RICE. 89 



plant ; but he was led to consider, from the great 

 quantity of its blades, that it would afford excellent 

 green-meat for cattle. 



Clammy rice appears to be endowed with the 

 peculiar property of growing both on wet and on dry 

 lands : the period occupied by its growth is intermedi- 

 ate between those of the common and early varieties. 

 Rice seed is sown in Carolina in rows, in the 

 bottom of trenches, which are about eighteen inches 

 apart, reckoning from the centres of the trenches. 

 The sowing is generally performed by negro women, 

 who do not scatter the seed, but put it carefully into 

 the ground with the hand, so as to preserve the per- 

 fect straightness of the line. The sowing is for the 

 most part completed by the middle of March. The 

 water, which until then has been kept back by means 

 of flood-gates, is at this time permitted to overflow 

 the ground to the depth of several inches, and 

 things remain in this state for some days, generally 

 about a week. The germination of the seed is pro- 

 moted by this flooding, and the water being then 

 drawn from the surface of the land, the plants 

 sprout, rising in about four weeks to the height of 

 three or four inches. At this time the flood-gates 

 are again opened, the fields are once more over- 

 flowed, and remain in that state during about sixteen 

 days ; one good effect of this second flooding being 

 the destruction of the grass and weeds which may 

 have sprouted at the same time with the rice. The 

 land is allowed after this to remain without further 

 irrigation until the middle of July, being repeatedly 

 hoed during the interval, as well to remove any 

 weeds at the moment of their appearance, as to 

 loosen the soil about the roots of the rice, adopting 

 thus in all its principal parts the drill system of 

 husbandry. At the time last mentioned, water is 

 VOL. xv. 8* 



