Question

For a while, many people saw the tenant system as a way to someday become landowners themselves. Farmers thought they could start out as sharecroppers. From there, they hoped to make enough money to buy their own seed and supplies as tenant farmers, and later buy a farm of their own. However, the economic realities of the tenant farming often made it impossible to realize this dream. Landlords typically charged high rents that were difficult to pay back. Tenants requiring seeds and supplies were charged high prices, or were loaned money at high interest rates, by the landowners. Many tenant farmers and sharecroppers ended the year in debt. Other difficulties, including drought, loss of crop to pests, overproduction, and foreign competition also hurt tenant farmers financially. Despite these challenges, farming remained the dominant industry in Texas. The landscape of the western frontiers of the state shifted from open grasslands to farms and ranches.

—Texas History


According to the excerpt, why did most sharecroppers not become independent farmers?
a
​They chose to continue renting because landowners charged very low rents.
b
​They could not afford to buy their own land and supplies because of high debt.
c
​They did not work hard enough because the land did not belong to them.
d
​They chose to invest their farming profits in other opportunities.

Answer 1

Answer:

Answer

Step-by-step explanation:

Farmers foreclosed on their lands and their houses and repossessed their farming equipment. Some farmers remained on the land as tenant farmers working for bigger land owners. ... They bought repossessed land at rock bottom prices and expanded their holdings into large commercial farms.