EVOLUTION OF THE COTTON SYSTEM 77 



illness in the family, and he paid $13.00 in doctor bills and 

 a $15.00 hospital fee to the plantation hospital. He proved 

 that he was an agriculturist by paying $1.60 for a subscrip- 

 tion to the Cotton Farmer. 



He produced twenty-four bales of cotton, which sold for 

 25 and 26 cents, and 21,550 pounds of seed, which sold at 

 $45.00 a ton. In all, Week's crop of cotton brought $3,251.57. 



From this was deducted $39.60 levee tax, $152.40 for gin- 

 ning charges, and $12.00 for planting, leaving his half of the 

 crop $1,517.78. From this was deducted his store account of 

 $367.00 and $26.00 rent for the two acres of corn, leaving 

 the family of eight a balance of $1,124.78 in cash for the 

 year's work." 



"The overseer of the old regime has been replaced by 

 the farm manager in the new order," <}8 but supervision is 

 none the less present. It is usually understood in advance 

 that the landlord or manager is to direct the tenant's 

 farming activities. On many well-supervised plantations 

 the farm manager makes daily rounds of inspection giv- 

 ing instructions on details of field work. On 93 of 144 

 plantations the bell rings about sunrise, and the work 

 day is from sun to sun. Workers who fail to respond 

 to the bell are questioned and reprimanded. The working 

 week usually consists of five and a half days, Saturday 

 afternoon being taken off for shopping. Much care is 

 taken to see that mules belonging to the plantation are 

 not abused, many planters fearing that the Negroes will 

 ride the animals at night and on Sundays. Tools and im- 

 plements are lent for the year and returned to the planta- 

 tion stock at the end of the season. 



6T Facsimile from Cotton Estates Incorporated, by Theodore Price, 

 pp. 56, 57. Copy in Library of Congress. 

 68 Brannen, op. cit. f pp. 29, 42-52. 



