49 lb .......|| 53 | 96 || |
| 1/2 c. " " " " ..........|| 6 | 74 || |
| Permit and stamps ....................|| | 65 || |
| Hospital fees, $5 pr. bale............|| 15 | 00 || |
| Factors' commission, 1 pr. ct.........|| 8 | 09 || |
| || -- | -- || 131 | 83
| || | || ---- | --
E.O.E. | Net proceeds......................|| | || $677 | 57
----------------------------------------------------------------------
NEW ORLEANS, La., _February 22_, 1864.

It will be seen by the above that the charges form an important
portion of the proceeds of a sale. The heaviest items are for
Government and hospital taxes. The latter was levied before the war,
but the former is one of the fruits of the Rebellion. It is likely to
endure for a considerable time.

I knew several cases in which the sales of cotton did not cover the
charges, but left a small bill to be paid by the owner. Frequently,
cotton that had been innocently purchased and sent to market
was seized by Government officials, on account of some alleged
informality, and placed in the public warehouses. The owner could get
no hearing until he made liberal presents of a pecuniary character to
the proper authorities.

After much delay and many bribes, the cotton would be released. New
charges would appear, and before a sale could be effected the whole
value of the cotton would be gone.

A person of my acquaintance was unfortunate enough to fall into the
hands of the Philistines in the manner I have described above. At the
end of the transaction he found himself a loser to the extent of three
hundred dollars. He has since been endeavoring to ascertain the amount
of traffic on a similar scale that would be needed to make him a
millionaire. At last accounts he had not succeeded in solving the
problem.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

SOME FEATURES OF PLANTATION LIFE.

Mysteries of Mule-trading.--"What's in a Name?"--Process of Stocking
a Plantation.--An Enterprising White Man.--Stratagem of a
Yankee.--Distributing Goods to the Negroes.--The Tastes of the
African.--Ethiopian Eloquence.--A Colored Overseer.--Guerrillas
Approaching.--Whisky _vs_. Guerrillas.--A Hint to Military Men.

On my return from New Orleans to the plantation, I found that Colburn
had been pushing our business with a rapidity and skil