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overcome by proper preparation of land and the selection of early seed from 
northern climates. ‘The usual mode of seeding on foul land and bad ploughing 
will not do, and our farmers are acting upon that belief. The failure in wheat- 
raising has made an increase in corn and cotton. 
_ LOCUSTS. 
Gillespie county, Texas.—Clouds of locusts have made their appearance in 
this county, and are destroying fruit trees, vegetables, in short, almost every- 
thing within their reach. 
FARMING IN MISSISSIPPI. 
A correspondent in Marion county, Mississippi, gives the following notes on © 
his second year’s experience in the south: 
This season I engaged under very nearly the same circumstances as last 
year, but with a much better set of hands, have used every exertion, and this 
day would be glad to get my original capital, some $4,000, though I have sus- 
tained no actual loss. Farming under the present system I am satisfied will not 
pay, for the present at least. I will illustrate: I hirea hand for $150 per year ; 
he will make me at the very best four bales of cotton, and grain perhaps suffi- 
cient to clear expenses of himself and mule. I will realize perhaps $60 per 
bale for the cotton, $240, leaving $90.per hand to meet my own expenses, pay 
taxes, wear of material, &c. In carrying on labor there is no time for improve- 
ment of lands. 
This is an imperfect yet true picture of the present condition. Yet with all 
this, appearances are flattering. The climate is far more favorable than at the 
north. The laborer is not as much exposed, and a less amount of labor is 
required to accomplish the same end. For persons of limited capital who would 
be satisfied with small returns there certainly is every inducement. The same 
attention to fertilizing lands that is shown in the east would be attended with 
results the most satisfactory. ‘The principal crops are— 
1. Cotton —This is to the south what wheat and pork are in the north, the 
article to bring the farmers cash. 
2. Corn, which can be raised to advantage for home consumption; twenty 
bushes, per acre will be about the highest average. Many farmers who live near 
railroads can make one.acre of cotton pay for two of corn. 
3. Wheat.—Occasionally in this locality. It is a very uncertain crop, which, 
with the poor facilities for manufacture, gives but little encouragement for its 
cultivation. 
4. Rye is thought to be a profitable crop. It grows very well and is of most 
importance as a forage in autumn and winter. If I continue I shall always 
have a patch of rye. 
5. Oats are so uncertain as not to justify any attempt at cultivation. 
6. Peas are a standard crop, will grow on the poorest land, and are available 
for hay, pasturage, and as a substitute for grain. No attention has been paid 
to grasses. There is little requirement for winter feeding; perhaps not twenty 
tons are raised in this county. 
Why northern or eastern people are so slow to avail themselves of these 
_ great advantages I cannot imagine. They have nothing to fear. Any person 
coming with the proper spirit and object will be cordially received. (I am known 
as a rampant radical and soldier who battled them with a will, yet none the less 
respected for it.) Lands can be obtained at from $2 to $15 per acre, ready for 
immediate tillage. Assistance both in and out of doors is to be had without 
difficulty. ‘The freedmen are industrious, quiet, and anxious for employment. 
