Proceedings of the Farmers' Club. 303 



sider the fibre of tlie Boehrtierm Tenacissima, superior to that of any 

 other textile plant, and very valuable for manufacturing purposes ; 

 the supply from the east is entirely inadequate to till the demand, 

 and unequal to the fibre here produced, in quality ; they are, there- 

 fore, very desirous of seeing ramie successfully cultivated in some 

 country where the yield will be large and regular. 



The soil and climate of the Southern States are particularly adap- 

 ted for the cultivation of ramie, which requires a loose sandy soil 

 and temperate climate. These advantages can be secured in any of 

 the cotton-growing States. 



At the present time most of our planters and farmers are financi- 

 ally crippled, and cannot afibrd to expend the large sums necessary 

 to secure the labor to make cotton and sugar profitable crops, both of 

 these articles require large capital and continuous cultivation to 

 bring them to perfection, and both may be injured or destroyed by 

 unfavorable seasons, or other causes. Cotton may be totally destroyed 

 by the army worm, or other insects. The fibre of ramie, being con- 

 tained in the inner bark of the stem, cannot be injured in that way, 

 and will not be hurt by either long continued wet or dry weather ; 

 besides it requires small capital to start a ramie plantation, the plant 

 being easily propagated and cultivated ; it is a perennial, and will 

 not require replanting. 



Having been interested in ramie culture since its introduction in 

 Lousiana in 1867, I have given my undivided attention to securing 

 its successful introduction and cultivation, and bringing its worth and 

 usefulness properly before the southern public. I have made frequent 

 experiments in extracting the fibre from the stem and preparing it 

 for use, and have tried plants grown in this and other States with the 

 most satisfactory results. I find that our fibre is even finer than that of 

 Java, and that the yield per acre is greater. In any of the cotton 

 States ramie can be harvested at least three times a year, each har- 

 vest or cutting will produce between nine and twelve hundred 

 pounds, making an average annual crop of about 3,000 pounds of 

 crude unprepared fibre, worth at present in Europe ten cents specie 

 per pound; in preparing the fibre for manufacturing purposes it loses 

 about one-half, and increases in value to sixty-five cents per pound. 

 Thus, it is apparent that ramie, requiring little or no tillage to pro- 

 duce such magnificent results, is the most profitable crop that the 

 planter can cultivate. 



The fibre, when prepared for the spinner, is beautifully white, soft 



