decision handed down by the Supreme Court was an effective blow against
the "peonage system," which is an evasion of the constitutional
prohibition of slavery. The Alabama law provides, in effect, that the
mere act of quitting work on the part of a contract laborer is
conclusive evidence that he is guilty of the crime of defrauding his
employer.
Alonzo Bailey was engaged by a corporation to do farm work and signed a
contract for a year, the wages being $12 a month. The company, to bind
the contract, paid Bailey $15 down and it was agreed that thereafter he
should be paid at the rate of $10.75 a month. After working a month and