The Negro's Agricultural Opportunity 67 



122) indicate the character of tenancy in the Black Belt, 

 Upper Piedmont and Wiregrass. The mountain counties 

 are omitted because of their unimportant Negro population. 

 The Black Belt naturally suffered a quicker decline in 

 ownership and growth of tenancy because it was in this area 

 that the old plantation system was prevalent, The percen- 

 tage of tenants in the Black Belt is uniformly higher than 

 in the other two sections from 1880 to 1910. It is also 

 noticeable that between 1890 and 1900 there was tremen- 

 dous increase in the proportion of cash tenants all over the 

 State, but specially in the Black Belt. During this prolonged 

 period of agricultural depression numbers of planters gave 

 up the struggle to maintain supervision over their tenants 

 and laborers and there was a great opportunity for laborers 

 and share tenants to become independent renters. 



TABLE 9. 



Farms Operated by Owners, Cash and Share Tenants. 



(Computed from U. S. Census, 1900 and 1910. Agricultural 



Tables Showing Tenure of Farmers by Color and Counties.) 



Black Belt— 

 1900.... I 27,476 I 15,029 

 1910.... I 28,697 I 16,513 

 Upper Piedmont — 

 1900.... I 20,593 I 5,466 



1910 I 23,021 1 8,005 



Wiregrass — 



1900 I 17,335 I 3,204| 



1910.... I 20,802 I 6,379 I 



8,663 I 51,168 I 7,516 

 10,087 I 55,297 | 9,809 



19,001 1 45,060 1 1,371 

 24,219 I 55,245 | 2,053 



4,296 I 24,835 | 2,390 

 9,314 I 36,495 | 3,578 



29,910 I 24,204 I 61,630 

 41,044 I 35,524 1 86,377 



2,475| 8,935112,781 

 4,607 I 11,635 1 18,295 



2,323 1 2,609 1 7,322 

 4,757 J 8,308|16,643 



Between 1900 and 1910 white cash tenants increased 

 about 15 per cent and white share tenants about 16 per cent. 

 Up to 1900, it will be observed from table 9 that there 



