No. 12. Agriculture in Mississippi. — Destruction of the Curculio. 363 



production — or rather, it yielded such a 

 heavy cash income, that the cotton planter 

 felt himself above paying the least attention 

 to any other crop, or to stock. Not one in 

 fifty, grew a sufficient supply of corn for his 

 plantation ; and fewer still, who had not to 

 buy every ounce of meat, and yard of cloth- 

 ing that they required. Every one had his 

 overseer, at a salary in the neighbourhood 

 of a thousand dollars, to whom was surren- 

 dered the entire management of the planta- 

 tion and negroes, whilst the planter himself 

 was spending his time and the proceeds of 

 his crops-— frequently a crop or two in ad 

 vance — in travel, or city life. There were 

 cows and oxen on every plantation — -because 

 the former were needed to produce the lat- 

 ter, which were indispensable. But little 

 care was bestowed on them in any way, and 

 none on their improvement. To this, of 

 course, there were some feio exceptions — 

 though but few. 



Now the case is altered. The ruinous 

 price of cotton has taught the necessity, and 

 agricultural papers and societies have point- 

 ed out the way of changing all this. It was 

 always supposed that pork could be pur- 

 chased cheaper than it could be raised ; and 

 probably it wa,s so, when cotton brought in 

 $50 per bale, of 400 lbs.; and the only sort 

 of critters they had to make pork of, were 

 those shocking varmints — those long-nosed, 

 alligator-looking customers, yet so common. 

 But with cotton at $15 per bale — and tho- 

 rough-bred Berkshires, at $20 to $30 per 

 pair, which it was found could be kept fat 

 on green oats, clover, peas, or almost any- 

 thing, and killed at twelve months old, to 

 make a half-barrel of mess pork — planters 

 begin to find that they can make their meat 

 at home. Cattle too, and sheep, are receiv- 

 ing an almost equal share of attention — 

 large crops of corn are raised ; and fields of 

 common, and Egyptian, or winter oats and 

 rye, are studding the country with their 

 cheerful and refreshing appearance — more 

 turnips, and sweet and Irish potatoes are 

 raised — upland rice too; and even hemp. 

 Feed is cut up before being fed out — corn 

 chopped, and cotton seed boiled — cows are 

 fed and milked; and the milk given out as 

 a regular supply to the negroes. Tools and 

 implements are made at home — as also cloth ; 

 and in some instances, which I hope will 

 quickly increase, cotton bagging is made. 

 The planter makes his home on his planta- 

 tion, or at all events, attends to his own bu- 

 siness, many dispensing with an overseer 

 altogether. The aim now seems to be, to 

 raise and produce everything at home that 

 is needed, and have the proceeds of the cot- 

 ton crop a net income — those in debt, ex- 



erting themselves to get out — and those out 

 of debt, to keep so. 



There is still, however, too much cotton 

 produced — entirely too much. But for this, 

 it would be difficult to propose an effective 

 remedy. The only one will be, the intro- 

 duction of other staples. Indigo was culti- 

 vated to advantage, and found profitable be- 

 fore the high price of cotton drove it out. 

 Upland rice does well — and many of our 

 river and bayou bottoms could be flooded 

 with but little expense and labour. Silk, 

 and wine can be made to infinitely better 

 advantage than with you. Pork and wool 

 are produced at half the cost that they can 

 be in the North, and cheaper even than in 

 the West. The New Orleans and West 

 India markets could be supplied with hay, 

 made from Bermuda grass, grown on lands 

 too often flooded, to produce cotton or corn. 

 It has been proved, beyond a doubt, that this 

 delicate looking grass, at three cuttings, in 

 one season, produced over five tons per acre, 

 on land on which it was a volunteer growth. 



You will see from this, that the opinion 

 advanced by many, that the South cannot 

 supply her own wants within herself, is, in 

 a good many instances, an erroneous one. 



Yours, &c, T. A. 



Ingleside. Adams Co., Mississippi, 

 May 15th, 1843. 



Destruction of the Curculio by the 

 use of Salt. — Now that the season is ap- 

 proaching when the Curculio begins to 

 emerge from the ground, we are induced to 

 request fruit cultivators to try the effect 

 of salt in destroying them. We have been 

 assured by several experienced fruit cultiva- 

 tors, that they have found salt a perfect pre- 

 ventative against the ravages of this de- 

 structive insect, and that they have had 

 annually good crops of plums, while their 

 neighbours have lost a larger portion of 

 their fruit. Our friend Captain Lovett, of 

 Beverly, informs us that he has applied half 

 a peck or more of salt to each tree, spread- 

 ing it on the ground as far as the branches 

 extend. This is done about the first of June, 

 and as it is washed into the ground by the 

 rains, it appears to prevent the Curculio 

 from making his way alive through it. The 

 salt does not appear to injure the tree in the 

 east. We would advise all our friends who 

 lave plum trees subject to the attacks of the 

 Curculio, to try this remedy, and send us an 

 account of their experiments for publication, 

 in order that all the information possible 

 may be elicited, which may lead to a cer- 

 tain remedy for this insidious enemy of the 

 plum cultivator. — Hovey's Magazine of Hor- 

 ticulture. 



