HUMAN ELEMENTS IN COTTON 279 



as taught by the newspapers. I have not had any providential 

 misfortune. I want to make some money and have tried, but 

 cannot do so growing cotton. I am sore on cotton farming, 

 as it is impossible to be a thrifty citizen and grow cotton. 

 There is no wage in it. You cannot grow cotton to profit by 

 hiring your labor, and where a man does not work his chil- 

 dren from six years of age up in the field, he cannot come 

 out of debt and also have the necessities of life. He could 

 not do it if his life depended upon it." 20 



2. Runs two plows. Works only himself and children. 

 Is a diversified farmer, growing all his eatables at home 

 except flour and sugar. His labor is done by himself and 

 three sons. One son is of age and will farm for himself 

 during this year, 1913. 



"I give my average income and expense for ten years and 

 show how I stand: 



"My expenses for a family of seven: clothing, $100.00. 

 Flour, sugar, coffee and other necessities, $100.00. Swapped 

 old stock for younger average per year, $30.00. Improve- 

 ments, building, fences, etc., $100.00. For church and school 

 purposes, $70.00. Insurance Premiums $63.62. Fertilizer 

 $100. Labor $75.00. New Tools average $50.00. 



"Make from 8 to 14 bags of cotton and handle from $500.00 

 to $700.00 per year. Average outlay above $738.62. I keep 

 books. Here they are. 



"You ask how can one pay out more than was taken in. 

 I will explain: I sold my timber to make the improvements 

 with the $100.00 item mentioned and this winter bor- 

 rowed from N. Y. Life Insurance Co., $125.00 on my policy. 

 I paid my twenty-one-year-old boy $75.00 and my bank ac- 

 count is now $10. You see in the past, I had money in the 

 bank at times of from $100.00 to $500.00 from the sale of 

 my timber. That is spent living at home economically, pro- 



20 Mr. Alexander Hull, Moultrie, cited in The Farmer's Political 

 Economy. 



