Letter from James B. Heyward to William Henry Heyward about their business agreement with John Chadwick at Fife Plantation. James dislikes the terms of the agreement and doesn't want it extended beyond the one year. He would rather sell Fife "than go into these extortionate bargains for cultivating it." 2p. March 16, 1866.
Article of agreement between James B. Heyward, William Henry Heyward and John Chadwick to replant Fife Plantation. John Chadwick, from New York, agrees to provide $15,500 in capital for two-thirds share in the resulting rice crop. 4p. March 14, 1866.
Letter from William Henry Heyward at Savannah to James B. Heyward at Combahee. William Heyward has come to the conclusion that the destruction of slave labor will prevent them from ever turning a profit again on the scale seen in the past. He claims that the bargaining power exercised by the freedmen "makes the Planter a slave, far worse than his slave used to be." Because of the scarcity and high price of labor he believes that he and James should sell most of their properties and concentrate all their efforts on a few. 4p. April 17, 1866.
Letter from William McBurney to Thomas B. Ferguson at Dean Hall Plantation. McBurney writes about supplies for Dean Hall and the best strategy of repairing a dam on one of the mill ponds. He claims that they will be able to get enough labor to keep the mill running but reports difficulty in securing "rice hands." He comments that someone has offered to buy Dean Hall or takeover management after Ferguson's agreement to do so expires. 3p. April 20, 1866.
