1836.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



G05 



can abide. Say not, gentlemen, that we exag- 

 gerate the prospect before us; that, at all events, 

 such a condition is far from us. We hope it is 

 very distant, and pray that the similitude may ne- 

 ver be realized. But where are now the ele- 

 gant abodes of hospitality, those palaces that, not 

 many years since adorned the avenues to iheixood 

 city of Charleston for many miles? There is 

 scarcely any thing left of them except the mag- 

 nificent lines of live oaks that led to them. These 

 now act as the ignis fatuus, and entice the stran- 

 ger in the hopes of finding; the hospitality which 

 seem promised at their termination, when he finds 

 a void, if not a dangerous morass. The great 

 cause of the calamitous change that has thus ta- 

 ken place in Italy, is the neglect of agriculture, by 

 which the lair fields of productiveness became nox- 

 ious and dismal morasses, yielding the deadly ma- 

 laria, instead of the rich harvests of corn and lux- 

 urious gardens. You will say: 'but the Goths 

 and Vandals came and ravaged that country, and 

 began, what sloth and luxury finished.' True, 

 they did come; but. are we not also threatened 

 with the Goths and Vandals? Shall we, like the 

 Romans, suffer sloth and luxury to cause our 

 ruin ? 



The efforts of the southern states should be di- 

 rected to the encouragement of a middle class of 

 population, and let every avenue be opened for 

 this class to take rank with the first. For this 

 purpose, education should be promoted by every 

 possible means, and no reasonable expense spared 

 to attain this most valuable object; lor it is the mo- 

 ral power of a state, as agriculture is its physical 

 one. For this reason, the advancement of learn- 

 ing and the most durable amelioration of the soil, 

 should be the great objects of our unremitted ef- 

 forts. By these means only can Ave ever be pow- 

 erful and retain our present property, nav, our in- 

 dependence. This, we are satisfied, cannot be 

 done without the fullest co-operation of our richer 

 and more intelligent class of citizens. Even 

 though the immediate and direct improvement of 

 this class should not follow such efforts, yet the 

 trial should be made. Advance rural science, and 

 every inhabitant will be benefited; for there is 

 really only one prominent interest in this state, 

 and that is agriculture. The others are all depen- 

 dent upon it. It appears to us, gentlemen, that 

 the administration, or rather the constitution of 

 our state government, is defective in its arrange- 

 ments; and we throw out the hint, that it may'be 

 duly considered. It seems to us that every de- 

 partment of our interest should have a competent 

 officer at its head. In our financial department, 

 we have a comptroller and a treasurer. Why 

 should we not have a minister of instruction and 

 one of agriculture? These two most essential 

 officers, if well chosen, would undoubtedly super- 

 intend their respective departments to the great 

 advantage of the state. 



We need principally knowledge and population, 

 and from any degree of increase of them, a pro- 

 portional increase of wealth is the necessary con- 

 sequence. With these, and the exertions we are 

 capable of, we could defy the worst efforts of our 

 enemies, and rise triumphant from the conflict. 

 By industriously spreading knowledge among our 

 planters and farmers, we shall so increase the fer- 

 tility of our soil, tint our citizens will cease to 



look westvvardly for rich lands, and patriotism, 

 aided by self-interest, will save the country. 



The first, stage towards the accomplishment of 

 this most desirable object is the inquiry, 1st. Whe- 

 ther our soil needs, and is generally susceptible of 

 the improvement possessed. 2d. Whether we 

 really possess the materials to effect it; and 3d. 

 Whether these materials are to be obtained gene- 

 rally, at such a moderate expense, as to warrant 

 the undertaking. 



To answer the first query, to the satisfaction of 

 reasonable men, we must show — that it has been 

 done on similar lands in other countries. This 

 we shall endeavor to do very briefly. The very 

 few scientific examinations and analyses of our 

 various soils, leave us but a narrow field for our 

 research; but, by a comparison of the soils of this 

 stale with those in similar situations below the 

 falls of the. rivers in Virginia, Maryland, and 

 other stales, where the soils have been analyzed, 

 we are warranted in asserting that they are simi- 

 lar — and in the two states named, such lands have 

 been vastly improved by the means here proposed; 

 for they were generally found deficient, in calca- 

 reous earth, except in extensive beds of shells be- 

 low the surface. Our worn-out fields may also be 

 deficient in vegetable matter; but this is so easily 

 supplied from the leaves of our forests, the inex- 

 haustible beds of vegetable earth in our swamps, 

 along the margin of all our water courses, from 

 the spring branch to the largest river or bay. It 

 may also be had in such abundance from every 

 pond, and the steep sides and bottoms of every 

 rising ground, that we may say that every man 

 lias at hand the means of supplying this deficien- 

 cy. It is somewhat different, however, with 

 the supplies of calcareous matter. But this is 

 the object of the second query. 



The immediate vicinity of the sea has the 

 advantage, besides sea-coze and sedge, of fresh 

 shells, which may either be pulverized by burn- 

 ing, or which would be far more beneficial, though, 

 perhaps, more expensive, by being coarsely ground 

 immediately before they are spread on the land 

 and ploughed in. By the process of burning, all 

 the animal matter of the shell and of the animal 

 it. contained, are lost, and the lime thus produced, 

 is, perhaps, not so generally fit for all kinds of 

 land as the other, unless it is exposed a long time 

 to the air to regain the carbonic acid of which the 

 fire has deprived it. Lime in a caustic state, how- 

 ever, is sometimes preferable to the carbonate; as 

 when it is to be applied to land overburdened with 

 coarse vegetable matter, as is the case with land 

 uncleared or which has just been cleared. For all 

 the other lands, the chief dependence is on the 

 great deposites of fossil shells, which are visible 

 on the surface, in some places, and in others on 

 the banks of rivers, creeks, gulleys, and such other 

 places. Great strata of them are known to exist 

 from the sea-board up to Orangeburg, or above, in 

 the direction of Columbia. When we shall be 

 fully impressed with the immense value of these 

 deposites, and search for them, many localities of 

 them will undoubtedly be found in favorable situ- 

 ations. Wherever (hey have been used in simi- 

 lar situations as the tract of country in contempla- 

 tion, most of these beds of shells have been found 

 inexhaustible. Parts of the upper country is a- 

 hundantly supplied with calcareous matter in its 



