42 Negro Migration 



vorable circumstances, and with thrift and foresight a ten- 

 ant could free himself of debt in a year or two. 



It is apparent from the foregoing outline of unsettled 

 agricultural conditions that many of the institutions which 

 arose were makeshifts. Both the planters and the ex-slaves 

 were confronted with an unprecedented situation, and the 

 predominant interest of both was in working out some 

 system of cultivation of the land. It early became evident 

 that the old plantation system of labor was not practicable 

 under free competition and contract. Smaller landowners 

 began to increase in number, and the tenant system gained 

 headway. The rapidity with which this change took place is 

 indicated in the following section. 



RAPIDITY OF THE BREAKDOWN 



The foregoing account of the struggle between planters in 

 the endeavor to preserve their holdings, indicates that it 

 was the landlord class which instituted the system of ten- 

 ancy as a means of furthering their interests. There is little 

 indication that, at first, the mass of Negroes felt the desire 

 to become independent renters, except in as far as the irk- 

 someness of supervision led them to wish to escape from 

 share tenancy. As the tenant system became established, 

 however, and the advantages of a more permanent tenure 

 could be seen, more and more of the Negroes began to seek 

 to become renters. 



The breakdown of the plantation system caused by the 

 economic pressure of competition among landowners, and 

 the desire of the laborers to gain a new status resulted in 

 three radical changes indicated by (1) The reduction in 

 number of large farms operated by laborers and consequent 

 growth in number of small farms. (2) The resultant reduc- 

 tion in number of owners of large tracts of land and the 

 growth in number of owners of small tracts. (3) The in- 



