North Carolina Newspapers

THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA NEWS LETTER Published Weekly by the University of North Caro lina Press for the Univer sity Extension Division. The news in this publi cation is released for the press on receipt. FEBRUARY 7, 1923 CHAPEL HILL, N. C. VOL. IX, NO. 12 E. C. Br.n.o„. S. H. Hobbl Jr., L. R. Wil.on, E. W. Knight, D, D. Crroll, J. B, Bnllitt, g. W, Odnm. Entered as second-cIasB matter Novembers, 1914, at the Postoffiee at Chapel Hill. N. C. under the act of August 24. 1912 HOW FARM TENANTS LIVE The Extension Division of the Uni versity of North Carolina has just is sued a bulletin that contains enough social dynamite to blast the state out of the sedimentary accretion of three centuries, were that dynamite properly placed and detonated. The title of the bulletin is, How Farm Tenants Live, and it is the joint product of J. A. Dickey and E. C. Branson, Mr. Dickey doing the field work and Mr. Branson evidently doing the bulk of the writing. Their idea was to get a cross-section, or rather a microcosm, of farm tenancy in North Carolina, and with that in view Mr. Dickey went into two town ships, Baldwin and Williams, in Chat ham county and investigated every farm tenant there. His findings and the conclusions of the collaborators are presented in this bulletin in the belief that they are a very fair sample of the farm tenancy problem. Thus the state has laid before it in brief form some facts on this question. Facts hitherto have been woefully scarce in discussions of the farm tenant. There have been much imagination, a vast deal of emotion, quantities of rhetoric and some downright dishonesty in most of the “argument about it and about” but precious few facts. This bulletin, however, gives the figures, cites chapter and verse, speaks exactly. For instance, it doesn’t say “about one-fourth” of the white tenant farm ers in this region are croppers; it says “there are 13 croppers out of 61 ten ants.” It doesn’t say, “the farmer's cash income amounts to only a few hundreds a year.” It says, “the aver age cash income of 329 farmers is $424 a year. ” Briefly, it isn’t arguing with you, it’s telling you. draws some conclusions, two exceptions, their wives are hoe- handa in the fields, from eight to ten hours a day during periods ranging from 30 to 200 days of the year, accord ing to family circumstances. One of t^iese women is a mother, 61 years old, The unbroken rule is to send the chil dren, both boys and girls alike, into field work at seven or eight years of age —so because there is no hired labor to be had and no money with which to pay such labor.” Ponishing Indiistry Then when the renter does save up enough to make a payment on a bit of land, the state of North Carolina de clares that he must instantly pay taxes on its full value, although he may have paid in only a tenth of the purchase price, leaving the rest covered by a mortgage, isn’t that a beautiful meth od of encouraging thrift? Edwin Mark ham was much impressed by Millet’s painting of a French peasant; but what Frenchman ever deserved more than the North Carolina renter the line “And on his back the burden of the world.” The Daily News expects to return to discussion of this bulletin later—indeed, it may be, and we hope will be, dis cussed for years without exhausting its interest-but in the meantime it earn estly urges every one of its readers who is interested in the progress of the state to apply to the Extension divi sion of the University for a copy. It goes free to North Carolinians—fifty cents to others.—Greensboro Daily News. NO MAILING LIST The University Extension bulletins At the end it, originating in the department of Rural _ . first it; Social Economics are sent only to the has put you in the possession of the I people who apply for them in person or facts on which those conclusions are ' j^y letter, and they go free of charge based, so if you don’t like its conclu- to North Carolinians at home or abroad. There is no stereotyped mailing list for the bulletins of this department. Attention is called to these bulletins in the News Letter and the daily press. The editions are small and we cannot afford to waste a single copy. Our sin cere wish is to reach the people of North Carolina who read and think and lead. A few copies of our recent bulletin. How Farm Tenants Live in a Mid-State Carojina County, are still on our shelves and will be sent in the order ’ of appli cation until the supply is exhausted. The people who want this bulletin will need to apply at once. sions you are at perfect liberty to draw others of your own. That sorfof talk is worth listening to, worth thinking about, affords some thing stable solid on which to base comment. Outstanding Facts And here are some of the outstanding facts about our farm tenant popula tion, if these two townships serve as a fair sample. There seem to be three classes of white farm tenants, (1) sons, sons-in-law, or nephews of farm own ers, who have a reasonable expectation of coming into possession of the land they work by gift, marriage, or bequest —^they are the upper crust of the ten antry; (2) renters, who own their own tools and livestock, but must acquire land by purchase, if at all—they are the middle class, up and coming, whom no discouragement can hold- down per manently; and (8) croppers, who own nothing, but work the land with the owner’s tools and livestock for half the value of the money crop. The cropper is “The man whom God forgot”—to quote the bulletin's quota tion of Service’s line. These people are living, in the district investigated, on an average cash income of eight cents a day. Of course, they have their food and shelter provided; but eight cents a day must clothe them, educate them, amuse them, pay for doctors and medicines when they are sick, and bury them when they die. What wonder that they turn to moon- shining and bootlegging? Why, they are cast off even by the church. Where as the percentage of church member ship among the other two classes of tenants is 86 and 84, among croppers it is 40; and the percentage of Sunday school students drops from 66 among the others to 21 among the croppers. “The man whom God forgot”—not a bad phrase, is it? The cropper, though, is fairly con tent with his lot. Whatever ambition he may have had has long since been smashed out of him. Better worth con sideration is the renter, who, KNOW NORTH CAROLINA A Georgia Verdict That North Carolina leads the southern states in normal and heal thy growth, and is rapidly forging ahead of many other states in the Union in return to prosperity, is the assertion of C. E. Shepard, of At lanta, district sales manager of the Gulf Refining company, here to at tend a two-day meeting of the com pany’s agents ending yesterday. A- bout 40 representatives of the Gulf Refining company were here as guests of Keely A. Grice, manager of the Charlotte branch. A. R. Wilby, assistant district sales mana ger at Atlanta headquarters, and C. E. Waters, of the same office, also were here. North Carolina’s prosperity, ac cording to Mr. Shepard, is due to the diversity of her industries. “South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, other southern states with agricultural interests similar in many respects to North Carolina’s, are not so fortunate "as the Old North State. Georgia and South Carolina have been hit by the boll weevil with considerable force during the past few years and have not fully recov ered, but they pre on the way to re covery. If they had the diversified industries that North Carolina has they would not have been so hard hit. “Everywhere I go I hear about the prosperity of North Carolina. Of course, I have been more or less familiar with it for many years but its prosperity and progress has be come so marked during the past few years that it has become a matter of comment everywhere.”—Char lotte Observer. WHAT NEXT FOR CAROLINA? State aid as a means of relieving the present farm tenancy situation in the state was advocati^d by Mr. P. S. Ran dolph, of Asheville, at the last meeting of the North Carolina Club at the Uni versity. In discussing his proposal, Mr. Ran dolph reviewed the tenancy situation in the state which demands relief. The large percentage of farms which are cultivated by tenants who have no stake in the land and no proprietary interest in community enterprise is well known. And this situation, he said, is not an easy one for the tenant himself to remedy. Under the present system of rents and crop-liens, it is no wonder that so much tenancy exists. This same situation once existed in other countries which are now entirely free of it. Denmark about seventy- five years ago was in a state of despair. But now, after years of successful co operative enterprise and state-aid to home ownership, the little state of Den mark is a country of prosperous, home owning farmers. But state-aid has proved successful nearer home than Denmark. In some of the Western states, particularly Cal ifornia, the results from state-aid have been gratifying. The California plan is probably an example of the best ma- although ' chinery used in state-aid to home and ready for occupancy by the farmer be fore any land was sold. After every thing had been put in proper condition the farms were sold on easy terms to persons who proved themselves worthy. One-tenth of the purchase price was required as the initial payment, with the remainder to be paid in small in stallments. extended over a period of thirty-four years. Machinery, equip ments and pure-bred stock were then purchased in large quantities and at a great saving by the state and sold to the farmer at cost. Various other econ omies were also effected for the new farm owners. And yet all this resulted not in any loss to the state, but in a net profit. And so it could be in a similar system in North Carolina. Mr. Randolph’s paper appears in full as a chapter of the 1922-23 Year- Book of the North Carolina Club at the University.—J. G. Gullick. In pointing out the workings of such a system, it was indicated that the best method is to establish a central library, say at the countyjjseat. It is the sys tem used in other states that have a- dopted the plan. Branch libraries are then located at convenient points in the county. Collections of books would be placed in reach of all the people wheth er they live in extremely rural sections or in villages and towns. Or books could be mailed out by R. F. D., or de livered by library trucks running on regular schedules once a week or so. In pointing out the need for such a measure, the speaker showed that at ' present the state ranks very low in . books and library facilities. According ' to statistics appearing in the North Carolina Library Bulletin for 1922, said , the speaker, the total number of pub lic and semi-public libraries in the one ' hundred counties of the state was sixty- four for the white population, and three ; for the negroes. These sixty-seven li- : braries contained 213,408 volumes, or about one book on an average for every twelve men, women, and children of the state. He showed also that these libraries were located mainly in the towns and cities and consequently the rural population who are most in need of books and reading matter are ne glected. He pointed out that more than seventy-one out of every one hundred of our people live in the open country. These people dwell for the most part in solitary farmsteads, away from vil lages and towns, and in many of these rural homes there are very few if any books. The speaker showed the necessity for libraries, if the state is to continue its progress and advancement along all lines. The library, he said, must be brought to bear upon the soil in work ing out a better system of agriculture, and upon the orchards, the forests, and the streams, if these great resources are to yield the state their full meas ure of wealth. But up to this time our people as a whole have not had a fair chance at books in this respect. ' The speaker then exhibited' what has been done up to the present time to relieve the situation. Provision was made in 1901 for the establishment of libraries for the summer schools, but , to date it has resulted in placing libra ries in only one-half of these schools; the other half have had no books to mention outside of tneir regular text books. The State Malles a Start In 1909 the legislature established the North Carolina Library Commis sion, which by its travelling libraries has aided somewhat in relieving the situation. But the problem is yet far from being solved, and the only solution seems to be in county-wide free library systems such as those in operation in Maryland, California, and Northern Minnesota. Mr. Moser’s full discussion will ap pear in the 1922-23 Year-Book of the North Carolina Club at the University. his income per person in his family is only 14 cents a day, by incredible thrift has saved out of that sum enough to buy a mule and some implements, and is saving to buy a bit of land. What of these heroic strugglers? farm ownership. The method used by this state was to appropriate a sum for the purchase of large tracts of land. This land was then improved in various ways and subdivided into farms of mod erate sixe. Buildings were erected on **Their lot in life is toil. With only each farm and everything was made COUNTY-WIDE LIBRARIES County-wide Library Service as the next step for North Carolina, and how this may be brought about, was the subject discussed by Mr. A. M. Moser, of Buncombe county, at a recent meet ing of the North Carolina Club at the University. In order to bring about this system of county-wide free libraries, as the speaker pointed out, the legislature must pass a law which will provide for the establishment and maintenance of these libraries. It must delegate to the counties, through the county com missioners or otherwise, the power to levy a small tax for their establishment and maintenance. A tax of not more than four and one-half cents nor less than one cent on the hundred dollars of property would probably be about the right rates. It was pointed out how ever that the average connty in this state could establish and maintain a good library for as little as one cent on the hundred dollars’ worth of property; thus making the additional tax for this purpose at most very light. TOWN STUDIES Town Studies, a Program for Organ izations Interested in Civic Develop ment, by Professor Harold D. Meyer, has just been issued by the Bureau of Public Discussion of the University Ex tension Division. In our social system the welfare of the community depends upon the co operation of the citizens as a whole. Each town marks the point of concen trated human activity. Town Studies is not an attempt to provide a compre hensive study of matters of community growth and welfare, but an effort to suggest a consistent point of view from which studies may be made^ and bene fits derived. Town Studies is written very interesting and usable style. The topics are edited as programs of study of town problems for discussion groups, and each program carries a number of suggestions and ideas that will be of aid in making the study. The following topics are presented: A Town Score Card; Gener^ Plan of Study; Population and Gerieral Infor mation; Location and Position; General Administration; Financial Organization and Methods; Town Planning; Sanita tion and Housing; Public Health; Pub lic Safety; Public Works and Utilities; Public Recreation; Public Education; Voluntary and Civic Services; Services to Rural Community; Recommendation and findings of Discussion Groups; and Some Interesting Questions About Town Affairs. All the topics, questions, and points of discussion have been pre sented with these' questions constantly in mind: What is the community doing for the citizen? What is the citizen doing for the community? This goes free of charge to all North Carolinians who want it and write for it. Apply to C. D. Snell, director of the University Extension Division, Chapel Hill, N. C. LIVESTOCK SOLD AND SLAUGHTERED In the United States in 1919 Based on the 1920 Census of Agriculture. The states ranked according to the values per inhabitant. The values have greatly declined since 1919, but the decline, and partial re covery of late, are fairly uniform the country over and the rank of the states remains practically unchanged. The pigs, cattle, calves, sheep, and lambs sold and slaughtered in the Unit ed States in 1919 averaged $38.22 per inhabitant. In North Carolina the aver age was $16, and thirty-four states made a better showing. The per capita value ranged from $2.00 in Rhode Island to $176 in Iowa. And Iowa is the richest agricultural state in the Union. Money for pork products, beef, veal, and mutton goes out of the state in millions every year—roughly around forty million dollars in 1919. And North Carolina is an area fitted by nature for livestock farming beyond any other region on earth, bar none. Department of Rural Social Economics, University of North Carolina Rank State Value animals PerInhab. Rank State Value animals PerInhab sold&slaught’d values sold & slaught’d values 1 Iowa .. ....$420,258,381 $176 25 Ohio. $169,387,679 $28 2 Neb.... ... 208,745,788 161 26 Va.... 61,116,468 26 3 Wyo. . .... 23,692,144 122 27 West Va. .. 34,670,832 24 4 Kans . ... 210,227,966 119 28 Ark. . 39,443,340 23 6 S. Dak. .... 63,732,797 100 29 Mich.. 75,611,444 21 6 Nev.... .... 7,723,964 100 30 Me... 16,650,87] 20 7 Mont.. ... 45,988,076 84 80 Calif.. '^7,620,004 20 8 Mo.... ... 270,830,667 80 32 Wash. 23,946,493 18 9 Colo. .. .... 70,621,996 76 33 N. H. 7,664,968 17 10 N. Mex .... 26,720,270 71 33 Miss. .. 29,676,049 17 10 Idaho.. .... 30,606,039 71 35 N. C.. 41,578,881 16 12 Ind ... 171,068.037 68 36 Ga.... 38,998,872 13 13 N. Dak .... 34,909,274 64 37 Ala. . 29,085,772 12 14 Okla. . .... 103,786,868 61 37 Md... . ... 16,816,828 12 16 Oreg... .... 86,193,794 46 39 Del . ... 2,401,839 11 16 Minn.. ... 104,007,104 44 39 s. c. 18,014,050 11 17 Tenn... .... 101,013,971 43 41 Pa.... 90,627,419 10 18 Ill .... 274,880,687 42 42 Fla.. . 7,873,177 8 18 Texas. .... 196,869,929 42 48 N. Y. 71,043,960 7 20 Ky ... .... 96,766,268 40 43 La. . 12,186,922 7 21 Wis... .... 108,328,881 89 46 Conn. 6,640,764 5 22 vt .... 18,318,879 88 ^ 46 Mass. 10,926,061 8 23 Utah .. .... 16,666,280 85 46 N. J. .. .. 8,664,894 8 24 Ariz. .. .... 10,916,788 88 48 R. I., 1,296,871 2