Question

Read the excerpt from an 1882 sharecropping contract. then, answer the question. according to this contract, when will the sharecropper receive his payment?

A. Once the cotton has been sold at market
B. After the cotton is sold, debts are paid, and work is done to the owner’s satisfaction
C. After the cotton is sold and debts are paid by the sharecropper
D. The sale of every cropper's part of the cotton to be made by me when and where I choose to sell, and after deducting all they owe me and all sums that I may be responsible for on their accounts, to pay them their half of the net proceeds.

Answer 1

The sharecropper will receive his payment after the sale of the cotton and all debts and other conditions are met, specifically, they get half of the net proceeds remaining.

Step-by-step explanation:

According to the 1882 sharecropping contract, the sharecropper will receive his payment after the cotton has been sold, and all debts are paid, as well as other conditions by the landowner being met, such as work done to the owner’s satisfaction. The sharecropper's payment comes from half of the net proceeds after the landowner has deducted all that the sharecropper owes them, along with any sums that the landowner is responsible for on behalf of the sharecropper.

This contractual agreement reflects the broader economic reality of the post-Civil War South, where the crop lien system dominated agricultural practices and sharecroppers often found themselves in a cycle of perpetual debt and dependence on landowners due to predatory lending practices, high-interest rates, and insecure annual leases.