520 'S'a?^ [November, 



season from three quarters of an acre ; the cane yielding 53 per cent, 

 of its weight in juice. If suitable mills shall be erected having all 

 the apparatus necessary for a complete sugar plantation and have an 

 arrangement to receive the cane as our grist mills do the wheat of 

 the farmer, and shall thereby be enabled to return to the producer a 

 fair proportion of the product, and not a mere toll, less than is now 

 taken on a grist of wheat or corn, it may prove successful, but not 

 without. We shall give our readers more anon on this subject, at 

 present invested with such interest. — Farm Department. — B. 



SALT, 



BY DAVID CHRISTY. 



Its importance — extent of consumptim — supply from Kanawha — 

 consumption in Europe — its history on the Kanawha — (Qualities of 

 Kanawha Salt — neglec' of Virginia Legislature. 



Information in reference to any of the indispensable articles of 

 consumption is always interesting to the people. It is not often that 

 writers take up the subject of salt; it will, therefore, not be a stale 

 topic burdening the pages of the Cincinnatus. Very recently we 

 have collected a wide range of facts upon the sources of supply and 

 the extent of the demand of this commodity for the United States. 

 They were obtained while on a visit to Charleston, Virginia; and 

 include a history of the salt manufacture in the Kanawha valley.* 



The consumption of salt in the United States is estimated at 25,- 

 000,000 of bushels, of which about one half is imported. A year 

 or two since the Kanawha works furnished 3,500,000 bushels, but 

 the quantity shipped is somewhat lessened at present. This is not 

 due to any diminution in the supply of salt water, but is owing to 

 the want of facilities for the transportation of the salt to market. 

 The Kanawha rivor is the only outlet of the manufactruers to the 

 Ohio, and it is not so improved as to allow of constant navigation. 

 There seems to be a culpable neglect, by the Legislature, of the in- 



*Tliege statistics are veiy full and satisfactory and were compiled by Dr.' Halk, of 

 Charleston. 



