182 TRAVELS IN THE CONFEDERATION 



Next to indigo, already touched upon, rice is the 

 chief staple of South Carolina. Only this province and 

 Georgia have hitherto cultivated rice on the large 

 scale ; for although North Carolina and the southern 

 part of Virginia are in places well suited for this grain, 

 its culture has always been too much neglected there. 

 The greatest part of the rice grown in North America 

 is exported to the northern states of Europe. In the 

 three years 1768, 1769, and 1770 the total export of 

 rice from the southern colonies of North America 

 amounted annually to 140,000 casks which at an aver- 

 age price of 45 shillings sterl. the cask, brought in the 

 sum of 316,000 Pd. Sterl. Of that figure South Caro- 

 lina alone supplied about 110,000 casks. 



The yearly profits from an acre (166 perches) of 

 rice-land may be counted at 8-12, even 14 Pd. Sterling, 

 according as the price is high or low. Hence the tak- 

 ing in of suitable new lands is zealously prosecuted. 

 Rice is raised so as to buy more negroes, and negroes 

 are bought so as to get more rice. 



Now and then the charge is made that rice is in- 

 jurious to the eyes and weakens the sight. In so far 

 as this obtains of South Carolina, another reason 

 might be assigned, namely, the reflexion of the sun's 

 rays from the blinding white sand. This is confirmed 

 by numerous observations, many persons suffering 

 with their eyes who eat little or no rice, and the in- 

 habitants of other rice countries, where the soil is not 

 the dazzling white sand, eating rice with none of these 

 supposed evil effects ; whereas, according to Boer- 

 haave, the people of Arabia, Persia, and Egypt, on 

 account of the white sandy soil of those countries, are 

 subject to many complaints of the eyes. Crude rice 



