Party of Homeseekers in the "Prairie Country." 40,000 Acres 

 Settled by Northern Farmers in Sixteen Months 



ATAKAPAS PRAIRIE SECTION 



The Prairie Lands situated in the southwestern part of the State and em- 

 bracing an area of about 2,500,000 acres, are located in the Parishes of Calcasieu, 

 Davis, Vermillion, Lafayette, Acadia, St. Landry, Evangeline, Allen and Iberia. 

 The soil is composed of broken down bluffs and the land is open, generally 

 rolling, and gradually slopes towards the sea. . 



One may obtain quite an accurate idea of the Prairie Lands from the follow- 

 ing authentic report taken from the soil survey of that parish by the United 

 States Government made in 1903: 



"The soil types of the prairie region as a whole may be fairly judged 

 by a description of the soil in Acadia Parish located about the center 

 of this area. The United States Soil Survey of this parish shows 

 seven distinct types: Crowley silt loam, Acadia silt loam, Landry silt 

 loam, Lake Charles fine sandy loam, Swamp and Galveston clay. The 

 Crowley silt loam is the typical rice land of southwestern Louisiana. 

 By structure, topography, texture and productiveness it is peculiarly 

 adapted to the growing of rice on a large scale and at a minimum expense. 

 The soil ranges in depth from ten to twenty-five inches, but the usual 

 average depth is about sixteen inches. It is a brown, ash gray loam, 

 composed of fine sand and silt, with a sufficient proportion of clay to 

 give it a loamy cohesiveness and to render it impervious to such a degree 

 that pools of water collecting on the surface usually remain until eva- 

 porated. 



"The healthfulness of this section has been thoroughly established. 

 Although a large number of the immigrants to the rice belt have come 

 from northern latitudes, thay have had no difficulty in becoming accus- 

 tomed to the climate. The standing water on the rice fields has not 

 been observed to have any detrimental effect upon the health of the 

 community." 



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