201 
Oats—The census reported 221,235 bushels, and the crop bids fair to 
largely exceed these figures this year. 
Rice and tcbacco—These crops have not been important in this State, as 
the census reports only 809,082 pounds of rice, and 159,141 pounds of tobacco. 
There is but little planted this year, and the crop will practically amount to 
nothing. 
LOUISIANA. 
This is an important agricultural State and has some of the most valuable 
lands in the Union; it is the only State, except Texas, where cane sugar can be 
profitably cultivated to any extent. The product by the census was 221,726 
hogsheads of sugar of 1,000 pounds each, and 13,439,772 gallons of cane mo- 
lasses. Florida made 1,669 hogsheads of sugar, and 436,357 gallons molasses ; 
and Georgia 4,167 hogsheads of sugar, and 546,749 gallons of molasses; and 
Texas made 5,099 hogsheads of sugar, and 408,358 gallons of molasses. The 
aggregate of cane sugar made in the Union was 230,982,000 pounds ; of cane 
molasses, 14,963,996 gallons; while the aggregate of maple sugar for the 
same time was 40,120,083 pounds, and maple molasses 1,597,589 gallons, and 
6,749,123 gallons of sorghum molasses, showing the great importance of the 
lands which can be profitably cultivated to sugar cane. 
Sugar cane—There are comparatively but few plantations of cane being cul- 
tivated this year, owing to the flood, to the want of seed cane, and the scarcity 
of capital, and of reliable labor. It is very doubtful if one-fourth of the plan- 
tations cultivated before the war are now under cultivation, though great profits 
which might and can be realized would naturally be supposed to tempt capital 
to embark in their cultivation. Sugar plantations of the first quality, near New 
Orleans, can row be bought for less than $20 per acre, that would net not less 
than $100 per annum in sugar; for the want of seed cane to stock them, and 
capital to work them, they are abandoned now and rapidly being grown up to 
cottonweod and other brush. 
Wheat and oats —These crops were simply insignificant, being only 32,208 
bushels of the one, 89,377 bushels of the other,reported. Equally abundant crops 
of each will be made this year, and hereafter the cultivation will largely increase. 
Corn.—This crop willlargely exceed that of last year, though far behind the one 
reported in the census, which was 16,853,745 bushels. Off from the bottoms, 
the plant looks well and promises a good yield. 
Rice —This crop has been cultivated to some extent, as the census reports 
6,331,257 pounds. Very little land is now under cultivation, and the crop will 
be hardly worth mentioning. 
Tobacco—This plant seems to have been but little cultivated ; the crop is 
reported at 32,901 pounds, by far the smallest in any cotton State. I could hear 
of but little being planted, generally only for home use. 
Cotton —This has been the third cotton State, as the census reports 777,738 
bales. The flood has so affected the best cotton lands, that it is very doubtful 
if there will be as much made as last year, and that was a very small crop as 
compared with 1860. ‘ Preparations were made in the spring for a large crop, 
but the flood has frustrated their calculations in a serious degree. The hands 
have died or are dispersed ; the loss of mules by the depredations of the buffalo 
fly has been so large as to seriously affect team labor, and retard work on plan- 
tations which have not been reached by the flood. All these disasters combined 
will reduce the crop in the aggregate below that of last year. Altogether the 
prospects of the cotton planters in this State, and indeed on all plantations on the 
cotton lands of this State, and the States above on both sides of the river, are 
most gloomy, and will rapidly lead to the abandonment of these lands for cotton 
cultivation. 
As I did not visit Arkansas or Texas, I can only speak of these States from 
