Farmers' gazette, and Cheraw advertiser. (Cheraw, S.C.) 1839-1843, January 06, 1841, Image 1
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g-g; g g wsz? j;
ANNIVERSARY ORATION.
Of the Slate Agricultural Society of South 1
Carolina; by Oca. George McDuiJie; j4
read before the Society. on .'he 2S,'k Woe- l y
ember 1*40, at their annual meeting in j1
the Hall of the House of Ryrcsanla'ircs. ic
Gcn'lemen 0/ the Slate Agricultural Socic- ! .
fa a/* .V/t 4 *it9?rk! inst I
\*j w* v mu | (
_ ? I enter upon the performance of the r
W ta-k you have been please-,i 10 assign m |
with a due sense of its importance, and a t
corresponding regret that 1 shall not be a- j
l)le to fulfil eithe my own wishes or your c
reasonable expectations. I may confi lent
ly trust, however, that this unpretending i
contribution to the cause of agricultural .
improvement, will be received in the spirit ;
in which it is offered; and that ihe partial- ,
itv to which I am indebted for the honor of (
now addressing you, on the greatest and t
most neglected of all the sources of public
prosperity, will insure, for the unavoidable i
imperfections of such a performance, your f
liberal and indulgent consideration. | j
The art of cultivating the earth, and of! <
increasing and perpetuating its productive s
powers, wliile it has been the first to indicate
the dawn of civilization among men. ;
is probably destined to he the last to mark r
by its own advancement, the final singes |
of human improvement. For of all the i
arts that contribute either to supply c
the physical wantsor promote the intellec- s
tual development and moral refinement 1
of the human family; none are more deep- . v
Iv and essentially founded i.i the princi- j $
pies of inductive philosophy, or are eapa- j a
ble of extending their achievements over i|
a wider field of usefulness and true beni- ' w
licence. It is scarcely possible, indeed, n
to assign any limits, either to the aggro- p
gate amount, of to the number or variety c.
of useful productions, with which the fos- n
tcnng bosom of mother earth is ever reaJy ! ii
to reward the researches and the labors of j <_
her children. And yet, so strange a para- U
dox is man, that philosophy has stood gaz- ?
ing at the wonders of the heavens, en- i e
tangled in the mazes of vain conjecture. c
Knterprize has traversed and vexed the : a
, earth, and the sens in the vain pursuit of s
^ golden visions?and even avarice, calcul- i
ating avarice, has wasted its efTorts in j \wild
and gambling speculations, contribu- c
ting nothing to the common stock of na- c
tional wealth and human comfort, while s
. millions of our race have hecn literally (
perishing for the want of nourishment, (
and the whole surface of the earth has pre- i
sented one boundless and inexhaustible i
mine of wealth and abundance, which |
haughty science has scarcely deigned to c.
explore, leaving sober industry to group its ; c
toilsome way amidst darkness and dis- j
couragement. j c
As cultivators of the soil, and as mem- 11
bers of a community whose prosperity do- a
pends almost exclusively, and I may add, li
unalterably, upon its productions, it is high a
time that we should free ourselves from I
our share of* this common reproach, and , s
make one united "and* vigorous effort to 1 p
redeem our agricultflre from the shackles p
which ignorance, prejudice, evil habits, c
and the blind and fatal thirst for the sud- c
den accumulation of large fortunes, have i
but too firmly fixed upon it. r\
To aid in the accomplishment of this 1
I
great reform, an achievement, in all res- ! s
pects, worthy of the highest aspirations of $
patriotic ambition, I shall proceed to point t
out some of the prominent and practical t
errors most prevalent in our agricultural v
system?if system it may be called?and | a
to lay down some of the fundamental prin- ' p
ciplcs and cardinal rules, which must form j v
the basis of all substantial improvements j r
in r?nr norricultura! ppnnnniv. :i
e> " | The
greatest, most prevailing, and i
most pernicious of ail the practices which t
distinguish and deform the agriculture of j t
*hisand the other cotton planting States, i t
$s the almost exclusive direction of the 11
whole available labor of the plantation, to ' c
the production of our greatest market sta- 1 r
pie, and the consequent neglect of all the j t
other commodities which the soil is capa- \
hie of producing or sustaining, and which j 1
are essential to supply the wants of the
establishmet. No scheme of reform or >
improvement can produce any great and i
salutary results, which does not lay the (j
axe to the root of this radical vice in our i
husbandry. i *
It should he, therefore, an inviolable ;
rule in the economy of every plantation, ]
to produce an abundant supply of every <
species of gratn, and of every species of f
live stock, requred for its own consump- <
tion. I am aware, that in peculiar local- t
jtjes, when the price of cotton has been t
wuwi w.i-i.fc BIX H ]L JLM'IIOWB? i i I tmmtmm
CI IKK A
ligh. c\\n >!}s m i v ho foui 1 ofsuccessful
planting where this rule lias been disregarded.
I>;it this serves only toprcve, that even
i bad system prosecuted with great energy i
ind under favorable circumstances, may i
33 crowned with a considerable share of!
the success which would more certainly
lave rewarded a^jood one. Such exam '*
' 4 ~ <Un
i!es, it tncy consilium an e.xutrpuuu iu iuc
ule [ have laid down, by no means impair
ts force or dsaprove its general cxpedien:v.?The
economy.of a plantation should
>e founded, not upon the temporary and
nutablc expedients, but upon general and I
>ennanent rules, adapted to all the proba>!c
viscissitudes of trade and of the seas,
ins, and all the probable fluctuations of
>rices and of the currency. We have )
nirely seen enough of these fluctuations, :
tad sufficiently witnessed, if not experi-j
meed, their disastrous influence, to warn ;
is against the fatal policy of yielding up j
he lessons of experience to the temple- j
;ions of high prices and prosperous sea- j
>ons. It is, indeed, one of the greatest i
vhich these fluctuations hahi'uully pro-1
luce among us, that \re arc but too sue- j
:cssfully tempted, by tli* | emporary alh re-!
nent of high prices, to abandon ail the j
naxims of wisdom and all the rules j
>f 3 >uih1 economy, whmh l ave been i??i- i
>osed upon us by painful experience, in
icriods of depression and adversity: Let (
is, then, each one for l! ic sake of ins own j
merest, and ail for the common wt-,'fure
>f South Carolina, solemnly and dclibci'-1
itelv resolve, that we will never again, !
indef any tcinp'ation, incur the just re-1
>roach which must aitach to our charac-;
cr as p'an.'ers, if we s!;ould he induced to i
ely upon distant communities for those ;
?? UH.H WU1 V?? il |'Jtl2X let*
ions are so capable of pro lacing. And
0 the crul that tlrs high resolve may be
noro firmly ndopte 1 and pcrscvoii'igly
naintaincd. I shall endeavor to shew, that
1 is the dictate, not less of an cnligj tv n d
elf-interest, than of an enlarged public j
;pirit.
We are, then, to consider and decide!
ipon the comparafivc cheapness and eco- j
lomy of producing ourselves on the one ,
land, and of purchasing from abroad on;
he other, the hogs, horses, mules, and oth- '
r live stock, required for the use and con- ;
umption of our plantations, during an av-,
rage series of years. A stranger to our I
rretched habits of economy, would be
tartled at the mere propounding of such
n inquiry.?He could not comprehend
he economy of importing from Kentucky,
hat our own soil and climate are so emicntly
adapted to produce. However
lausible. it is most assuredly by a false conomv,
founded upon false reasoning. A
lan who will assume that our hogs and
orsts must he raised exclusively upon
orn, and will gravely sit down to calcuite
the cost of so many bushels at
eventy-five or even fifty cents a bush1,
will certainly come to an erronious
onclusion. lint those of us who system
tically pursue the business of raising live
lock, can testify that the quantity of corn
icccssary to raise hogs, horses or mules,
s extremely inconsiderable. Oats, whethr
harvested for the work horses and mules,
>r used as pasturage for stock hogs and
took horses and mules, is an invaluable
T?>p for a cotton planter. That which is
tsed a.? pasturage, while it wiil cost only
lie labor of preparing the ground and seedng
it, will keep all the stock in fine order,
i'oni the middle of summer until the opning
of the pea fields, and these, which ,
ost scarcely any labor, will keep them in J
ike order, with very little aid from the
orn crih, until December. From this j
irne regular feeding will he required for i
bout four months, and after that, very
idle will swflice till the oat pastures arc'
gain ready. In this view of the subject, j
have omitted many useful auxiliaries, j
uch as potatoes, pindars, peaches and ap- j
>les, the two latter of which arc often J
permitted to rot on the ground, though excllent
food for hogs, and perhaps the least
xpensive of all. Nor have I embraced j
n it the artificial grasses, though I am
[uitc sanguine from an experiment I now
lavein progress, that in most of the strong,
oils of the country, blue grass and herds
irass will succeed very nearly as well as
hey do in Kentucky. Upon the whole,
hen, it is my deliberate opinion, founded
ipon my own experience and observation
is a planter, that in South Carolina, and
>articu!arly the upper oountry districts, it
vould he true economy for the planters to
nise their own stock, even if they could
ilways buy Kentucky pork at three dolars
a head. But let it be remembered
ns.<?/-kr,,?licn (lilsJ mil.'t fh?Vol.fi
hcinselvcsto it as an essential branch of
heir business. A regular system must
>e adopted and a competent person be
. barged with its execution ; and overseers
7
mist be made to know, that it isas much
heir duty to superintend it, as the cultiration
of die cotton crop; for hogs and
lorscs can no more thrive without proper
ittention, than corn and cotton can grow
vithout attention. And it is worthy of
emark, that when hogs are fat or i*i a
jood growing order, it requires not half so
nuch food to keep them in that condition,
is it would require to sustain poor hogs
ind prevent them from growing poorer,
[t is, therefore, a most obvious ruic of e:onomy,
never to permit stock hogs to
;ink below what we denominate a growing
mndition. The corn that will be required
o keep them in that condition during four
>r five months in the year, will be less than
? mmm&w
\V. SOUni-CAKOLLNA,
that which would be required in extra
feeding to prepare poor hogs for the
slaughter pen ; and at the same age, their
weight will he fifty per cent, greater, and
their flesh will be much more firm, than
that of hogs brought lip in poverty and
suddenly fattened. Iam now speaking
the actual result of my own experience,
and I have been astonished to perceive
how little corn is required to prevent fat
hogs from getting poor.
As an important part of the branch of
economy we arc now considering every
planter should keep as large a stock of neat
cattle, and of sheep, as his pasturage and
the otfal of the plantation will support.
To this extent, there is no description of
stock s:f valuable in proportion to the exr
nnnsn of maintaining them. Their flesh
I o
is much cheaper than tliat of hogs, and
besides supplying the table of the planter
with an abundance of good beef, butter
and mutton, the former will advantageously
supply one I al oftho; 1 in-ation rations
of meat during the autumnal months ; and
the latter, all the wool required for clothing
the negroes in winter. In addition to all
this, it is the opinion of the most experienced
planters, in which I fully concur,
that where cattle are penned every night
on grounds properly covered with litter,
the manure they will make i?:.he course
of the year, will very nearly defray the
j expense of maintaining them.
I have thus attempted to shew that it is
the true interest of every planter to raise
all the live stock required for his own use,
for the use and consumption of his
own plantation, though no one else should
pursue same policy.
I now propose to consider the subject
in a still more interesting pr int of view.
I propose to enquire what would he the
ellect of tins system upon the general
prosperity of the cotton planting States,
assuming that it should he universally aO
dopted. It is not extravagant to estimate
the annual expense which a planter would
incur in purchasing his supplies of stock,
at one tenth of the nett proceeds of his
cotton crop, as exhibited on the hooks of
his factor. Assuming, then, that the labor
diverted from the production of cotton,
in order to raise these supplies, would diminish
the cottcn crop ia the s ime proportion,
it would follow that each individual
planter would derive as large a nett income
from his diminished cotton crop, as
he would have derived from one tenth
larger, if he purchased his stock, even supposing
that the diminished cotton crop,
brought nohighci price than could have
been obtained for the larger one. But
here we realize the grand result of the proposed
reform in our agricultural economy.
It is a well established principle of political
economy, confirmed by the uniform
j.vnnrlnn/.o r?f rim r>nftnii nlantinjr States.
1 | D
that when the supply of a commodity
exceeds the effective demand, the price is
diminished, not in proportion to the excess,
hut in a still greater proportion. If,
then, we assume that the proposed reform
would reduce the annual cotton crop from
two millions of hales, to one million eight
hundred thousand, and that the effective
demand of the world would not exceed
the latter number, it would clearly follow
from the above stated principle that the
smaller crop of one million eight hundred
thousand bales, would yield a greater
aggregate income than the larger crop of
two millions of bales. In the habitual
state of our cotton trade, with a constant
tendency in the production to exceed the
'("imn;1. stir.S won! I rilwavs be the result
1 of diminished production where no extraordinary
causes existed to check consumption.
It results from this reasoning
that the planting Slates would realize
from the universal adoption of the propoi
sed reform, a clear aggregate saving of
the sum annually expended in purchasing
live stock ; and that each individual
planter, besides greatly increasing the
comforts of his establishment, would add
ten per cent, to his annual income.?
Entirely satisfied, as I am, of the sound,
ncssof this reasoning, and the justness of
the conclusion to which it leads, I am
j aware that it is exposed to an apparent
i objection. It may be naturally asked,
j how it happens that the planters, a class of
1 men sufficiently intelligent to understand
J their own interest, should, generally, pur[
sue a course so little calculated to promote
it ??A sufficient answer will be
found to this question, in the force of establishcd
habits, the mistaken ambition
i which makes the point of honorable distinction
consist in the number of cotton
j bales, and above all, the unfortunate
: habit so generally prevalent among plan:
tors, of neglecting their own business, and
! confiding it to the exclusive management
! of overseers. It is a duty which every
! planter owes, not only to himself, hut to
| his country, as a matter of example, to
i give his personal superintendence to his
i business, and make himself master of all
its details. He can scarcely deserve to own
1 an estate, who from false pride or indolent
self-indulgence, remains in voluntary
! ignorance of the various operations upon
which its productiveness depends, and
: relies exclusively upon agents who are
1 practically irresponsible, and in general,
grossly incompetent.Certain it is, that no
| general reform or improvement in our
I agricultural economy, will ever be made
k .'*r ^ A
Mmwmmwm?,
WEDNESDAY, JAMj'.lr
by overseers?Agents who arc employed
from year to year, who have no interest
in any permanent improvement, and who
an; generally actuated by the motives of
a tenant at will, which prompt them to
aiiu at a largo cotton crop the present
year, without any regard to the future,
or to the subsidiary branches of a sound
system of economy. Every plantor who
has attempted such reforms or improvements
as I have suggested, can testily
how utterly impossible it is to make overseers,
generally, realize their importance,
or bestow upon them sufficient attention
to insure their successful execution. Let
it, then, be regar^^^s the point of honor
w^th^veryplaut^H) attend personally
to his plantation, aro make himself mister
of every branch of its operations and
economy. This is an indispensable preliminary
step to all useful improvements
in our agriculture, and is ccju illv demanded
by every consideration of private
interest and public duty.
Another mischevouserror in our planting
economy, proceeding partly from the
mistaken ambition of making a large
count of cotton bales, and partly from the
uncalculating habits acquired during high
prices, is exhibited in the general carelessness
with which cotton is picked out
of the Held and prepared for market. L
has been fully demonstrated by experience
that those planters who have their cotton
properly handled, and sent to market free
from the contamination of trash and
stain, can habitually obtain in our own
markets, one cer.t a pound more than can
he obtained for cotton prepared in the
usual way ; and I can personally testify,
as the result of my own experience, thai
the difference made in foreign market.*
is much greater.?Now, I invite .your
serious attention to a few pluin and ob.
vious reflections on this subject. A d:
I nunution in price of one cent, a pound
at the present market rates of cotton, b
equal to ten per cent discount upon the
gross amount of the annual income of the
planter, and a still larger per centag
upon the amount of his nett income. Ii
follows, that by the careless operations oi
four months in gathering the crop, om
tenth of its value is destroyed, and one
tenth part of the labor of the whole yeai
is absolutely nullified. The labor of one
hundred hands is reduced in value to thai
of ninety, and five hundred hales of cot
ton arc reduced to four hundred and fifty,
Now I confidently put it to every practi.
cal planter, as a plain question of econo
my, what possible advantage there car
he in carelessly picking out a cotton crop,
that will compensate the planter for thit
sacrifice of fifty bales of cotton, the pro.
duct of the whole annual labor of ten
hands ? Let it be admitted, and it is ar
? i i i ;n _:_i.
extreme supposition, mat nanus wm pirn
out one tenth more in the one movie than
they will do in the other. Ever
on this hypothesis, one tenth of the laboi
of the whole year would be sacrificed foi
the sake of one tenth of the labor for foui
months, and to this sacrifice we must add
that of the additional expenses of the
horse power required to make the additional
fifty bales eCcotton. Does not the
conclusion, then, irresistably follow from
| these premises, that every planter should
lav it down as a cardinal rule, in pitching
his crop, to plant no more than he can
pick out with proper care, giving due attcntion
to the other interests of his plant,
ation. This rule, like that relating tc
live stock, comes (recommended by the
twofold consideration, that it not only
promotes the individual interest of cacli
planter, but still more extensively, the
general interest of the entire class. Ifil
will cause a diminished quantity of cotton
to be produced, it will cause the price ol
that diminished quantity to be proportionately
increased, by its superior quality
and still further, the# very circumstance
of its diminished quantity.
It is not to be doubted, therefore, thai
the general adoption of the two plain and
practical rules, so perfectly in the powci
ofeverv planter, of raising his cr\vn sup
plies instead of buying them, and picking
out and preparing his cotton with propel
cure and attention, would do more to pro
mote the prosperity of the cotton planting
States, than all the morns mnilicaull
speculations and political paper nostrum!
that ever deluded a people with visionan
hopes, while they afflicted them with rea
disasters.
And here, gentlemen, it may not be un
profitable to indulge in a few cautionan
I * 1-, o fiml OVfl~IVfl(r9 fl
I UUl'V* I IU1ICS \Jll 111141. VT IIU UIIU v.iun.u^u..
spirit ofspeculativc adventure, with whicl
almost all classes of our countrymen havi
been smitten and infatuated for sevent
years past, and which ha exerted a mos
pernicious influence, even upon our agri
cultural economy. It has unfortunate);
inspired our planters, in too many instan
ces, with a sort of contempt for the " dui
pursuits" of sober industry, and taugh
them to look upon every visionary am
ephermcral humbug as an Es Dorado o
sudden and unbounded wealth. Now, i
any anticipates, from the deliberations o
this socie-ty, the discovery of some nev
process bywhich wealth is to be accumnl
ated without labor, the sooner he dispel
such a delusion the better. There is n
Ba;
iY (?, 1841.
i. i ???y
royal high way to w a'th, afe more than
(o learning. As labor is the only true
and ultima-e mcasjro of vidue, wealth
is neither more nor lesi than the accumulated
results of labor; and wherever one:
on becomes rich without labor, it
follows as a necessary consequence,
that by some speculative juggle, he has,
managed to tra or to him elf the ltbors
..to of her people. Though individuals,
therefore may become rich by un-,
productive 'process >3, it is impossible, in
'the very natureof things, that communities
ever can. Let us, then, r.adzing these
great principles of industry and sound e?
conomy, and discarding all^yisionhry
schemes, steadily pursue the bcafen track
of honest industry, consoled by the patriotic
reflection, that every dollar we thus
add to our own fortunes, is so much added
to the wealth of the State, and that the
losses of others constitute no one of the
elements of our prosperity.
As intimately connected with this view
of the subject, I may venture to offer a
i\ w suggestions, calculated to show that in
' a planting community, habitual indebtedness
is the almost certain cuuse of pecuuiarv
embarrassment, and is palpably eppo
suu tu utui j iiKiAiiii ui griiuiiii; wriuni y#
Of all classes of the community, the planters
can best plead the excuse of necessity
tor going in debt, and fatal experience has
but too clearly demonstrate the disastrous
effects of such a policy?As this is the besetting
fraility of the times, which so many
lessons of experience have entirely failed
to cure, I consider it worthy of the grave
and solemn consideration of this associa1
tion. For if there be any question in the
whole circle of our general economy, in
relation to which a sound public opinion
i should he brought to bear upon individual
imprudence, this, in my opinion, is that
? very question.
If we consult the experience of other
States, we sjiall find that all the advantages
of a fertile soil and genial climate
have been blasted by the mistaken policy of
which I am speaking; and that communities,
which industry and prudence would
have caused to flourish almost beyond
example, exhibit one general scene of pecuniary
embarrassment, bankruptcy and
\ ruin. The experience and observation of
' every planter will sustain me in the as5
sertion, that we pay for credit, in the
: mode in which it is usually obtained in
r the purchase of property, from 10 to 20
? per cent, interest. Every one who is act
customed to attend administrator's and
. < thcr public sales, must have been struck
bv the extravagant prices men are tempted
to give by a year's credit; and not less
by the fact that such men arc perpetually
involved in pecuniary embarrassments,
and that the very efforts tney thus impru'
dently make to get forward in the world
* faster than their neighbors, keep them al'
ways in the rear. In fact, it may be tru1
ly affirmed as a general truth, that plan*
1 ters who are largely in debt, arc, to that
; extent, the mere stewards of their credi
i tors. Lite is with thein an anxious anu
i slavish struggle in pursuit of an object
which always eludes their grasp. But
there is anol her form of credit, fortunate.
ly not so prevalent in South Carolina as in
other Slates, of w hich planters are but too
ready to avail themselves, which is equally
at war with sound economy and a
sound currency. I allude, of course, to
bank discounts. It has been so fashion.
1 able of late, to pronounce extravagant eu'
logics on what is miscalled the credit sysI
tern, that it will probably be deemed quite
1 heretical to say that credit, in any form is a
public and private evil. It is, nevertheless,
. my deliberate and well considered opin>
ion, that one of the greatest nuisances that
; could afflict an agricultural community,
- would be the establishment of agricultural
{ banks, so located as to enable every plan
, ter to obtain credit to the amount of one
t third part of the value of his estate. The
( fatal experience of other States has conP
clusively proved that such establishments
have been the invariable causes of embarb
rassment and ruin. Owing to the periodi
cal fluctuations inseparable from such a
5 system, it has generally happened that a
credit obtained by a planter, to the amount
t of one third of his estate, in a period of
' expansion, has required the whole estate
in a period of contraction. And wc have
been but too impressively admonished that
t it is the vcrv genius and instinct of those in
" J o
r stitut ions, to grant credits in periods of ex*
pansion, and exact payment in periods of
T contraction. One motive for calling your
? attention to thissubject, will be found in
the public manifestation of a desire in
' some' parts of the State, to convert the
' Bank of the State of South Carolina into
an agricultural Bank, and with that view,
to give it a central location. Such a
>r change, made for such a purpose, I should
1 regard as a great public calamity. Every
1 one practically acquainted both with p'aiB
ling and banking, must be aware that a
I mere planters' bank can be nothing more
t nor less than a loan ofiicc. The planter
- realizes his income annually and periodi/
cully; and it follows, that a discount gran
ted to him, except in rare cases, must be
1 virtually a credit for a year. In practice
t it would be more generally for a longer
I than for a shorter period. It is self evif
dent, then, that such a bank could not
f maintain the character of a specie paying
f bank for a single month. Now, if there
v is any one measure which the public opin
ion and the true policy of the State cons
cur in demanding, it is the rigid enforceo
mcnt of specie payments by ail the banks.
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~ NUMBERa
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Let mo warn my brother planters, Ihcrjf->r\
against involving themselves in a
sta'o of things by which they would ei:h.
ortfe the means of defeating this measure
ofsalu'^rv St ite policy, or become themselves
the victims of it,
I cannot, ilureforc, recommend a more
important reform to our planting community,
than to get out of debt with all-psacticable
despatch, if already involved in, it,
i and resolve for the fut.i.e never to be?involved
in it again. ?>uch a re olu ion?
generally adopted and'tirrilly maintained,
would do more to promote the independence
and substantial prosperity of an .agricultural
State, that! all the q ac'ccriea
! of legislation united. Imagine tor one
moment the great morel and ,pcjgl$cal
change which woul 1 be produce<vif it
could be truly announced at this moment,
that every cultivator of the soil, within the
wide limits of South Carolina, was entirely
free from ^ie shackles of debt. It.
would be a glorious day of jubilee. The
fatal spell of pecuniary influence would
be diss< 1/ed at o.ice, the shackles of depen
lence would fall from the arms of theindebted,
and every citizen would walk
abroad in the majesty of genuine independence
and freedom.
But let us consider the effect which
! this general and habitual freedom from
! debt, would produce upon the progress of
individuals in accumulating wealth, and
upon the aggregate prosperity of the whole
class of planters. Taking experience for
our guide, it can scarcely be doubted, that. *
those who have uniformly kept out of
debt, and have never purchased property
till they had the money in hand to pay for
it, have generally accumulated fortunes
more rapidly and much more certainly
| than those who have pursued the opposite
! policy. Every step they take is so much
| permanently gained. They are exposed
to no backsets; they arc affected by no
vicissitudes in trade, and stand firm and
unmoved amidst those great, and now frequent
periodical convulsions, by which
those who are in debt are always shaken
and often overwhelmed. \
Instances will no doubt occur to every
! one who henrs. tne, of men who have bpb!
itually made smaller crops than their
! neighbors, and who hav? yet, in'a aerie*
j of years grown wealthy and much foster*
by this very simple rule, which I one* !
heard laid down by a friend. He never
made large cotton, crops and was regarded
as a bad planter. And when asked
how he got rich so much faster than hi*
more energetic neighbors, he replied: "My
neighliors begin at the wrong end of the
year. They make their purchases at the
beginning o!' it, on a credit; I mike mine
at the end of it, and pay down the cash."
And here I am reminded of a saying of'
the late John Randolph, of Virginia; a
, man not more remarkable for his genius
and eccentricity, than for the profound
philosophical truti s which sometimes escaped
him, like the responses of an inspired
oracle. In the midst of one of his
splendid rhapsodies in the Senate >of the
i United States, he pause.) and fixing his
eye upon the presiding officer, exclaimed,
"Mr. President, I have discovered the
philosopher's stone. It consists in these
j four plain English monasvllables; "pat a*
! you go." Now, I will venture to 6ay? ?
' that this is a much nearer approach than
J alchemy will ever make, to the great ob-.
object of its visionary researches. And
; in recommending this maxim to the cotton
I planters of tiie State, I have still kept in
! view, not only the individual interest oC
each planter, separately considered, but
the common interest of the whole community
of planters. For this reform, like the
j others I have suggested, independently of
I the direct benefit it will confer on each individual
planter, will benefit the whole, as
a class, by checking over-production.?
One great cause of the incessant struggle
to make large cotton crops, to the neglect
of every other interest, is the reckless
i habit of contracting debts, which I am
J. nrn nilrrhnjmt
j Ul pi lUHlllg# lltg I WO uiv Y xmm ' - I
upon credit, and the planter is this furnished
both with the means and the motives
for unduly and disproportionately
[ enlarging his cotton crop. As cotton is>
, the only crop that will command money*
^ and as money is the most pressing want
j of a man in debt every thing is directed to.
j that object; So much so, that it is the
standing apology for neglecting to pursuo
I a sounder system of economy. The sayj
ing has, indeed, become proverbial among
p'anfers, "if I were not in debt,I would not
strive to make such Itrge cotton crops,,
but would devote myself to raising my
own supplies, and making permanent improvement.
Let me, tbcrefo-e, advise, admonish and
be.' eoch all our planters, as they regptd >>
their own true interest, the dignity ud
honor of their vocation, and the substantial
welfare of the State, to avoid the entangling
embarrasmcnts of debt. Let
them regard those who may offer them
credit with no friendly eye, but as enemies
in disguise, who seek to lead them
into temptation. If they have contracted
the habit of anticipating their ini
/*nmoa_ avpti ft sinfde vear. let them reform
vv",v" ' O" ? " '
evet that. Yes, 'reform it altogether.**
Then will their prosperity be placed on
immoveable foundations. Then will they
stand unshaken and unterrified amidst
I those periodical storms and convulsion*
which are inseparable concomitants of *
! false and artificial system of fluctuating
credit and currency. Then will Soutfc
,.s