The Life of the Tenant Classes 85 



ously, giving their tenants in return the minimum of con- 

 cessions are enabled, as we noted at the beginning to make 

 as high as 25 per cent on their investment. This, of course, 

 can be called nothing short of exploitation through a sys- 

 tem. The landlord cannot attain such a high return on his 

 investment from the cash tenant. He is also in danger, if 

 his contract is not written or if the tenant is lazy or dis- 

 honest, of seeing his land deteriorate. 



(3) If the Negro has a family of any size, has farming 

 experience and capital, the logical status for him is land 

 ownership. As an owner nothing stands between him and 

 the realization of rent for his land, interest for his capital 

 invested, wages for his labor and that of his family, and, if 

 he proves to be a successful farmer, profits on his enter- 

 prise. There is no indication that the growth of a con- 

 siderable owner class is a detriment to the economic life of 

 the community either from the point of view of annual 

 production or from the point of view of depreciation of 

 land and capital used. On the other hand there is much 

 evidence of the superior prosperity, self-interest and com- 

 munity interest of the owners. 



ABUSES. 



Up to this point the different classes of tenants and own- 

 ers have been contrasted with one fundamental assumption, 

 namely, that the relationship is not abused by either the 

 landlord or the tenant. But the economic and social gen- 

 eralizations are often upset by the unscrupulous of one class 

 or the ignorant and shiftless of the other. 



U nscrupulous landlords, w ith the aid of laws making it a 

 cri minal offense to leave a contract while in debt, have cre- 

 ated condition s on some plantations which amount to peon- 

 ag e or practical re-enslaveme nt of share tenants. Un satis- 

 f actory crop settlements at the end of jthe y^SLLJbave been at 

 th eroot of m uch discontent with the sh are tenant stat us. 



The landlord has a legalized lien on the crop and, if 



