341 



"I heg to enclose, for the information of the magistrates, copies of the form of schedule 

 which -will be issued for the return of crops, and of the directions for the proper filling up of 

 the schedule which -will accompany it. 



" The return will only be required from occupiers of and above five acres of land, and the 

 schedules will bear the post oftice stamp for free transmission to and from the several 9ccu- 

 piers. 



" My lords trust that the magistrates will be good enough to endeavor to remove any 

 prejudices upon the part of their tenants or other neighboring occupiers against making a 

 return of the extent of their crops, which is only required for public information, and will 

 only be jjublished in an aggregate for the counties or other large divisions of the country. • 



"The occurrence of war in many of the corn-exporting countries of Europe, causes a 

 knowledge of the producing capacity of the United Kingdom to be a matter of considerable 

 interest at the present time." 



DETERIOATM OF SUGAR CAM. 



The cultivation of sugar cane in Louisiana was commenced more than a cen- 

 tury ago. In 1828 the crop was 88,000 hogsheads, of 1,100 pounds each, ac- 

 cording to the report of Mr. Champonier, becoming less until 1834, when it was 

 100,000 hogsheads; in 18-10, 87,000; in 1844, 200,000; then sinking to 

 140,000 in 1S46; in 1847, 240,000; in 1853 rising to 440,324, and falling in 

 1855 to 231,427. The census report of 1860 places the crop of the previous 

 year at 221,726 hogsheads of sugar, and 13,439,772 gallons of molasses. 



Cultivators in Louisiana write us that the cane is badly deteriorated. It has 

 been stated that there is a remarkable tendency in some of the best varieties to 

 deteriorate rapidly in that State. Efforts, either public or individual, should at 

 once be energetically put forth for the regeneration and extension of the sugar 

 culture. There is no doubt that such eflPorts would be well repaid in the future, 

 as they have been in the past. The following suggestions of a correspondent 

 in St. James parish, Louisiana, are worthy of attentive consideration : 



"The Bourbon cane, or Creole cane, as it is called, was originally introduced and culti- 

 vated here. About the year 1828 it degenerated rapidly, and soon became worthless, when, 

 fortunately, Judge Coirou, a good sugar-planter, residing below the city of New Orleans, 

 in the parish of Plaquemines, discovered in the vicinity of Charlestown, South Carolina, or 

 Savannah, Georgia, a beautiful ribbon cane, unknown here, and so called from its variegated 

 bright longitudinal stripes of purple, yellow, and green color. It was a native of Java, no 

 doubt brought thence by vessels in the Java coffee trade, and cultivated for the beauty of 

 the plant. It has a thick, erect, dark-green foliage, cojitrastiug with a large and beautiful 

 sweet sugar cane. After having cultivated it on his plantation, Mr. Coirou soon discovered 

 that its strong roots, thick skin or rind, and particularly its large coarse ej-es, (from which 

 it grows,) protected its germinating power from the damaging effects of frosts. It matured 

 in eight mouths, was of hardy hal)its, making a large grain sugar, suited our soil and 

 climate better than any other known variety, and produced from two and a half to three 

 hogsheads of sugar per acre, proving a great success. It soon spread all over the sugar re- 

 gion of our State, just in time to save the sugar culture from being abandoned. Un- 

 fortunately it has also degenerated, and requires promptly to be renewed to save us from im- 

 pending ruin. It will not yield more than one-half the sugar it used to produce formerly, 

 and does not grow to half the size it once did, does not rattoon well, (i. e. , produce from the 

 stubble, ) and has become nearly all red, or of a dirty green color. It has a bad unripe 

 taste when cultivated in new rich land, (which is certain proof of its degeneracy,) and has 

 lost much of its hardy habit. This is no exaggerated picture. Permit me to add that twice 

 our government expended large sums in trying to furnish us from abroad with suitable 

 canes, and both times failed, owing partly to bad management and partly to a promiscuous 

 gathering of all sorts of canes imported with worms. 



"The canes imported in 1856 in Louisiana from South America and Brazil were boxed 

 up carefully, and rotted. There is no cane suitable for us coming from those countries or 

 from the West India islands, where they cultivate generally tlie Otaheite cane (infested 

 with Avorms) and other sorts having tender skins or rinds with small eyes, and being too 

 delicate to stand frost. We have to resort to India and procure the real Java Ribbon cane. 

 It is found in the Straits settlements of Penang, Batavia, Singapore, and Java, in its 

 natural state, as fine as it ever grows. The Malays call it 'Tibboo Batavee,' which 

 means Batavia cane. A few hundred canes will answer if properly managed. They should 

 2 A 



