the support of free schools. In 1784, a short time after
the notification of the treaty of peace, the Legislature passed an
act appropriating forty thousand acres of land for the endowment of a
college or university. A year later the charter for this university was
granted; and the preamble of the act declares it to be the policy of the
State to foster education in the most liberal way. It so happened that
some of the provisions that had been made for public education were
not carried out at once, and the people of the various settlements
established schools of their own. Many of the best teachers of the
country came to Georgia from the more northern States; and some of them
won a reputation that has lasted to this day. Later, more than one
of these teachers established schools that became famous all over the
country. In this way the reign of the "old field schoolmaster" began,
and continued for many years.

[Illustration: Early Cultivation of Cotton 156]

The people had been cultivating cotton on a small scale before 1791; but
the staple was so difficult to handle, that the planting was limited.
Those who grew it were compelled to separate the seed from the lint by
hand, and this was so tedious that few people would grow it. But in
1793, Eli Whitney, who was living on the plantation of General Greene,
near Savannah, invented the cotton gin. The machine was a very awkward
and cumbrous affair compared with the gins of the present day; but in
that day and time, and for many years after, the Whitney was sufficient
for the needs of the people. It was one of the most important inventions
that have ever been made. It gave to the commerce of the world a staple
commodity that is in universal demand, and it gave to the people of the
South their most valuable and important crop. But for this timely
invention, the cultivation of cotton would have been confined to the
narrowest limits. The gin proved to be practicable, and it came into use
very quickly. The farmers prospered, and gradually increased the cotton
crop.

The population also increased very rapidly. The rich lands were
purchased and settled on by farmers from Virginia and the Carolinas. The
colony that had been planted by Oglethorpe had never ventured very far
from the seacoast. A few probably followed the course of the Savannah
River, and made their homes in that region; but the people brought
over by Oglethorpe were not of the stuff that pioneers are made of. The
e