written notice of      said sale on post
 office door in said town1 and to apply 
the      proceeds of said sale to the   
payment1 first of all costs and         
expenses provided for in the above note 
and expense of seizing and      selling 
said property2 second1 to payment in    
full of debt or debts      secured by   
said mortgage1 and the surplus1 if any1 
pay to the      undersigned4 ,and the   
said mortgagee or assigns is hereby     
authorized      to purchase at his own  
sale under this mortgage4 ,i agree that 
no      member of my family1 nor anyone 

living with me1 nor any person          
under my control1 shall have an extra   
patch on the above described      lands1
 unless covered by this mortgage2 and ,i
 also agree that this      mortgage     
shall cover all such patches4 ,it is    
further agreed and      understood that 
any securities held by ,jones and ,co4  
as owner or      assignee on any of the 
above described property executed by me 
prior to executing this mortgage shall  
be retained by them1 and      shall     
remain in full force and effect until   
the above note and      future advances 
are paid in full1 and shall be          
additional security      for this debt4 
,there is no lien or encumbrance upon   
any property      conveyed by this      
instrument except that held by ,jones   
and ,co4 and      the above specified   
rents4 ,if1 before the demands hereby   
secured      are payable1 any of the    
property conveyed herein shall be in    
danger of 7or from7 waste1 destruction  
or removal1 said demands      shall be  

then payable and all the terms1 rights  
and powers of this      instrument      
operative and enforceable1 as if and    
under a past due      mortgage4         
,witness my hand and seal this #ajth day
 of ,january1 #aijj4       ,,attest3 ,b4
 ,c4 ,,cook4                    ,,sam   
,,small4 ,l4 ,s4              ,r4 ,j4   
,,bennett4   ,it may be granted that    
experience has shown all this verbiage  
to be necessary4 ,in the hands of an    
honest landlord it is as meaningless as 
that in the ordinary contract we sign in
 renting a house4 ,in the hands of a    
dishonest landlord or merchant it       
practically enables him to make a serf  
of the ,negro4 ,the mortgage is supposed
 to be filed at once1 but it is         
sometimes held to see if there is any   
other security which might be included4 
,the rascally creditor watches the crop 
and if the ,negro may have a surplus he 
easily tempts him to buy more1 or more  
simply still1 he charges to his account 
imaginary purchases1 so that at the end 

of the year the ,negro is still in debt4
 ,the ,negro has no redress4 ,he can not
 prove that he has not purchased the    
goods and his word will not stand       
against the merchant's4 ,practically he 
is tied down to the land1 for no one    
else will advance him under these       
conditions4 ,sometimes he escapes by    
getting another merchant to settle his  
account and by becoming the tenant of   
the new man4 ,when it is remembered that
 land is abundant and good labor rare1  
the temptation to hold a man on the land
 by fair means or foul is apparent4     
,moreover1 the merchant by specious     
reasoning often justifies his own       
conduct4 ,he says that the ,negro will  
spend his money at the first opportunity
 and that he might just as well have it 
as some other merchant4 ,i would not be 
understood as saying that this action is
 anything but the great exception but   
there are dishonest men everywhere who  
are ready to take advantage of their    
weaker fellows and the ,negro suffers as

 a result1 just as the ignorant         
foreigner does in the cities of the     
,north4  ,the interest may also be      
reckoned into the face of the mortgage4 
,in any case it begins the day the paper
 is signed1 although the money or its   
equivalent is only received at intervals
 and a full year's interest is paid1    
often on the face of the mortgage1 even 
if only two-thirds of it has actually   
been advanced to the ,negro1 no matter  
when the account is settled4 ,the       
helplessness of the ,negro who finds    
himself in the hands of a sharper is    
obvious when that sharper has practical 
control of the situation4 ,in many and  
curious ways the landlord seeks to hold 
his tenants4 ,he is expected to stand by
 them in time of trouble1 to protect    
them against the aggressions of other   
blacks and of whites as well4 ,this     
paternalism is often carried to         
surprising lengths4  ,the size of a     
man's family is known and the riders see
 to it that he keeps all the working    

hands in the field4 ,if the riders have 
any trouble with a ,negro they are apt  
to take it out in physical punishment1  
to wear him out1 as the phrase goes4    
,thus resentment is seldom harbored     
against a ,negro and there are many who 
claim that this physical discipline is  
far better than any prison regime in its
 effects upon the ,negro4 ,in spite of  
all that is done it is claimed that the 
,negroes are getting less reliable and  
that the chief dependence is now in the 
older men1 the women and the children4  
,one remark1 made by a planter's wife1  
which impressed me as having a good deal
 of significance1 was1 the ,negroes do  
not sing as much now as formerly4  ,to  
get at anything like an accurate        
statement of the income and expenses of 
a ,negro family is a difficult matter4  
,the following account of three families
 will give a fair idea of their budget  
for part of the year at least4  ,family 
,no4 #a consists of five adults 7over   
#ad7 and one child4 ,they live in a     

two-roomed cabin and own one mule1 two  
horses two cows4 ,their account with the
 landlord for the years #aijj and #aija 
was3                                    
#aijj4   ,to balance #ahii              
#cb4fj   ,cash 7#be4jj7 for mule        
#cf4jj   ,clothing                      
#ai4fh   ,feed                          
#ae4bj   ,provisions                    
#bc4jj   ,tools                         
#b4jc   ,interest and ,recording ,fee   
#af4hg                                  
-------                                 
#ade4ch                                 
#aija4   ,to balance #aijj              
#ae4ba   ,cash                          
#bf4eg   ,clothing                      
#i4ee   ,feed and seed                  
#dd4ai   ,provisions                    
#bf4bi   ,tools                         
4#ee   ,interest and ,recording ,fee    
#af4cd                                  
-------                                 
#ach4gj  ,their credit for #aija was    
#ajcib1 thus leaving a deficit for the  

beginning of the next year4 ,as the     
advances stop in ,august or ,september1 
and the balance of the purchases are for
 cash and may be at other stores1 there 
is no way of getting at them4 ,in #aijj 
the family paid #bja toward the #he     
acres they are purchasing1 part of this 
sum probably coming from the crop of    
#ahii1 and in #aija they made a further 
payment of #cd4 ,this family is doing   
much better than the average4 ,it may be
 interesting to see a copy of his       
account for the year #aija taken from   
the ledger of the planter4    ,jan4  #a4
 ,balance #aijj                         
#ae4ba    ,jan4 #ab4 #aj bu4 corn1      
#e4jj2 fodder1 #a4bj2 cash1 #h4jj       
#ad4bj    ,jan4 #ai4 ,cash for tax1     
#a4dc2 recording fee1 #a4jj2 cash1      
#ac4be    #ae4fh    ,feb4  #b4          
,plowshoes1 #a4dj2 gents' hose1 #aj;c2  
#bj yds4 check1 #a4jj2            #b    
straw hats1 #a4bj                       
#c4gj    ,feb4  #b4 #bc4e bu4 corn1     
#ad4id2 cash1 #gi;c2 shoes1 #a4ej2 plow 

lines1 #bj;c                            
#ag4dc    ,mar4 #ae4 #ae yds4 drilling1 
#a4bj2 #ae yds4 check1 #ge;c2 #d4e lbs4 
bacon1 #dh;c                            
#b4dc    ,apr4  #f4 #aj bu4 corn1 #g4jj2
 #e bu4 cotton seed1 #a4ge2 #d4e lbs4   
bacon1 #ec;c                            
#i4bh    ,apr4 #ab4 ,bu4 meal1 #fe;c2   
spool cotton1 #e;c2 tobacco1 #aj;c2 #g  
lbs4            bacon1 #ha;c2 #e bu4    
corn4 #c4ej                             
#e4aa    ,may   #a4 ,cash1 #a4jj2 #cj   
lbs4 bacon1 #c4de2 work shoes1 #a4aj2   
gents' shoes1 #a4be2 half bu4 meal1     
#ce;c                     #g4ae    ,may 
#a4 #cj lbs4 bacon1 #c4de2 7#be7 #cj    
lbs4 bacon1 #c4cj2 sack            meal1
 #a4ce                                  
#h4aj    ,june  #h4 #b-c bu4 oats1      
#ce;c2 #a-c bu4 corn1 #be;c2 bu4 meal1  
#gj;c2 sack            feed1 #b4ej      
#c4hj    ,june #ad4 ,sack meal1 #a4ce2  
#ab lbs4 bacon1 #a4cb2 cash1 #a4jj2     
7#bb7            #ab lbs4 bacon1 #a4ch  
#e4je    ,june #bb4 ,sack meal1 #a4ce2  

sack feed1 #b4ej2 plow sweep1 #ce;c     
#d4bj    ,july  #a4 #f lbs4 bacon1      
#fi;c2 7#e7 sack feed1 #b4fj2 half bu4  
meal1            #ce;c2 7#i7 bu4 meal1  
#ge;c2 #aj lbs4 bacon1 #a4ae            
#e4ed    ,july #ah4 #h lbs4 bacon1      
#ib;c2 7#ai7 sack feed1 #b4fj2 7#be7 bu4
 meal1            #ij;c                 
#d4db    ,aug4  #f4 ,half bu4 meal1     
#ej;c2 #d lbs4 bacon1 #df;c2 cash1 #ce;c
            #a4ca    ,aug4  #f4         
,interest                               
#ae4cd    ,oct4  #f4 ,cash1 #ge;c       
4#ge                                    
-------                                 
#ach4gj   ,the second family consists of
 three adults and three children4 ,they 
have three one-roomed cabins1 own one   
mule and two cows1 and are leasing fifty
 acres of land1 the effort to buy it    
having proven too much4 ,their account  
for #aijj and #aija was as follows3     
#aijj4   ,balance ,jan4 #a              
4#ej   ,cash                            
#i4jj   ,clothing                       

#i4gi   ,feed                           
#aa4ej   ,provisions                    
#ac4dh   ,tobacco                       
4#hj   ,tools1 etc4                     
4#dj   ,interest and recording fee      
#e4gg                                   
------                                  
#eb4bd                                  
#aija4   ,balance ,jan4 #a              
#d4ae   ,cash                           
#b4hb   ,clothing                       
#g4ee   ,feed                           
#ba4bb   ,provisions                    
#ag4fi   ,tobacco                       
4#ee   ,tools1 etc4                     
4#gj   ,interest and fee                
#g4ij                                   
------                                  
#fb4dh  ,the debit for #aijj was all    
paid by ,november first and by ,november
 first1 #aija1 #eh4dj of the charge for 
that year had been paid4 ,in #aijj the  
man paid #id4fa towards his land but has
 since been leasing4  ,the third family 
consists of two adults and three        

children4 ,they live in a board cabin of
 two rooms1 have one mule1 one cow and  
one horse4 ,they are purchasing #ej     
acres of land4 ,their accounts for #aijj
 and #aija stand between the two already
 given4                                 
#aijj4   ,balance #ahii                 
#ag4bd   ,cash                          
#bc4bj   ,clothing                      
#d4gc   ,provisions                     
#ai4hj   ,tools                         
#d4dj   ,interest and fee               
#h4jd                                   
------                                  
#gg4da                                  
#aija4   ,balance #aijj                 
#ac4ic   ,cash                          
#ba4bh   ,clothing                      
#f4cj   ,feed                           
#bf4ej   ,provisions                    
#ba4cf   ,tools                         
#c4ej   ,interest and fee               
#ab4dj                                  
-------                                 
#aji4bh  ,by ,november #cj1 #aija1 they 

had paid #gi4ac of their account4 ,in   
#aijj they paid #ahj towards their land 
and #bi4fj in #aija4  ,all of these     
families are a little above the average4
 ,the income is supplemented by the sale
 of chickens1 eggs and occasionally     
butter4 ,in hard years when the crops   
are poor the men and older boys seek    
service in the mines of ,north ,alabama 
or on the railroads during the summer   
before cotton picking begins1 and again 
during the winter4  ,the outfit of the  
average farmer is very inexpensive and  
is somewhat as follows3    ,harness1    
#a4ej2 pony plow1 #c4jj2 extra point1   
#be;c      #d4ge    ,sweepstock 7a71    
#ge;c2 #c sweeps1 #ij;c2 scooter 7b71   
#aj;c     #a4ge    #b hoes1 #hj;c2      
blacksmith 7yearly average71 #ej;c      
#a4cj                                   
-----     ,total                        
#g4hj   7a7 ,a sweep is a form of       
cultivator used in cleaning grass and   
weeds from the rows of cotton4  7b7 ,a  
scooter or bull-tongue is a strip of    

iron used in opening the furrow for the 
cotton seed4  ,a cow costs #be1 pigs #b 
to #b4ej1 wagon 7seldom owned7 #de4 ,a  
mule now costs from #ajj to #aej1 but   
may be rented by the year for #bj or    
#be4 ,owners claim there is no profit in
 letting them at this price and the     
,negroes assert that if one dies the    
owner often claims that it had been sold
 and proceeds to collect the value      
thereof4 ,from either point of view the 
plan seems to meet with but little      
favor4  ,the following table will give  
some idea of the condition and personal 
property of a number of families in     
,lowndes ,county3                       
----------------------------------------
---------------               ,a   ,b   
,c   ,d   ,e  ,f   ,g   ,h  ,i   ,j  ,k 
,l                                      
----------------------------------------
---------------   ,family  #a   #d   #a 
#b   #j   #b  #j #ij  #j  #j   #b  #j   
#b           #b   #b   #a   #a   #j   #a
  #j    #b  #j  #j   #b  #j   #a        

#c   #c   #c   #c   #j   #c  #a    #a   
#j  #j   #b  #j   #a           #d   #b  
#c   #j   #a   #b  #j    #a  #a  #j   #a
  #j   #a           #e   #d   #b   #a   
#a   #b  #j    #j  #b  #j   #a  #b   #a 
#f   #e   #a   #a   #j   #b  #j    #a   
#b  #j   #b  #j   #j           #g   #c  
#j   #a   #a   #c  #j    #a  #j  #j   #b
  #j   #a           #h   #c   #a   #a   
#a   #b  #j    #a  #j  #j   #j  #j   #a 
#i   #d   #j   #j   #c   #e  #j    #j   
#a  #a   #j  #j   #a          #aj   #e  
#d   #a   #a   #c  #j    #a  #j  #j   #b
  #j   #a                               
----------------------------------------
---------------          #aj  #ce  #af  
#aa   #h  #be  #a    #h  #f  #a  #ad  #b
  #aj                                   
----------------------------------------
---------------       ,key to columns3  
,a   ,adults      ,b   ,children under  
#ad      ,c   ,log ,cabins      ,d      
,b'd ,cabins      ,e   ,no4 ,rooms      
,f   ,sewing ,machines      ,g   ,mules 
,h   ,horses      ,i   ,oxen      ,j    

,cows      ,k   ,pigs      ,l   ,dogs   
,it will be seen that the number of oxen
 is small4 ,i should not be surprised if
 some of the hogs escaped observation4  
,an account of this district would not  
be complete without reference to the    
herb doctors who do a thriving business1
 charging from twenty-five cents per    
visit up4 ,they make all sorts of       
noxious compounds which are retailed as 
good for various ailments4 ,the         
medicines are perhaps no more harmful   
than the patent compounds of other      
places4 ,there are also witch doctors1  
of whom the ,negroes stand in great awe 
and many a poor sufferer has died       
because it was believed that he or she  
was bewitched by some evil person1 hence
 physicians could have no power4  ,the  
budgets given indicate1 and this is my  
own belief1 that the farmers in this    
district are just about holding their   
own4 ,they are not trained to take      
advantage of their environment to the   
full so they do not prosper as they     

might1 while occasional designing       
persons take great advantage of them1   
thereby rendering them discouraged4 ,the
 introduction of a more diversified     
farming1 the greater utilization of     
local resources in fruits and           
vegetables1 thereby giving variety in   
the diet1 the development of pastures   
and stock raising would enable them to  
break away from the mortgage system1    
which retards them in many ways4  ,this 
view that the farmers here are about    
able to make a living is supported by   
the investigations of ,professor ,du    
,bois4#aj ,he gives the following report
 of #bga families in ,georgia3    ,year1
 #ahih4 ,price of cotton low4           
,bankrupt and sold out           #c     
#ajj or over in debt           #fa      
#be to #ajj in debt            #ed      
#a to #be in debt              #dg      
,cleared nothing                #ec     
,cleared #a to #be              #bg     
,cleared #be to #ajj            #ba     
,cleared #ajj and over           #e     

----                                    
#bga   ,regarding the general situation 
he says3 ,a good season with good prices
 regularly sent a number out of debt and
 made them peasant proprietors2 a bad   
season1 either in weather or prices1    
still means the ruin of a thousand black
 homes4 ,under existing conditions the  
outlook does not seem to me especially  
hopeful4   ,,alluvial ,,district4  ,a   
,,double ,,cabin ,,in ,,the ,,delta4    
,the ,mississippi river1 deflected      
westward by the hills of ,tennessee1 at 
,memphis sweeps in a long arc to the    
hills at ,natchez4 ,the oval between the
 river and the hills to the ,east is    
known as the ,delta4 ,the land is very  
flat1 being higher on the border of the 
river so that when the river overflows  
the entire bottom land is flooded4 ,the 
waters are not restrained by a good     
system of levees and the danger of      
floods is reduced4 ,there are similar   
areas in ,arkansas and ,louisiana and   
along the lower courses of the ,red and 

other rivers1 but what is said here will
 have special reference to ,mississippi 
conditions4 ,the land is extremely      
fertile1 probably there is none better  
in the world1 and is covered with a     
dense growth of fine woods1 oak1 ash1   
gum and cypress4 ,the early settlements1
 as already stated1 were along the      
navigable streams1 but the great        
development of railroads is opening up  
the entire district4 ,the country may   
still be called new and thousands of    
acres may be purchased at a cost of less
 than #aj per acre1 wild land1 of       
course4 ,cultivated land brings from #be
 up4  ,considering its possibilities the
 region is not yet densely populated1   
but a line of immigration is setting in 
and the indications are that the ,delta 
will soon be the seat of the heaviest   
,negro population in the country4       
,already it rivals the black prairie of 
,alabama4 ,there have been many         
influences to retard immigration1 the   
fear of fevers1 malaria and typhoid1    

commonly associated with low countries1 
and the dread of overflows4 ,because of 
the lack of the labor force to develop  
the country planters have been led to   
offer higher wages1 better houses1 etc4 
,there is about the farming district an 
air of prosperity which is not          
noticeable to the ,east4 ,the country is
 particularly adapted to cotton1 the    
yield is heavier1 about a bale to the   
acre if well cultivated1 though the     
average is a little less1 the staple is 
longer1 and the price is about a cent a 
pound higher1 than in the hills4        
,fertilizers are seldom used and are not
 carried in the stores4 ,some of the    
lands which have been longest in use    
have been harmed by improper tillage1   
but the injury may easily be repaired by
 intelligent management4  ,in the ,delta
 the average size of the plantations is 
large1 but the amount of land under the 
care of the tenant is smaller than in   
other sections4 ,about #bj acres is     
probably the average to one work animal4

 ,the soil is heavier1 requiring longer 
and more constant cultivation4 ,for this
 land a rental of from #f to #h per acre
 is paid1 while plantations will rent   
for a term of years at an acre4 ,a good 
deal of new land is brought in          
cultivation by offering it rent free to 
a ,negro for three years1 the tenant    
agreeing to clear off the timber and    
bring the soil under cultivation4 ,on   
some plantations no interest is charged 
on goods advanced by the ,negro usually 
pays #be per cent4 for all money he     
borrows4 ,the white planter has to pay  
at least #h per cent and agree to sell  
his cotton through the factor of whom   
the money is obtained and pay him a     
commission of #b4e per cent4 for        
handling the cotton4  ,the plantation   
accounts of three families follow for   
the year #aija4 ,they live in           
,washington ,county1 ,mississippi1 in   
which the ,negroes form #hi per cent4 of
 the total population4  ,the first      
family consists of three adults and one 

child under #ad4 ,they own two mules1   
two cows1 ten pigs and some chickens4   
,they also have a wagon and the         
necessary farm implements4  ,their      
expenses were enlarged1 as were those of
 the other families1 by an epidemic of  
smallpox4                               
,debit4                      ,credit4   
,doctor                #ci4ej    ,cotton
            #hbf4hj   ,blacksmith       
#a4he    ,cotton seed        #adg4jj    
,implements             #ae4je          
-------   ,clothes               #ajb4ee
                      #igc4hj           
,provisions             #db4aj          
#hef4ie   ,rent                  #age4jg
                      -------   ,extra  
labor            #ec4ej      ,balance   
#aaf4he   ,seed                   #ca4cj
   ,ginning ,cotton         #fa4cj      
,cash drawn            #ccd4gc          
-------                        #hef4ie  
,their account at the close of the year 
showed thus a balance of #aaf4he4 ,the  
family raised #b bales of cotton and had

 besides #ahj bushels of corn from six  
acres4  ,the second family came to the  
plantation in #aijj with nothing1 not   
even with decent clothing4 ,now they    
have two mules1 keep some pigs1 own a   
wagon and farming tools4 ,there are five
 adults in the family and two children4 
,they live in a three-roomed cabin and  
till #cj acres of land1 four acres being
 wood land taken for clearing1 for which
 there is no rent4                      
,debit4                       ,credit4  
,doctor               #ce4ce    ,cotton 
#a1jia4bh   ,feed                       
#e4jj    ,cotton seed          #aif4jj  
,mule 7balance7        #gg4jj           
---------   ,rations and clothes        
#bhd4aj                      #a1bhg4bh  
,rent                 #age4ej           
#a1jce4hb   ,extra labor                
#fg4fj                      ---------   
,ginning              #aja4be           
,balance           #bea4df   ,cash drawn
           #bij4jb                      
---------                     #a1jce4hb 

,the third family is of different type4 
,they are always behind1 although the   
wife is a good worker and the man is    
willing and seems to try4 ,they are     
considered one of the poorest families  
on the plantation4 ,there are two adults
 and one child4 ,they own farming       
implements1 one mule and some pigs4     
,they have a two-roomed cabin and farm  
#ah acres for which they pay a crop rent
 of #a1hjj pounds of cotton4            
,debit4                        ,credit4 
,doctor             #bd4de      ,cotton 
#dih4eg   ,mule                #cc4jj   
,cotton seed         #ia4jj   ,clothing 
#ec4dj                        -------   
,rations             #fj4jj             
#ehi4eg   ,feed                #aa4be   
#egf4ee   ,rent               #acj4ej   
-------   ,extra labor        #agi4de   
,balance          #ac4jb   ,seed        
#aa4ij   ,ginning             #dc4ej    
,cash down           #ec4ej             
-------                     #egf4ee     
,an examination of the accounts reveals 

that there is a charge for extra labor1 
which for the third family was very     
heavy4 ,this results from the fact that 
the average family could1 but does not  
pick all the cotton it makes1 so when it
 is seen that enough is on hand to pay  
all the bills and leave a balance it is 
very careless about the remainder4      
,planters have great difficulty in      
getting all the cotton picked and a     
considerable portion is often lost4     
,extra labor must be imported4 ,this is 
hard to get and forms1 when obtained1 a 
serious burden on the income of the     
tenant4  ,on the plantation from whose  
books the above records were taken the  
system of bookkeeping is more than      
usually careful and the gin account thus
 forms a separate item so that although 
all planters charge for the ginning the 
charge does not always appear on the    
books4  ,these three families are       
believed to be average and indicate what
 it is possible for the typical family  
to do under ordinary conditions4 ,it is 

but fair to state that the owners of    
this plantation make many efforts to get
 their tenants to improve their         
condition and will not long keep those  
whose accounts do not show a credit     
balance at the end of the year4 ,a copy 
of the lease in use will be of interest 
and its stipulations form quite a       
contrast to the one quoted from         
,alabama4 ,the cash and share leases are
 identical save for necessary changes in
 form4 ,the names are fictitious4       
,this ,contract1 made this date and     
terminating ,december #ca1 #aijb1       
between ,smith and ,brown1 and ,john    
,doe1 hereinafter called tenant1        
,witnesses3 ,that ,smith and ,brown have
 this day rented and set apart      to  
,john ,doe for the year #aijb certain   
twenty acres of land on ,james          
,plantation1 ,washington ,county1       
,mississippi1 at a rental price per     
acre of seven dollars and fifty cents4  
,smith and ,brown hereby agree      to  
furnish1 with said land1 a comfortable  

house and good pump1 and      to grant  
to the said tenant the free use of such 
wood as may be      necessary for his   
domestic purposes and to advance such   
supplies1      in such quantity and     
manner as may be mutually agreed upon as
 being      necessary to maintain him in
 the cultivation of said land2 it being 
now mutually understood that by the term
 supplies is meant meat1      meal1     
molasses1 tobacco1 snuff1 medicine and  
medical attention1      good working    
shoes and clothes1 farming implements   
and corn4 ,it is      also hereby       
mutually agreed and understood that     
anything other than      the articles   
herein enumerated is to be advanced to  
the said tenant      only as the        
condition of his crops and account and  
the manner of      his work shall1 in   
the judgment of ,smith and ,brown1 be   
deemed to      entitle him4 ,they also  
agree to keep said house and pump in    
good      repair and to keep said land  
well ditched and drained4       ,being  

desirous of having said tenant raise    
sufficient corn to      supply his needs
 during the ensuing year1 in            
consideration of his      planting such 
land in corn as they may designate1 they
 hereby agree      to purchase from said
 tenant all corn over and above such as 
may be      necessary for his needs1 and
 to pay therefor the market price2 and  
to purchase all corn raised by him in   
the event be wishes to remove      from 
,james plantation at the termination of 
this contract4 ,in      consideration of
 the above undertaking on ,smith and    
,brown's part1      the said tenant     
hereby agrees to sell to them all       
surplus corn      raised by him and in  
the event of his leaving ,james'        
plantation at      the termination of   
this contract to sell to them all corn  
he may      have on hand3 in each case  
at the market price4       ,the said    
,smith and ,brown hereby reserve to     
themselves all liens      for rent and  
supplies on all cotton1 cotton seed1    

corn and other      agricultural        
products1 grown upon said land during   
the year #aijb1      granted under      
,sections #bdie and #bdif of the ,code  
of #ahib4 ,they      hereby agree to    
handle and sell for the said tenant all 
cotton and      other crops raised by   
him for sale1 to the best of their      
ability1      and to account to him for 
the proceeds of the same when sold4     
,they      also reserve to themselves   
the right to at all times exercise such 
supervision as they may deem necessary  
over the planting and      cultivating  
of all crops to be raised by him during 
the year #aijb4       ,the said ,john   
,doe hereby rents from ,smith and ,brown
 the above      mentioned land for the  
year #aijb and promises to pay therefor 
seven      dollars and a half per acre  
on or before ,november the first1 #aijb1
      and hereby agrees to all the terms
 and stipulations herein      mentioned4
       ,he furthermore represents to    
,smith and ,brown that he has sufficient

      force to properly plant and       
cultivate same1 and agrees that if at   
any time in their judgment his crops may
 be in need of cultivation1      they   
may have the necessary work done and    
charge same to his      account4        
,he furthermore agrees to at all times  
properly control his family      and    
hands1 both as to work and conduct1 and 
obligates himself to      prevent any   
one of them from causing any trouble    
whatsoever1 either      to his neighbors
 or to ,smith and ,brown4       ,he also
 agrees to plant and cultivate all land 
allotted to him1      including the     
edges of the roads1 turn rows1 and ditch
 banks1 and      to keep the latter at  
all times clean and to plant no garden  
or      truck patches in his field4     
,he also agrees to gather and deliver   
all agricultural products      which he 
may raise for sale to said ,smith and   
,brown1 as they may      designate to be
 handled and sold by them1 for his      
account4       ,he also agrees not to   

abandon1 neglect1 turn back or leave his
      crops or any part of them1 nor to 
allow his family or hands to do      so1
 until entirely gathered and delivered4 
,in order that ,smith and ,brown may be 
advised of the number of      tenants   
which they may have to secure for the   
ensuing year1 in      ample time to     
enable them to provide for the same1 the
 said tenant      hereby agrees to      
notify them positively by ,december #aj1
 #aijb1      whether or not he desires  
to remain on ,james' ,plantation for the
      ensuing year4 ,should he not      
desire to remain1 then he agrees to     
deliver to ,smith and ,brown possession 
of the house now allotted to      him by
 ,january #ast1 #aijc4 ,in order that   
said tenant may have ample      time in 
which to provide for himself a place for
 the ensuing year1      ,smith and      
,brown hereby agree to notify him by    
,december #aj1 #aijb1      should they  
not want him as a tenant during the     
ensuing year4       ,witness our        

signatures1 this the #aeth day of       
,december1 #aija4                       
,,smith ,,and ,,brown4                  
,,john ,,doe4       ,witness3 ,j4 ,w4   
,,james4  ,the owners have been unable  
to carry out their efforts in full1 but 
the result has been very creditable4    
,the lease is much preferable to the one
 given on page #df4  ,if1 as ,i believe1
 the families above reported are average
 and are living under ordinary          
conditions1 it seems evident that a     
considerable surplus results from their 
labors each year4 ,i wish ,i could add  
that the money were being either wisely 
spent or saved and invested4 ,this does 
not seem to be the case and it is       
generally stated that the amount of     
money wasted in the fall of the year by 
the blacks of the ,delta is enormous4   
,in the cabins the great catalogs of the
 mail order houses of ,montgomery ,ward 
,co41 and ,sears1 ,roebuck  ,co41 of    
,chicago are often found1 and the       
express agents say that large shipments 

of goods are made to the ,negroes4      
,patent medicines form no inconsiderable
 proportion of these purchases1 while   
,stutson hats1 as the ,negro says1 are  
required by the young bloods4 ,the      
general improvidence of the people is   
well illustrated by the following story 
related by a friend of the writer4 ,at  
the close of one season an old ,negro   
woman came to his wife for advice as to 
the use to be made of her savings1 some 
#abe4 ,she was advised to buy some      
household necessities and to put the    
remainder in a bank1 above all she was  
cautioned to beware of any who sought to
 get her to squander the money4 ,the    
woman left but in about two weeks' time 
returned to borrow some money4 ,it      
developed that as she went down the     
street a ,jewess invited her to come in 
and have a cup of coffee4 ,the          
invitation was accepted and during the  
conversation she was advised to spend   
the money4 ,this she did1 and when the  
transactions were over the woman had one

 barrel of flour1 one hundred pounds of 
meat1 ten dollars or so worth of cheap  
jewelry1 some candy and other           
incidentals and no money4 ,foolish      
expenditures alone1 according to the    
belief of the planters1 prevent the     
,negroes from owning the entire land in 
a generation4 ,i would not give the     
impression that there are no ,negro land
 owners in this region4 ,thousands of   
acres have been purchased and are held  
by them1 but we are speaking of average 
families4  ,some curious customs        
prevail4 ,the planters generally pay the
 ,negroes in cash for their cotton seed 
and this money the blacks consider as   
something peculiarly theirs1 not to be  
used for any debts they may have4       
,although the prices for goods advanced 
are higher than cash prices1 the        
,negroes will often1 when spring comes1 
insist that they be advanced1 so have   
the goods charged even at the higher    
prices1 even though they have the cash  
on hand4 ,this great over-appreciation  

of present goods is a drawback to their 
progress4  ,in this district ,i found   
little dissatisfaction among the ,negro 
farmers4 ,they felt that their          
opportunities were good4 ,those who come
 from the hills can scarce believe their
 eyes at the crops produced and         
constantly ask when the cotton plants   
are going to turn yellow and droop4     
,that there is little migration back to 
the hills is good evidence of the       
relative standing of the two districts  
in their eyes4  ,wages for day labor    
range from #fj to #ge cents1 but the    
extra labor imported for cotton picking 
makes over double this4   ,,the ,,sugar 
,,region4  ,south of ,baton ,rouge1     
,louisiana1 the alluvial district is    
largely given over to the growing of    
sugar cane with occasional fields of    
rice4 ,the district under cultivation   
stretches back from the river a couple  
of miles or so to the edge of the woods 
beyond which at present there is no     
tillable ground1 though drainage will   

gradually push back the line of the     
forest4 ,these sugar lands are valued   
highly1 #ajj or so an acre1 and the     
capital invested in the great sugar     
houses is enormous4 ,probably nowhere in
 agricultural pursuits is there a more  
thorough system of bookkeeping than on  
these plantations4 ,this land is        
cultivated by hired hands1 who work     
immediately under the eye of overseers4 
,nowhere is the land let out in small   
lots to tenants4 ,conditions are        
radically different from those          
prevailing in the cotton regions4 ,the  
work season1 it is claimed1 begins on   
the first day of ,january and ends on   
the #cast of ,december1 and every day   
between when the weather permits work in
 the fields there is work to be done4   
,,cabins ,,on ,,sugar ,,plantation4     
,these plantations present an attractive
 appearance4 ,the cabins are not        
scattered as in the cotton country1 but 
are usually ranged on either side of a  
broad street1 with rows of trees in     

front4 ,the cabins are often for two    
families and each has a plot of ground  
for a garden4 ,the planters say the     
,negroes will not live in the houses    
unless the garden plots are provided1   
even if they make no use of them4 ,to   
each family is allotted a house so long 
as they are employed on the place4 ,wood
 is free and teams are provided for     
hauling it from the forest4 ,free       
pasture for stock is often provided4    
,from the fact that the men would seldom
 work more than five and a half days a  
week arose the custom of paying off     
every eleven days4 ,each workman has a  
time book and as soon as he has         
completed his eleven days his pay is    
due4 ,this avoids a general pay day and 
the demoralization that would likely    
follow4 ,work is credited by quarters of
 a day3 ,sunrise to breakfast1 breakfast
 to dinner1 dinner to about #c3jj p4 m41
 #c3jj p4 m4 to sunset4 ,wages vary     
according to the season1 being much     
larger during autumn when the cane is   

being ground4 ,for field work men get   
#gj cents per day1 women #ee to #fj     
cents4 ,during the grinding season the  
men earn from #a to #a4be1 the women    
about #he cents1 children from #be cents
 up4 ,wages are usually paid through a  
store which may or may not be under the 
direct ownership of the plantation4 ,all
 accounts against the store are         
deducted1 but the balance must be paid  
in cash if it is so desired4 ,nominally 
the men are free to trade where they    
will1 but it is easy to see that        
pressure might be brought to bear to    
make it advantageous to trade at the    
local store4  ,during the year #aija two
 families were able to earn the         
following amounts4 ,the first family    
consists of three adults and two        
children1 but the wife did not work in  
the field4    #aj4ej  #g4jj #ac4hj      
#ab4fj #aj4he #ab4fj #aa4ee    #aj4he   
#f4fe #ac4hj #ab4ie #ae4dj #ad4ej #aa4bj
     #b4fb  #a4be                       
#b4be  #d4ce                            

----------------------------------------
--   #bc4ig #ad4ij #bg4fj #be4ee #bf4be 
#bi4ce #bg4aj     #aa4ee  #h4dj  #i4hj  
#bj4fj #be4ge #bh4ge      ,man   #aa4bj 
#g4ce  #i4hj  #g4ie #af4jj #aj4ae       
,son    #d4ce  #c4je  #a4bj  #f4dj      
#ah4ae #ae4ge      ,boy                 
#a4he #aj4ab  #f4ge      ,boy           
----------------------------------------
----   #bg4aj #ah4hj #bj4hj #cf4hj      
#gj4jb #fa4dj--chb4ed   ,during the     
grinding season the men's wages were    
increased to #a a day and the boys' to  
#dj cents and the father had chances to 
make extra time as nightwatchman1 etc4  
,this family own a horse and buggy1 keep
 poultry and have a fair garden4 ,they  
are rather thrifty and have money stowed
 away somewhere4  ,the second family    
consists of the parents and eight       
children4 ,their income is fair1 but    
they are always hard up4 ,they spend    
their money extravagantly4 ,the man is  
head teamster on the plantation and     
makes #hj cents per day1 which is       

increased to #a4cj during the grinding  
season4 ,the wife in this family also   
did no work save in the fall4    #af4jj 
#ad4dj #ag4fj #ae4dj #ah4dj #af4hj      
#ag4hj     #g4hg  #f4he #aj4aj  #i4be   
#i4fe #aj4aj #aa4jj    #ab4fj  #h4ge    
#ab4fj #ac4cj #ae4ee #ad4ej #aa4ij      
#b4ij  #a4ej  #d4ej     #a4be  #a4hj    
4#fe                                    
----------------------------------------
--   #dj4fb #cc4cj #de4de #cg4ie #dc4fj 
#da4dj #dj4gj      #ag4hj #ah4jj #af4fj 
#bc4cj  #dd4ie  #dc4je   ,man    #aa4jj 
#aj4be  #d4jj  #f4jj  #ai4cj  #ah4jj    
,boy    #aa4ij #ab4dj #aa4gj #ai4be     
#be4ge  #bc4jj   ,son                   
#f4ge  #ag4be  #ad4ge   ,girl           
#a4fj   ,boy                       #b4aj
   #h4jj   #e4be   ,boy                 
#c4jj  #ae4ae  #ac4ej   ,woman          
----------------------------------------
------    #dj4gj #dj4fe #cb4cj #fj4dj   
#acj4cj #aai4ae--ffe4hb   ,these        
families are typical so far as known4   
,in comparing their incomes with those  

in other districts it must be borne in  
mind that they have no rent to pay and  
their only necessary expenses are for   
food and clothes and incidentals4       
,certainly both of the families should  
have money to their credit at the end of
 the year4 ,the total wages depends not 
only on the willingness to work1 but    
also on weather conditions4 ,one gets   
the impression that in some places      
conditions are pretty bad and even by   
some white residents of the state it is 
claimed that a state of servitude almost
 prevails on many plantations4 ,in any  
case the ,negroes do not seem satisfied4
 ,the labor is rather heavy4 ,for this  
or other reasons there has been quite an
 exodus to the cotton country in recent 
years1 which has caused the cane        
planters much trouble and they will make
 many concessions to keep their tenants4
 ,to meet this emigration for some time 
efforts have been made to import        
,italian labor but the results have not 
been wholly satisfactory4 ,the ,italians

 are more reliable and this is a great  
argument in their favor1 but with this  
exception they are not considered much  
better workers than the blacks4 ,the    
storekeepers much prefer the ,negroes1  
who spend their money more freely4  ,the
 planters claim that the labor is       
unreliable and say they never know on   
,saturday how many workers they will    
have on ,monday4 ,they also say it is   
hard to get extra labor done4 ,in #aijj 
on one plantation the women were offered
 ten cents a day extra for some hoeing1 
but only four held out4 ,higher wages   
were offered if some cane were cut by   
the ton instead of by the day1 but after
 a week the hands asked to return to the
 gang at the lower wage4  ,in the rice  
fields along the river about the same   
wages prevail as for the field hands in 
the cane plantations4 ,the rice crop1   
however1 is but a six months crop1 so   
other employment must be found for part 
of the year if nothing but rice is      
raised4 ,it is usual in this region to  

raise rice as a side crop4     ,,chapter
 ,v4 ,,social ,,environment4   ,,country
 ,,church ,,and ,,school4  ,hitherto we 
have had to do chiefly with the economic
 situation of the ,negro farmer4 ,there 
is1 however1 another set of forces which
 may not be ignored if we are to        
understand the situation which confronts
 us4 ,these are1 of course1 the social  
forces4 ,in discussing these it is more 
than ever essential to remember that a  
differentiation has been taking place   
among the ,negroes and that there are   
large numbers who are not to be grouped 
with the average men and women whom we  
seek to describe4 ,it may even be true  
that there are communities which have   
gained a higher level4 ,any statement of
 the social environment of #h1jjj1jjj   
people must necessarily be false if     
applied strictly to each individual4    
,the existence of the higher class must 
not1 however1 be allowed to blind us to 
the condition of the rest4  ,the average
 ,negro boy or girl is allowed to grow4 

,it is difficult to say much more for   
the training received at home4 ,we must 
remember that there is an almost total  
absence of home life as we understand   
it4 ,the family seldom sits down        
together at the table or do anything    
else in common4 ,the domestic duties are
 easily mastered by the girls and chores
 do not weigh heavily on the boys4 ,at  
certain periods of the year the children
 are compelled to assist in the farm    
operations1 such as picking cotton1 but 
most of the time they are care free4    
,thus they run almost wild while the    
parents are at work in the fields1 and  
the stranger who suddenly approaches a  
cabin and beholds the youngsters        
scattering for shelter will not soon    
forget the sight4 ,obedience1 neatness1 
punctuality do not thrive in such an    
atmosphere4 ,the introduction to the    
country school a little later does not  
greatly improve conditions4 ,the        
teachers are often incompetent and their
 election often depends upon other      

things than fitness to teach2 upon      
things1 indeed1 which are at times far  
from complimentary to the school        
trustees4 ,the school year seldom       
exceeds four months and this may be     
divided into two terms1 two months in   
the fall and two in the spring4 ,school 
opens at an indefinite time in the      
morning1 if scheduled for nine it is    
just as likely as not that it begins at 
ten thirty1 while the closing hour is   
equally uncertain4 ,the individual      
attention received by the average child 
is necessarily small4 ,the schools are  
poorly equipped with books or maps4 ,the
 interior view given on page #fa is by  
no means exceptional4  ,it may not be   
out of place to mention the fact that   
recognition of these evils is leading in
 many places in the ,south to the       
incorporation of private schools1 which 
then offer their facilities to the      
public in return for partial support at 
the public expense4 ,public moneys are  
being turned over to these schools in   

considerable amounts4 ,in some counties 
the public does not own a school        
building4 ,without questioning the fact 
that these schools are an improvement   
over existing conditions1 history will  
belie itself if this subsidizing of     
private organizations does not some day 
prove a great drawback to the proper    
development of the public school system1
 unless it may be1 that the courts will 
declare the practice illegal and        
unconstitutional4  ,the home and the    
school being from our point of view     
unsatisfactory1 the next social         
institution to which we turn is the     
church4 ,since the war this has come to 
be the most influential in the opinion  
of the ,negro and it deserves more      
careful study than has yet been given to
 it4 ,only some of the more obvious     
features can here be considered4 ,the   
first thing to impress the observer is  
the fact that time is again no object to
 the ,negro4 ,the service advertised for
 eleven may get fairly under way by     

twelve and there is no predicting when  
it will stop4 ,the people drift in and  
out1 one or two at a time1 throughout   
the service4 ,families do not enter nor 
sit together4 ,outside is always a group
 talking over matters of general        
interest4 ,the music1 lined out1        
consists of the regulation church hymns1
 which are usually screeched all out of 
time in a high key4 ,the contrast       
between this music and the singing of   
the plantation songs at ,hampton or some
 other schools which impresses one as   
does little music he hears elsewhere is 
striking4 ,the people have the idea that
 plantation songs are out of place in   
the church4 ,the collection is taken    
with a view to letting others know what 
each one does4 ,at the proper time a    
couple of the men take their places at a
 table before the pulpit and invite the 
people to come forward with their       
offerings4 ,the people straggle up the  
aisle with their gifts1 being constantly
 urged to hasten so as not to delay the 

service4 ,after half an hour or so the  
results obtained are remarkable and the 
social emulation redounds to the benefit
 of the preacher4 ,it is difficult for  
the white visitor to get anything but   
hints of the real possibilities of the  
preacher1 for he is at once introduced  
to the audience and induced to address  
them if it is possible4 ,even when this 
is not done there is usually an air of  
restraint which is noticeable4 ,only    
occasionally does the speaker forget    
himself and break loose1 as it were4    
,the study then presented is interesting
 in the extreme4 ,while the minister    
shouts1 the audience are swaying        
backward and forward in sympathetic     
rhythm1 encouraging the speaker with    
cries of ,amen1 ,that's right1 ,that's  
the ,gospel1 ,give it to 'em bud1 ,give 
'em a little long sweetening4 ,there is 
no question that they are profoundly    
moved1 but the identity of the spirit   
which troubles the waters is to me      
sometimes a question4 ,the forms of the 

white man's religion have been adopted1 
but the content of these forms seems    
strangely different4 ,seemingly the     
church1 or rather1 religion1 is not     
closely identified with morality4 ,i am 
sorry to say that in the opinion of the 
best of both races the average country  
7and city7 pastor does not bear a good  
reputation1 the estimates of the immoral
 running from #ej to #ih per cent4 of   
the total number4 ,it is far from me to 
discount any class of people1 but if the
 situation is anything as represented by
 the estimate1 the seriousness of it is 
evident4 ,this idea is supported by the 
fact that indulgence in immorality is   
seldom a bar to active church           
membership1 and if a member be dismissed
 from one communion there are others    
anxious to receive him or her4 ,there   
are churches and communities of which   
these statements are not true4 ,it is   
interesting to note that the churches   
are securing their chief support from   
the women4 ,as an organization the      

church does not seem to have taken any  
great interest in the matters which most
 vitally affect the life of the people1 
except to be a social center4 ,if these 
things be considered it is easy to see  
why the best informed are seeking for   
the country districts men who can be    
leaders of the people during the week on
 the farms as well as good speakers on  
,sunday4 ,it is a pleasure to note that 
here and there some busy pastor is also 
spending a good deal of his time        
cultivating a garden1 or running a small
 farm1 with the distinct purpose of     
setting a good example4 ,the precise way
 in which the church may be led to exert
 a wider and more helpful influence on  
the people is a matter of great         
importance1 but it must be solved from  
within4  ,turning from religious work we
 find the church bearing an important   
place in the social life and amusements4
 ,besides its many gatherings and       
protracted meetings which are social    
functions1 numbers of picnics and       

excursions are given4 ,these may be on  
the railroads to rather distant points1 
and because of the lack of              
discrimination as to participants1 many 
earnest protests have been filed by the 
better class of ,negroes4 ,the          
amusements of the blacks are simple4    
,nearly all drink1 but drunkenness is   
not a great vice4 ,dances are in high   
esteem1 and are often accompanied by    
much drinking and not infrequently by   
cutting scrapes1 for the ,negro's       
passions lie on the surface and are     
easily aroused4 ,in ,south ,carolina the
 general belief seems to be that the    
dispensary law has been beneficial4     
,there is also a universal fondness for 
tobacco in all its forms4 ,gambling     
prevails wherever there is ready money  
and not infrequently leads to serious   
assaults4 ,music has great charms while 
a circus needs not the excuse of        
children to justify it in the ,negro's  
eyes4 ,some of the holidays are         
celebrated1 and when on the coast the   

blacks dubbed the #cjth of ,may         
,desecration ,day1 there were those who 
thought it well named4 ,active sports1  
with the occasional exception of a ball 
game1 are not preferred to the more     
quiet pleasure of sitting about in the  
sunshine conversing with friends4       
,america can not show a happier1 more   
contented lot of people than these same 
blacks4  ,if we turn our attention to   
other characteristics of the ,negro we  
must notice his different moral         
standard4 ,to introduce the little ,i   
shall say on this point let me quote    
from a well known anthropologist4 ,there
 is nothing more difficult for us to    
realize1 civilized as we are1 than the  
mental state of the man far behind us in
 cultivation1 as regards what we call   
par excellence 'morality4' ,it is not   
indecency2 it is simply an animal       
absence of modesty4 ,acts which are     
undeniably quite natural1 since they are
 the expression of a primordial need1   
essential to the duration of the        

species1 but which a long ancestral and 
individual education has trained us to  
subject to a rigorous restraint1 and to 
the accomplishment of which1            
consequently1 we can not help attaching 
a certain shame1 do not in the least    
shock the still imperfect conscience of 
the primitive man4 ,from somewhat this  
standpoint we must judge of the ,negro4 
,two or three illustrations will        
suffice4 ,talking last summer to a      
porter in a small hotel1 ,i asked him if
 he had ever lived on a farm4 ,he       
replied that he had and that he often   
thought of returning4 ,asking him why he
 did not he said that it would be       
necessary for him to get a wife and a   
lot of other things4 ,i suggested the   
possibility of boarding in another      
family4 ,he shook his head and said3    
,niggers is queer folks1 boss4 ',pears  
to me they don' know what they gwine do4
 ,ef ,i go out and live in a man's house
 like as not ,i run away wid dat man's  
wife4 ,the second illustration is taken 

from an unpublished manuscript by ,rev4 
,j4 ,l4 ,tucker of ,baton ,rouge4       
,there is a negro of good character here
 in ,baton ,rouge whose name      is    
---- ----4 ,he is a whitewasher by trade
 and does mainly odd jobs      for the  
white people who are his patrons1 and   
earns a good living4      ,he is widely 
known through the city as a good and    
reliable man4      ,some time ago he had
 trouble with his wife's preacher1 who  
came to      his house too often4 ,the  
trouble culminated in his wife leaving  
him4 ,soon thereafter he sent or went   
into the country and brought      home a
 negro woman whom he installed in his   
house to cook and      otherwise serve  
him4 ,explaining the circumstances to   
,mr4 ----1 he      said3 ,i a'in' got no
 use for nigga preachers4 ,dey is de    
debbil wid      de wimmen4 ,i tol' dat  
ar fellah to keep away fr'm my house or 
,i'd      hunt him wid a shotgun1 an' ,i
 meant it4 ,but he got her'n spite a    
me4 ,she went off to 'im4 ,now ,i's got 

me a wife from way back in de           
country1 who don' know the ways of nigga
 preachers4 ,i kin keep her1      ,i    
reckon1 a while1 anyway4 ,i pays her    
wages reg'lar1 an' she does      her    
duty by me4 ,i tell yeh1 ,mr4 ----1 a   
hired wife's a heap      better's a     
married wife any time1 yeh mark dat4 ,ef
 yeh don' line er      yer can sen' her 
off an' get anudder1 an' she's nutten to
 complain      'bout a' longs yeh pay   
her wages4 ,yes siree1 yeh put dat down2
 de      hired wife's nuff sight        
better'n de married one4 ,i don' fus no 
mo'      wid marryin' wives1 ,i hires   
'em4 ,an ,i sent word to dat preacher   
dat      if he comes roun' my house now 
,i lays for 'im shore wid buck shot4    
,commenting1 ,mr4 ,tucker says that the 
man had no idea of moral wrong1 the real
 wife has lost no caste1 the preacher   
stands just as well with his flock and  
the new wife is well received4 ,the     
third instance occurred on a plantation4
 ,a married woman1 not satisfied with   

the shoes she received from the store1  
wanted a pair of yellow turned shoes4   
,the planter would not supply them4 ,the
 woman was angry and finally left her   
husband1 went to a neighboring place and
 took up with another man4  ,these cases
 sufficiently illustrate prevailing     
conceptions of the sacredness of the    
marriage tie4 ,certainly this involves a
 theory of home life which differs from 
ours4 ,many matings are consummated     
without any regular marriage ceremony   
and with little reference to legal      
requirements1 and divorces are equally  
informal4 ,moral lapses seldom bring the
 ,negro before the courts4 ,all these   
things but indicate the handicap which  
has to be overcome4 ,within the family  
there is often great abuse on the part  
of the men4 ,the result of it all is    
that many ,negroes do not know their own
 fathers and so little are the ties of  
kinship' regarded that near relatives   
are often unknown1 and if possible less 
cared for4 ,this may be substantiated by

 the records of any charity society in  
the ,north which has sought to trace    
friends of its ,negro applicants4 ,to   
attempt a quantitative estimate of the  
extent of sexual immorality is useless4 
,it is sufficient to realize that a     
different standard prevails and one     
result today is a frightful prevalence  
of venereal diseases to which any       
practising physician in the ,south can  
bear witness4 ,i am glad to say there   
are sections which have risen above     
these conditions4  ,the transition from 
slavery to freedom set in operation the 
forces of natural selection1 which are  
sure and steadily working among the     
people and are weeding out those who for
 any reason can not adapt themselves to 
the new environment4 ,insanity1 almost  
unknown in slavery times1 has appeared  
and has been increasing among the       
,negroes of the ,south at a rate of     
about #ajj per cent4 a decade since     
#ahfj4 ,of course1 the number affected  
is still small1 but the end is perhaps  

not reached4 ,we have witnessed also the
 development of the pauper and criminal 
classes4 ,this was to be expected4      
,there is also some evidence of an      
increase in the use of drugs1 cocaine   
and the like4 ,the point to be noted is 
that there is taking place a steady     
division of the ,negroes into various   
social strata and in spite of race      
traits it is no longer to be considered 
as on a level4  ,i have sought to       
represent the situation as it appears to
 me1 neither seeking to overemphasize   
the virtues or the vices of the race4   
,it is clear to me that in spite of the 
obvious progress the road ahead is long 
and hard4 ,while ,i do not anticipate   
any such acceleration of speed as will  
immediately bring about an economic or  
social millenium ,i believe that proper 
measures may be found1 indeed1 are      
already in use1 which if widely adopted 
will lead to better things4 ,how many of
 the race will fall by the way is1 in   
one sense1 a matter of indifference4 ,in

 the long run1 for the whites as well as
 the blacks1 they will survive who adapt
 their social theories and1             
consequently1 their modes of life to    
their environments4     ,,chapter ,,vi4 
,,the ,,outlook4   ,one of the things   
which militates most against the ,negro 
here is his unreliability4 99 99 99 ,his
 mental processes are past finding out  
and he can not be counted on to do or   
not to do a given thing under given     
circumstances4 ,there is scarcely a     
planter in all this territory who would 
not make substantial concessions for an 
assured tenantry4 ,a ,northern man1 now 
resident in the ,south and employing    
,negro labor1 says3 ,i am convinced of  
one thing and that is that there is no  
dependence to be placed in #ij per cent4
 of the ,negro laborers if left to      
themselves and out of the overseer's    
sight4 ,these quotations from men who   
are seeking to promote the success of   
the ,negroes with whom they come in     
contact might be multiplied indefinitely

 from every part of the ,south4 ,the    
statements are scarce open to           
discussion1 so well recognized is the   
fact4 ,if ,i have rightly apprehended   
the nature of the training afforded by  
,africa and slavery there was little in 
them to develop the habits of           
forethought1 thrift and industry1 upon  
which this reliability must be based4   
,i am not arguing the question as to    
whether this unreliability marks a      
decadence of ,negro standards or whether
 it is due to the present higher        
standards of the white4 ,for argument1  
at least1 ,i am willing to admit that in
 quality of workmanship1 in             
steadfastness and self-control there has
 really been great progress4 ,my        
interest is in the present and future   
rather than the past4 ,i have tried to  
show that1 judged by present standards1 
the ,negro is still decidedly lacking4  
,personally ,i am not surprised at this4
 ,i should be astonished if it were     
otherwise4 ,the trouble is that we at   

the ,north are unable to disabuse       
ourselves of the idea that the ,negro is
 a dark skinned ,yankee and we think1   
therefore1 that if all is not as it     
should be that something is wrong1 that 
somebody or some social condition is    
holding him back4 ,we accuse slavery1   
attribute it to the hostility of the    
,southern white4 ,something is holding  
him back1 but it is his inheritance of  
thousands of years in ,africa1 not      
slavery nor the ,southern whites4 ,it is
 my observation that the white of the   
black belt deal with the ,negro more    
patiently and endure far more of        
shiftless methods than the average      
,northerner would tolerate for a day4   
,it is interesting to note that         
,northern white women who go ,south     
filled with the idea that the ,negro is 
abused can scarce keep a servant the    
first year or so of their stay4 ,of     
course there are exceptions1 few in     
number1 who say as did a lumberman in   
,alabama last summer3 ,i never have any 

trouble with the ,negro4 ,have worked   
them for twenty years4 ,why1 ,i haven't 
had to kill one yet1 though ,i did shoot
 one once1 but ,i used fine shot and it 
didn't hurt him much4 ,we have attempted
 to have the ,negro do in a few years   
what it has taken us thousands to       
accomplish1 and are surprised that he   
has disappointed us4 ,there is no room  
for discouragement4 ,contrast the ,negro
 in ,africa and ,america to see what has
 been done4  ,unless this unreliability 
is overcome it will form even a greater 
handicap for the future4 ,southern      
methods of agriculture have been more   
wasteful of small economies than have   
,northern4 ,that a change is imperative1
 in many districts at least1 has been   
shown4 ,is the ,negro in a position to  
take advantage of these changes8 ,at    
present it must be admitted that he does
 not possess the knowledge to enable him
 to utilize his environment and make the
 most out of it4 ,it has been shown that
 he is bearing little part in the       

development of the trucking industry1   
nay more1 that he does not even raise   
enough garden truck for his own support4
 ,in a bulletin of the ,farmer's        
,improvement ,society of ,texas ,i find 
the following3       ,very many1 in the 
first place1 do not try to make their   
supplies at      home4 ,very often much 
is lost by bad fences4 ,lots of them    
don't know      where their hoes1 plows1
 single-trees1 etc41 are at this minute4
 ,lots      of them buy butter1 peas1   
beans1 lard1 meat and hay4 99 99 99     
,well1      really1 to sum up1 if       
there's anything like scientific methods
 among      the vast majority of our    
people ,i don't know it4 99 99 99 ,i    
venture to      say that not one negro  
farmer in a hundred ever saw the back of
 one      of these bulletins            
7agricultural71 much less the inside4   
,if some of these primary lessons have  
not been mastered what chance is there  
that the ,negro will overcome1 unaided1 
the crop lien system and his other      

handicaps and introduce diversified     
agriculture1 stock raising1 etc48       
,slavery taught him something about work
 and he is willing to work1 and work    
hard1 under leadership4 ,herein lies the
 possibility of his economic salvation4 
,he is not yet ready as a race to stand 
alone and advance at the pace demanded  
by ,america of the twentieth century4   
,he must be taught and the teaching must
 be by practice as well as by precept4  
,viewed from this standpoint1 though it 
is equally true from another1 one of the
 great needs of the ,south is that its  
white farmers should pay more attention 
to other things than cotton4 ,so long as
 land is considered too valuable to use 
for pasture1 for hay1 for the various   
crops on which stock live and fatten1 or
 so long as it is considered profitable 
to sell cotton seed for #e a ton and    
throw away four or five times this      
amount in the food and manure which the 
same seed contains1 the ,negro will not 
see the advantage of a different system4

 ,nor does the sight of thousands of    
tons of rice straw dumped into the      
,mississippi each year1 just as a       
generation ago the oat straw in ,iowa   
was burned1 lead him to suspect unused  
sources of wealth4 ,the possibilities of
 ,southern agriculture are great1 but   
the lead must be taken by the whites4   
,the ,negro has a great advantage over  
the ,italian or other ,european peasant 
in that the white man prefers him as a  
helper4 ,he is patient1 docile and proud
 of his work4 ,he is wanted by the      
native whites1 and if the reader doubts 
this let him go to any ,southern        
community and attempt to bring about any
 great exodus of the ,negroes and he    
will be surprised to find how soon he is
 requested to move on4 ,this interest on
 the part of the whites is a factor     
which must be considered4 ,it would be a
 happy day for the ,negro if the white  
woman of the ,south took her old        
personal interest in his welfare4 ,this 
friendly sentiment will not increase    

with time and each succeeding generation
 will emphasize1 more and more1         
industrial efficiency1 and the ,negro   
will not be preferred4 ,corresponding to
 this is the fact that the ,negro       
respects and willingly follows the white
 man1 more willingly and more trustingly
 than he does another ,negro4 ,he is    
personally loyal1 as the care received  
by the soldiers during war time         
illustrated4 ,but slavery is gone and   
the feudalism which followed it is      
slowly yielding to commercialism1 which 
gives the palm to the more efficient4   
,hitherto the ,negro has tilled much of 
the best land of the ,south4 ,meantime  
the great prairies have been settled and
 about all the good cheap land of the   
northwest taken4 ,a tide of immigration 
is setting in towards the ,southern     
states4 ,already the rice industry of   
,louisiana has been revolutionized by   
white immigrants4 ,what may this mean   
for the ,negro if these incoming whites 
defy race prejudice and seek the rich   

bottom lands of the ,mississippi or     
elsewhere8 ,will the ,negro be in a     
position of independence or will he only
 assist the white8 ,will he till in the 
future the best lands or will he be     
forced to the less fertile8 ,with the   
knowledge of the present regarding      
yellow fever1 malaria and typhoid the   
dread of the lowlands is disappearing4  
,if the indications point1 as many      
believe1 towards the ,south as the seat 
of the next great agricultural          
development these questions become of   
vital importance to the ,negro4 ,can he 
become economically secure before he is 
made to meet a competition which he has 
never yet faced8 ,or does the warmer    
climate give him an advantage1 which the
 whites can not overcome8 ,i must       
confess that ,i doubt it4 ,in ,the      
,cotton ,plant 7page #bdb71 ,mr4 ,harry 
,hammond states that in #ci counties of 
the ,black ,prairie ,region of ,texas1  
in which the whites predominate1 the    
average value of the land is #ab4ai per 

acre1 as against #f4dj for similar soil 
in twelve counties of the ,black        
,prairie of ,alabama1 in which the      
,negroes are in the majority4 ,he says  
further3 ,the number and variety of     
implements recently introduced in cotton
 culture here1 especially in the        
prairies of ,texas1 is very much greater
 than elsewhere in the cotton belt4     
,this would indicate that heat alone is 
no insurmountable obstacle4  ,if these  
things be true1 then as the late ,mr4   
,j4 ,l4 ,m4 ,curry said3       ,it may  
be assumed that the industrial problem  
lies at the heart of      the whole     
situation which confronts us4 ,into our 
public and other      schools should be 
incorporated industrial training4 ,if to
      regularity1 punctuality1 silence1 
obedience to authority1 there be        
systematically added instruction in     
mechanical arts1 the results      would 
be astounding4   ,the question of       
classical education does not now concern
 us4 ,the absolutely essential thing is 

that the ,negro shall learn to work     
regularly and intelligently4 ,the lesson
 begun in slavery must be mastered4 ,as 
,dr4 ,e4 ,g4 ,murphy puts it3       ,the
 industrial training supplied by that   
school 7slavery7 is now      denied to  
him4 ,the capacity1 the equipment1 and  
the necessity for      work which       
slavery provided are the direct cause of
 the superiority      of the old time   
darkey4 ,is freedom to have no          
substitute for the      ancient school8 
99 99 99 ,the demand of the situation is
 not less      education1 but more      
education of the right sort4   ,i would 
not say that ,i thought all ,negroes    
should be farmers1 but ,i do feel that  
the farm offers the mass of the race the
 most favorable opportunity for the     
development of solid and enduring       
character4 ,it seems to me that the     
following words from one of our broadest
 minded men apply with special force to 
the ,negro3       ,if ,i had some magic 
gift to bestow it would be to make our  

country      youth see one truth1       
namely1 that science as applied to the  
farm1      the garden and the forest has
 as splendid a dignity as astronomy2    
that it may work just as many marvels   
and claim just as high an      order of 
talent4     ,,chapter ,,vii4            
,,agricultural ,,training4   ,there     
remain to be considered some of the     
agencies at work to better the lot of   
the farmer4 ,in this ,i shall not       
attempt to give a list of institutions  
and outline of courses but to indicate  
various lines of work which seem        
promising4  ,in discussing the training 
of the ,negro farmer credit must first  
be given to the white planters under    
whom he has learned so much of what he  
knows4 ,under the changing conditions of
 agriculture this training1 or the      
training received on the average farm is
 not sufficient and must be supplemented
 by special training if the desired     
results are to be obtained4  ,it        
probably lay in the situation that the  

,negro should get the idea that         
education meant freedom from labor4 ,it 
is none the less unfortunate for him4   
,to counteract this idea has been a     
difficult matter and the influence of   
the average school has not been of any  
special help4 ,the country school taught
 by a teacher1 usually incompetent from 
any standpoint1 whose interest has been 
chiefly in the larger salary made       
possible by his higher education has not
 been an unmixed blessing4 ,the children
 have learned to read and write and have
 preserved their notion that if only    
they could get enough education they    
might be absolved from manual labor4    
,even today ,hampton and ,tuskegee and  
similar schools have to contend with the
 opposition of parents who think their  
children should not be compelled to     
work1 for they are sent to school to    
enable them to avoid labor4 ,quite      
likely it could not be expected that the
 country school should hold up a higher 
ideal1 for here we have to do with the  

beginnings of a system of instruction   
which had to make use of such material  
as it could find for teachers4 ,the same
 excuse does not suffice to explain the 
attitude taken by the bulk of schools   
maintained by the northern whites for   
the ,negroes4 ,their inability to       
comprehend the needs of the case can    
only be ascribed to the conception of a 
,negro as a white man with a black skin 
and a total failure to recognize the    
essential conditions of race progress4  
,when the ,roman monks penetrated the   
,german woods the chief benefits they   
carried were not embalmed in ,latin     
grammars and the orations of ,cicero1   
but were embodied in the knowledge of   
agriculture and the arts which1 adopted 
by the people1 made possible later the  
,german civilization4 ,the old rescue   
mission sought to yank the sinner out of
 the slough of despond1 the social      
settlement seeks to help him who has    
fallen in the contest of life or him to 
whom the opportunity has not been       

offered1 to climb1 recognizing that     
morality and religion attend1 not recede
 progress4 ,the old charity gave alms   
and the country was overrun with hordes 
of beggars2 the new seeks to help a man 
to help himself4 ,a similar change must 
come in the efforts for the ,negro4 ,it 
has been sought to give him the fruits  
of civilization without its bases4 ,it  
will immediately be argued that this is 
wrong1 that the chief educational work  
has been but primary and that little    
so-called higher education has been     
given4 ,this is true1 even to the extent
 that it is possible to find a town of  
#e1jjj inhabitants one-half ,negroes1 in
 which the city provides but one teacher
 for the black children and the balance 
are trained in a school supported by the
 gifts of northern people4 ,but1 and    
this is the important thing1 the spirit 
of the education has been clear and     
definite and that the plan has not been 
carried out has not been due to lack of 
faith in it4 ,general ,armstrong1 thanks

 to his observations in ,hawaii1        
perceived that a different course was   
necessary4 ,his mantle fell on ,h4 ,f4  
,frissell and ,booker ,t4 ,washington1  
so ,hampton and ,tuskegee have been the 
chief factors in producing the change   
which has been noted as coming4 ,now    
that industrial training is winning     
support it is amusing to note the       
anxiety of other schools to show that   
they have always believed in it4 ,i can 
but feel that had the plans of ,general 
,armstrong been widely adopted1 had the 
teachers been trained to take the people
 where they were and lead them to       
gradual improvement1 that the situation 
today would be radically different4 ,it 
is1 however1 not too late to do this yet
 and the widespread founding of schools 
modeled after ,hampton and ,tuskegee    
indicates a general recognition of the  
needs of the situation4  ,yet1 even     
these schools have not turned out as    
many farmers as is often supposed4 ,on  
examination of the catalog of ,tuskegee 

for #aija ,i find only sixteen graduates
 who are farming and thirteen of these  
have other occupations 7principally     
teaching74 ,the combination1 ,i think1  
desirable rather than otherwise4 ,three 
others are introducing cotton raising in
 ,africa under the ,german ,government4 
,from the industrial department nine    
have received certificates in           
agriculture and six in dairying1 but    
their present occupations are not given4
 ,asking a prominent man at ,tuskegee   
for the reason1 he exclaimed1 rather    
disgustedly1 that they disliked work and
 preferred to teach4 ,this merely       
indicates the handicap ,tuskegee has to 
overcome1 and perhaps the average       
agricultural college of the ,north      
cannot show a higher percentage of      
farmers4 ,an official of the ,department
 of ,agriculture tells me that only #e  
per cent of the graduates of the        
agricultural colleges become farmers4   
,to show how much agricultural training 
is given at ,tuskegee the following     

statement for the year #aijb-c is of    
interest3 ,no pupil is counted twice4   
,one hundred and eighty-one students are
 engaged in the actual operations of the
 farm1 truck garden1 orchard1 etc4      
,seventy-nine are taking the dairying1  
etc41 and #bjg are taking agriculture as
 part of their academic work4 ,yet1 more
 of the graduates become professional   
men 7lawyers1 preachers1 etc47 than     
farmers1 the proportion being about     
three to one4 ,in citing ,tuskegee ,i   
am1 of course1 not forgetting that other
 schools1 such as ,tougaloo and         
,talladega1 have excellent farms and are
 seeking 7though their chief emphasis is
 elsewhere7 to give agricultural        
training4  ,reverting to the different  
lines of work which seem hopeful1 the   
subject may be subdivided into several  
sections4 ,we have first to do with the 
efforts to make the young child         
appreciate ,nature and become interested
 in her processes4 ,perhaps ,hampton has
 developed this side most extensively1  

both in the little garden plots         
cultivated by the children and the      
nature study leaflets prepared for use  
in other schools4 ,personally ,i can but
 feel that there is a possibility of    
vastly extending such instruction by    
means of the country schools4 ,if they  
may be consolidated1 and this is being  
done in many sections1 ,i think a way   
can be found to make the school house   
the social center of the district in    
such a way as will greatly help         
conditions4  ,actual instruction in     
practical farming1 dairying1            
horticulture1 etc41 is given in an      
increasing number of schools1 but the   
opportunities are still very inadequate 
to the needs4 ,if it be possible the way
 must be found to enable the ,negro to  
use more and better machinery4 ,the     
average planter does not care to        
introduce expensive machinery lest it be
 ruined by careless and ignorant        
tenants4  ,these industrial schools can 
never hope to reach more than a certain 

percentage of the people4 ,there must be
 measures adopted to widen the influence
 of the school4 ,tuskegee may be        
mentioned for its attempts to reach out4
 ,for many years an annual ,farmers'    
,conference has been held which bids    
fair to become the ,mecca of the ,negro 
farmer4 ,the influence exerted cannot be
 measured1 but it is believed to be     
great4 ,one weak spot in many of the    
schools is that they have little if any 
direct influence upon the life of the   
community in which they are situated4   
,there are1 however1 some exceptions4   
,the ,calhoun ,colored ,school has a    
farmer's association meeting monthly4   
,this is made up chiefly of men who are 
purchasing land through a company formed
 by the school4 ,topics of local        
interest1 methods of farming1 etc41 are 
the subjects for discussion4 ,there is  
also a mother's meeting with subjects of
 more domestic interest1 with a savings 
department for co-operative buying4     
,curiously enough the formation of the  

mother's meeting was at first opposed by
 the men 7and by some whites71 as it    
took the women out of the fields        
occasionally4 ,now it is more favored4  
,as ,tuskegee and many other places     
there are similar farmers' associations1
 of which no special mention need be    
made4 ,tuskegee has an outpost some     
miles from the school which is doing a  
general neighborhood work4 ,the         
following papers circulated by the      
school will give a general idea of their
 conceptions of the needs as well as of 
their efforts to influence conditions   
for the better3       ,,my ,,daily      
,,work4       ,i may take in washing1   
but every day ,i promise myself that ,i 
will      do certain work for my family4
       ,i will set the table for every  
meal4 ,i will wash the dishes after     
every meal4       ,monday1 ,i will do my
 family washing4 ,i will put my         
bedclothes out      to air4 ,i will     
clean the safe with hot water and soap4 
,tuesday1 ,i will do my ironing and     

family patching4       ,wednesday1 ,i   
will scrub my kitchen and clean my yard 
thoroughly4       ,thursday1 ,i will    
clean and air the meal and pork boxes4  
,i will      scour my pots and pans with
 soap and ashes4       ,friday1 ,i will 
wash my dish cloth1 dish towels and hand
 towels4 ,i      will sweep and dust my 
whole house and clean everything        
thoroughly4       ,sunday1 ,i will go to
 church and ,sunday school4 ,i will take
 my      children with me4 ,i will stay 
at home during the remainder of the     
day4 ,i will try to read something aloud
 helpful to all4        ,,questions     
,,that ,i ,,will ,,pledge ,,myself ,,to 
,,answer ,,at ,,the ,,end ,,of ,,the    
,,year4       #a4 ,how many bushels of  
potatoes1 corn1 beans1 peas and peanuts 
have      we raised this year8       #b4
 ,how many hogs and poultry do we keep8 
#c4 ,how much poultry have we raised8   
#d4 ,how many bales of cotton have we   
raised8       #e4 ,how much have we     
saved to buy a home8       #f4 ,how much

 have we done towards planting flowers  
and making our      yard look pretty8   
#g4 ,how many kinds of vegetables did we
 raise in our home garden8       #h4    
,how many times did we stay away from   
miscellaneous excursions      when we   
wished to go8 ,what were our reasons for
 staying at home8       #i4 ,how have we
 helped our boys and girls to stay out  
of bad      company8       #aj4 ,what   
paper have we taken1 and why have we    
taken our children to      church and   
had them sit with us8        ,,how ,,to 
,,make ,,home ,,happy4       ,keep      
clean1 body and soul4 ,remember that    
weak minds1 diseased      bodies1 bad   
acts are often the result of bad food4  
,remember that you can set a good table 
by raising fruit1      vegetables1      
grains and your meat4       ,remember   
that you intend to train your children  
to stay at home out      of bad company4
       ,remember that if you would have 
their minds and yours clean1 you        
will be obliged to help them learn      

something outside the school      room4 
,remember1 that you can do this in no   
better way than by      taking a good   
paper--the ,new ,york ,weekly ,witness  
or ,the ,sabbath      ,reading1         
published in ,new ,york1 cost very      
little4 ,have your      children read to
 you from the ,bible and from the       
papers4        ,,your ,,needs4          
,you need chairs in your house4 ,get    
boxes4 ,cover with bright calico1       
and use them for seats until you can buy
 chairs4       ,you need plates1 knives 
and forks1 spoons and table cloths4 ,buy
      them with the tobacco and snuff   
money4       ,you need more respect for 
self4 ,get it by staying away from      
street      corners1 depots and1 above  
all1 excursions4       ,you need to stay
 away from these excursions to keep out 
of bad      company1 out of court1 out  
of jail1 and out of the disgust of every
      self-respecting person4       ,you
 need more race pride4 ,cultivate this  
as you would your crops4      ,it will  

mean a step forward4       ,you need a  
good home4 ,save all you can4 ,get your 
home1 and that      will bring you      
nearer citizenship4       ,you can      
supply all these needs4 ,when will you  
begin8 ,every moment      of delay is a 
loss4        ,,how ,,to ,,become        
,,prosperous4       #a4 ,keep no more   
than one dog4       #b4 ,stay away from 
court4       #c4 ,buy no snuff1 tobacco 
and whisky4       #d4 ,raise your own   
pork4       #e4 ,raise your vegetables4 
#f4 ,put away thirty cents for every    
dollar you spend4       #g4 ,keep a good
 supply of poultry4 ,set your hens4     
,keep your chickens      until they will
 bring a good price4       #h4 ,go to   
town on ,thursday instead of ,saturday4 
,buy no more than you      need4 ,stay  
in town no longer than necessary4       
#i4 ,starve rather than sell your crops 
before you raise them4 ,let      your   
mind be fixed on that the first day of  
,january1 and stick to      that every  
day in the year4       #aj4 ,buy land   

and build you a home4   ,the various    
states are beginning to establish       
institutions in which agriculture and   
industrial training may be given4 ,among
 these may be mentioned that of ,alabama
 at ,normal1 and of ,mississippi at     
,westside4 ,alabama has also established
 an experiment station in connection    
with the ,tuskegee ,institute4  ,in     
,texas there is an interesting movement 
among the ,negro farmers known as the   
,farmers' ,improvement ,society4 ,the   
objects are3    #a4 ,abolition of the   
credit system4   #b4 ,stimulate         
improvements in farming4   #c4          
,co-operative buying4   #d4 ,sickness   
and life insurance4   #e4 ,encouragement
 of purchase of land and home4   ,the   
,association holds a fair each year     
which is largely attended4 ,according to
 the ,galveston ,news of ,october #ab1  
#aijb1 the society has about #c1jjj     
members1 who own some #ej1jjj acres of  
land1 more than #h1jjj cattle and #g1jjj
 horses and mules4 ,this organization1  

founded and maintained entirely by      
,negroes1 promises much in many ways4   
,in ,october1 #aijb1 a fair was held in 
connection with the school at ,calhoun1 
,ala41 with #hc exhibitors and #daf     
entries1 including #dh from the school  
and a very creditable showing of farm   
products and live stock4  ,besides these
 general lines which seem to be of      
promise it is in place to mention a     
couple of attempts to get the ,negroes  
to purchase land4 ,there have been not a
 few persons who have sold land to them 
on the installment plan with the        
expectation that later payments would be
 forfeited and the land revert4 ,there  
are some enterprises which are above    
suspicion4 ,i am not referring now to   
private persons or railroad companies   
who have sold large tracts to the       
,negroes1 but to organizations whose    
objects are to aid the blacks in        
becoming landholders4 ,the ,land        
,company at ,calhoun4 ,ala41 started in 
#ahif1 buying #a1jdj acres of land1     

which was accurately surveyed and       
divided into plots of fifty acres1 so   
arranged that each farm should include  
different sorts of land4 ,this was sold 
to the ,negroes at cost price1 #h per   
acre1 the purchasers to pay #h per cent 
on deferred payments4 ,the sums paid by 
the purchasers each year have been as   
follows3    #ahif--  #gda4jc4 ,found    
later to be borrowed money in the main4 
#ahig--a1dhe4ae4 ,largely borrowed      
money4   #ahih--  #cfg4cd4 ,men paying  
back borrowed money4 ,advances large4   
#ahii--  #cgd4gg4   #aijj--a1fdi4be4    
,money not borrowed4 ,advances small4   
#aija--  #hga4di4 ,bad year4 ,poor      
crops4 ,money not borrowed4             
#aijb--b1bhj4db4 ,advances very small4  
,outlook encouraging4   ,there have been
 some failures on part of tenants1 and  
it has been necessary to gradually      
select the better men and allow the     
others to drop out4 ,the company has    
paid all expenses and interest on its   
capital4 ,a second plantation has been  

purchased and is being sold4 ,there is a
 manager who is a trained farmer1 and by
 means of the farmers' association      
already mentioned much pressure is      
brought to bear on the ,negroes to      
improve their condition4 ,the results   
are encouraging4 ,in ,macon ,county the 
,southern ,land ,company has purchased  
several thousand acres which it is      
selling in much the same way1 but it is 
too early to speak of results4 ,even at 
,calhoun but few of the men have yet    
gotten deeds for their land4  ,a word   
regarding the methods of the ,southern  
,land ,company will be of interest4 ,the
 land was carefully surveyed in         
forty-acre plots4 ,these are sold at #h 
per acre1 the payments covering a period
 of seven years4 ,the interest is       
figured in advance1 and to each plot is 
charged a yearly fee of #e for          
management4 ,in this total is also      
included the cost of house and well 7a  
three-roomed cabin is furnished for     
about #ajj1 a well for #aj74 ,this sum  

is then divided into seven equal parts  
so that the purchaser knows in advance  
just what he must pay each year4 ,the   
object of the company is to encourage   
home ownership4 ,until the place is paid
 for control of the planting1 etc41     
remains with the manager of the company4
 ,advances are in cash 7except          
fertilizers71 as no store is conducted  
by the company and interest is charged  
at #h per cent for the money advanced   
and for the time said money is used4    
,on this place in #aijb1 ,h4 ,w41 a man 
aged #fh1 with wife and three children1 
owning a horse1 a mule and two cows1 did
 as follows4 ,he and his son-in-law are 
buying eighty acres4 ,they made a good  
showing for the first year under        
considerable difficulties and on land by
 no means rich3                         
,debits4             ,credits4          
,fertilizer            #cd4hh    ,cotton
    #cij4cb   ,whitewashing             
#c4jj   ,liming                 #ai4gf  
,lease contract        #ahj4jj   ,cash  

#acj4cf   ,interest                #c4ab
                        -------         
#cga4ab                        -------  
,balance ,jan4 #a1 #aijc  #ai4bj   ,this
 leads me to mention the question of    
land ownership on the part of the       
,negroes4 ,this has not been mentioned  
hitherto for several reasons4 ,in the   
first place the data for any detailed   
knowledge of the subject are not to be  
had4 ,few states make separate record of
 land owned by the blacks as distinct   
from general ownership4 ,the census has 
to depend upon the statements of the men
 themselves1 and ,i have heard tenants  
solemnly argue that they owned the land4
 ,again a very considerable proportion  
of the land owned is also heavily       
mortgaged1 and these mortgages are not  
always for improvements4 ,nor is it by  
any means self evident that land        
ownership necessarily means a more      
advanced condition than where land is   
rented4 ,moreover1 a considerable       
proportion of the farms owned are so    

small that they do not suffice to       
support the owners4 ,conditions vary in 
different districts4 ,in ,virginia it   
has been possible to buy a few acres at 
a very low price4 ,in parts of ,alabama1
 or wherever the land has been held in  
large estates in recent years1 it has   
often been impossible for the ,negro to 
purchase land in small lots4 ,thus1     
though ,i believe heartily in land      
ownership for the blacks and believe    
that well conducted land associations   
will be beneficial1 ,i cannot think that
 this alone will solve the questions    
confronting us4 ,retrogression is       
possible even with land ownership4      
,other things are necessary4 ,on the    
basis of existing data the best article 
with which ,i am acquainted on this     
subject appeared in the ,southern       
,workman for ,january1 #aijc1 written by
 ,dr4 ,g4 ,s4 ,dickerman1 in which he   
showed that among the ,negro farmers the
 owners and managers formed #ei4h per   
cent of the total in ,virginia1 #eg4f   

per cent in ,maryland1 #dh4f per cent in
 ,kentucky1 falling as we go ,south to  
#ae4a per cent in ,alabama1 #af4d per   
cent in ,mississippi1 and #af4b per cent
 in ,louisiana1 rising to #cj4i per cent
 in ,texas4 ,evidently the forces at    
work are various4  ,within a few months1
 at the suggestion of ,mr4 ,horace      
,plunkett1 of the ,irish ,agricultural  
,organization ,society1 a new work has  
been taken up1 whose course will be     
watched with great interest4 ,i quote   
from a letter of ,mr4 ,plunkett to ,dr4 
,wallace ,buttrick1 of the ,general     
,education ,board3       ,from what ,i  
have seen of the negro character1 my own
 impression is      that the race has   
those leader-following propensities     
which      characterize the ,irish      
people4 ,it has1 too1 ,i suspect1 in its
      mental composition the same vein  
of idealism which my own      countrymen
 possess1 and which makes them          
susceptible to      organization1 and   
especially to those forms of            

organization which      require the     
display of the social qualities to which
 ,i have alluded      and which you will
 have to develop4 ,these characteristics
 which      express themselves largely1 
the old plantation songs1 in the form   
of religions exercises1 and in the      
maintenance of a staff of      preachers
 out of all proportion ,i should think1 
to the spiritual      requirements1     
should1 in my opinion1 lend themselves  
to associative      action for practical
 ends if the organizing machinery       
necessary to      initiate such action  
were provided4       ,what1 then1 is my 
practical suggestion8 ,it is that your  
board1 if      it generally approves of 
the idea1 should take one1 two1 or1 at  
the      most1 three communities1 such  
as that we inquired about1 and organize 
them on the ,irish plan4 ,the farmers   
should at first he advised to           
confine their efforts to some simple    
object1 such as the joint      purchase 
of their immediate agricultural         

requirements4 99 99 99 ,i would      at 
first deal solely with the colored      
people1 beginning in a very      small  
way1 leaving larger developments for the
 future to decide4   ,hampton ,institute
 has taken up the suggestion and is     
planning to organize a community4       
,everything will1 of course1 depend on  
the management as well as on the people4
 ,if the results are as satisfactory as 
they have been in ,ireland the efforts  
will be well expended4  ,with this brief
 and incomplete account we must take    
leave of the ,negro farmer4 ,throughout 
the thesis ,i have attempted to keep two
 or three fundamental propositions      
constantly in sight4 ,briefly summarized
 these are that we have to do with a    
race whose inherited characteristics are
 largely of ,african origin2 that these 
have been somewhat modified under       
,american influences1 but are still     
potent2 that the economic environment in
 ,america is not a unit and must finally
 result in the creation of different    

types among the blacks2 that the needs  
of the different habitats are various2  
that the segregation from the mass of   
the whites is fraught with serious      
consequences2 that measures of wider    
application must be adopted if the      
,negro is to bear his proper part in the
 progress of the country2 that owing to 
the great race differences the whites   
must take an active interest in the     
blacks2 that in spite of the many       
handicaps under which the ,negro        
struggles the outlook is not hopeless if
 his willingness to work can so be      
directed that a surplus will result4 ,to
 my mind the ,negro must work out his   
salvation1 economic and social4 ,it     
cannot be given without destroying the  
very thing we seek to                   
strengthen--character4 ,this is the     
justification for the emphasis now laid 
upon industrial training4 ,this training
 and the resulting character are the    
pre-requisites of all race progress4    
,industrial education is thus not a fad 

nor a mere expedient to satisfy the     
selfish demands of southern whites4 ,it 
is the foundation without which the     
superstructure is in vain4 ,if ,i have  
fairly stated the difficulties in the   
way and have shown the possibility of   
ultimate success1 ,i am content4 ,for   
the future ,i am hopeful4     ,,maps    
,,showing ,,the ,,distribution ,,of     
,,the ,,negroes ,,in ,,the ,,southern   
,,states       ,these maps are          
particularly referred to in ,chapter    
,,ii4 ,the chief      geological        
districts are indicated4 ,the figures   
are based upon the      census of #aijj4
 ,the maps are here included in the hope
 that they      may prove of value to   
students of the problems herein         
discussed4   ,,virginia  ,,negro        
,,percentage ,,of ,,population1 #aijj   
,total ,negroes          #ffj1gbb       
,total ,whites         #a1aib1hee       
,negroes form #ce4f of total            
,,virginia  ,,negroes ,,per ,,square    
,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles in      

,state      #dj1abe   ,average ,negroes 
per ,mile     #af4d   ,average ,whites  
per ,mile      #bi4g   ,,north          
,,carolina  ,,negro ,,percentage ,,of   
,,population1 #aijj    ,total ,negroes  
#fbd1dfi   ,total ,whites     #a1bfc1fjc
   ,negroes form #cc of total   ,,north 
,,carolina  ,,negroes ,,per ,,square    
,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles in      
,state     #dh1ehj   ,average ,negroes  
per ,mile    #ab4h   ,average ,whites   
per ,mile       #bf   ,,south ,,carolina
  ,,negro ,,percentage ,,of ,,total     
,,population1 #aijj    ,total ,whites in
 ,state         #eeg1hjg   ,total       
,negroes in ,state        #ghb1cba      
---------                               
#a1cdj1abh  ,negroes form #eh4d of total
   ,,south ,,carolina  ,,negroes ,,per  
,,square ,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles
 in ,state          #cj1agj   ,average  
,negroes to ,square ,mile   #be4a       
,average ,whites to ,square ,mile       
#ag4i   ,,georgia  ,,negro ,,percentage 
,,of ,,total ,,population1 #aijj        

,total ,whites in ,state                
#a1aha1bid   ,total ,negroes in ,state  
#a1jcd1hac                              
---------                               
#b1baf1ajg  ,negroes form #df4g of total
   ,,georgia  ,,negroes ,,per ,,square  
,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles in      
,state             #eh1ihj   ,average   
,negroes per ,square ,mile     #ag4f    
,average ,whites per ,square ,mile      
#ai4i   ,,florida  ,,negro ,,percentage 
,,of ,,population1 #aijj    ,total      
,whites            #big1ccc   ,total    
,negroes           #bcj1gcj             
-------                                 
#ebh1jfc  ,negroes form #dc4g of total  
,,florida  ,,negroes ,,per ,,square     
,,mile1 #aijj    ,square miles in ,state
            #ed1bdj   ,average ,negroes 
per ,mile            #d4b   ,average    
,whites per ,mile             #e4d      
,,alabama    ,total ,whites in ,state   
#a1jja1aeb   ,total ,negroes in ,state  
#hbg1cjg                                
---------                               

#a1hbh1dei  ,negroes form #de4b of total
   ,,alabama  ,,negroes ,,per ,,square  
,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles in      
,state             #ea1edj   ,average   
,negroes per ,mile              #af     
,average ,whites per ,mile              
#ai4d   ,,mississippi  ,,negro          
,,percentage ,,of ,,total ,,population1 
#aijj    ,negro ,percentage in ,state   
#eh4e     ,total ,whites       #fda1bjj 
,total ,negroes      #ijg1fcj           
---------                               
#a1edh1hcj   ,,mississippi  ,,negroes   
,,per ,,square ,,mile1 #aijj    ,average
 ,negroes per ,square ,mile             
#ai4eh   ,average ,whites per ,square   
,mile           #ac4hb   ,square ,miles 
in ,state                   #df1cdj     
,,tennessee  ,,negro ,,percentage ,,of  
,,population1 #aijj    ,total ,negroes  
#dhj1bdc   ,total ,whites               
#a1edj1ahf   ,negroes form #bc4h of     
total   ,,tennessee  ,,negroes ,,per    
,,square ,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles
 in ,state          #da1gej   ,average  

,negroes per ,mile         #aa4b        
,average ,whites per ,mile              
#cf4h   ,,kentucky  ,,negro ,,percentage
 ,,of ,,population1 #aijj    ,total     
,negroes         #bhd1gjf   ,total      
,whites        #a1hfb1cji   ,negroes    
form #ac4c of total   ,,kentucky        
,,negroes ,,per ,,square ,,mile1 #aijj  
,square ,miles in ,state                
#dj1jjj   ,average ,negroes per ,mile   
#g4a   ,average ,whites per ,mile       
#df4e   ,,arkansas  ,,negro ,,percentage
 ,,of ,,total ,,population1 #aijj       
,negro ,percentage in ,state        #bh 
,total ,whites in ,state       #idd1hej 
,total ,negroes in ,state      #cff1hef 
---------                               
#a1cja1gjf   ,,arkansas  ,,negroes ,,per
 ,,square ,,mile1 #aijj    ,square      
,miles in ,state          #ec1jde       
,average ,negroes per ,sq4 ,mile        
#f4i   ,average ,whites per ,sq4 ,mile  
#ag4h   ,,louisiana  ,,negro            
,,percentage ,,of ,,total ,,population1 
#aijj    ,total ,whites in ,state       

#gbi1fab   ,total ,negroes in ,state    
#fej1hjd                                
---------                               
#a1chj1daf  ,negroes form #dg4a of total
   ,,louisiana  ,,negroes ,,per ,,square
 ,,mile1 #aijj    ,square ,miles in     
,state          #de1dbj   ,average      
,negroes per ,mile         #ad4c        
,average ,whites per ,mile              
#af4a   ,,eastern ,,texas    ,whites in 
,district          #a1gdg1jeb   ,negroes
 in ,district           #fjh1cja        
,negro ,percentage in ,state            
#bj4d   ,in ,district ,covered          
#be   ,,eastern ,,texas  ,,negroes ,,per
 ,,square ,,mile1 #aijj    ,square      
,miles included          #fj1dec        
,average ,negro                     4#aj
   ,average ,white                      
#bh4h  ,includes all ,counties with one 
,negro per ,square ,mile     ,footnotes3
  #a ,see article by ,a4 ,h4 ,stone4    
,atlantic ,monthly1 ,may1 #aijc4  #b    
,the ,negro in ,maryland4  #c ,the      
,negro in the ,yazoo-,mississippi       

,delta4  #d ,bulletin1 ,department of   
,labor1 ,no4 #ce4  #e ,the ,future of   
the ,american ,negro4  #f ,olmsted1 ,f4 
,l4--,the ,cotton ,kingdom4  #g         
,olmsted1 ,f4 ,t4 ,the ,cotton ,kingdom4
  #h ,negroes of ,litwalton1            
,va4--,bulletin ,department of ,labor1  
,no4 #cg4  #i ,rents a mule4  #aj       
,bulletin1 ,department of ,labor1 ,no4  
#ce4     ,transcriber's ,notes3         
,passages in italics are indicated by   
underscore4  ,additional spacing after  
some of the quotes is intentional to    
indicate both the end of a quotation and
 the beginning of a new paragraph as    
presented in the original text4         
,inconsistencies in spelling1           
punctuation1 and hyphenation have been  
retained from the original4  ,misprints 
corrected3   entrepeneurs corrected to  
entrepreneurs 7page #f7   optomistic    
corrected to optimistic 7page #h7   from
 corrected to form 7page #i7   ,atantic 
corrected to ,atlantic 7page #i7   stdy 
corrected to study 7page #aj7           

,talledega corrected to ,talladega 7page
 #af7   inhabitated corrected to        
inhabited 7page #ag7   sevaral corrected
 to several 7page #ca7   carefuly       
corrected to carefully 7page #cg7       
,tusgekee corrected to ,tuskegee 7page  
#gc7   ,talledega corrected to          
,talladega 7page #gc7   charactertistics
 corrected to characteristics 7page #gg7
  ,two footnotes are marked #g2 both    
refer to the same footnote4  ,the key to
 the table on page #ea was extracted    
from the column headings of the original
 table that were printed vertically4    
,wide tables have been split in half    
with one column repeated4