284 
but hot and cold mineral waters, unexcelled in their medicinal proper 
ties, and silver, lead, zinc, copper, and iron ores. Garland County con 
tains a mountain of stone which is believed to be the finest for whet- 
stones in the country. The mineral and agricultural resources of the 
county are such that it only needs capital and enterprise to make it 
rank among the foremost in wealth and general prosperity. A part of 
the soil is barren, but the bottom-lands along the abounding rivers and 
creeks, and portions of the uplands, are unsurpassed in productiveness. 
With fair cultivation, the average yield per acre is about 1,800 
pounds of cotton, 67 bushels of corn, and 28 bushels of wheat. 
The prevailing mode of farming is very defective. “They do not 
plow land in Arkansas, but only scratch it.” <A field of twelve 
acres, which, cultivated in the Arkansas style, had for the two previous 
years yielded only 22 bushels of corn per acre, was cultivated last 
year by a man from Illinois. He gave it a deep plowing ahd cross- 
plowing in December, 1872, and plowed it again on the 6th of February 
following. This was done with a strong yoke of oxen. He “laid off,” 
covered the corn, and plowed between the rows twice, with a horse. 
The result of this more thorough cultivation was that he gathered 
674, instead of 22, bushels per acre, making a difference of 546 bushels— 
worth $1 per bushel. 
There is a great need of a change for the better in farm stock. 
Horses are too light, hogs are of a very poor, thriftless breed, and 
cows, chiefly Texan cross-breeds, are generally poor milkers. ‘There is 
yet greater need of improvement in care and keeping. Our correspond- 
ent bought four good-looking cows, raised in the county, at thirty dol- 
lars per head. They had averaged, for the first six months after caly- 
ing, about 7 quarts of milk per day. He has a clover-field and grass- 
lots for them, supplies them with good water, salt, and shelter, and 
milks them at regular intervals. Asa consequence they have increased 
to an average of 12 quarts per day for the same period—a gain of 
5 gallons per day on the 4 cows. He paid for clover and grass 
seed, $14; for expenses in cultivating the same, $18. He sold clover 
and grass, in addition to what was consumed by the cows, to the amount 
of $31.75. He estimates his milk at sixty cents per gallon, (which 
seems a very high figure,) and at that rate the gain in six months, 
resulting from better care and feeding, would amount to $540—nearly 
all net gain, as the surplus clover and grass paid the expense of culti- 
vating. There are now in the county only about forty-seven acres in 
clover and fifty in grass. 
CROP-PROGNOSTICS.—The following notes are from communications 
by correspondents outside of our regular corps: 
Saint Charles County, Missouri, May 10.—Our wheat is looking well; our oats could 
not look better. We are now planting corn. Potatoes—the Early Rose and Goodrich— 
are just up. 
Fayette County, Texas, May 5.—Crops one mouth later than last year. The cold 
“norther’, which commenced April 7 killed all the cotton and most of the corn and 
Trish potatoes. 
Randolph County, Illinois, May 15.—Wheat looks exceedingly well, much better than 
at this time last year. Oats and grass also look well. Very little corn planted yet, 
and that mostly rotted in the ground; potatoes have also rotted—being visited by 
both the cut and army worm. Vegetation comes on more slowly than for many years. 
Will be no peaches, and very little other fruit. 
Montgomery County, Kansas, May 10.—Spring cold and backward. Chinch-bug in 
the oats and spring-wheat. Winter-wheat looking very well. 
Union County, South Carolina, May 14.—Wheat better than last year. More oats sown; 
season more favorable. Think the crop will be 25 per cent. better than the last. More 
barley sown ; farmers are finding out that it will give them something green for stock 
sooner than anything else. Hardly as much corn planted as last year, but 10 per cent. 
more of cotton, and better stands of cotton now than at any time last year. 
