Cut-Over Pine Lands in the South. 49 



a constant supply of running water in practically all pastures. 

 Where the surface supply of water is not constant, an ample supply 

 of water may be obtained from wells at a depth of from 30 to 50 

 feet. In many places flowing artesian wells may be obtained, but at 

 a greater cost than wells which strike the water table only. 



Although most of the Piney Woods region is well watered, many 

 pastures are supplied by water holes only at the time when the 

 pasture is at its worst. These water holes usually have a heavy clay 

 bottom and should be enlarged into ponds deep enough to prevent the 

 cattle from fouling them by standing in the water, and large enough 

 to hold water for any emergency. 



In the flatwoods and sandy sections wells and storage tanks should 

 be provided to prevent cattle from going long distances to wate'r. 



MARKETS. 



The cut-over pine lands of the South naturally do not have great 

 cattle markets such as have been built up in cattle-producing sec- 

 tions. As <one lumberman expressed it : " We would not build our 

 sawmills and wait for the timber to grow and we can not expect to 

 have big packing plants until we raise the cattle." Many small 

 plants are operating, however, and the large packing-house com- 

 panies are enlarging their establishments at the southern markets in 

 anticipation of the eradication of the cattle tick. 



Some cattle are shipped from South Carolina and Georgia to Rich- 

 mond and Baltimore, but most of the cattle from Florida and south- 

 ern Georgia go to the Jacksonville market. Some Florida cattle are 

 still exported to Cuba from Tampa. Most fat cattle from Alabama, 

 Mississippi, and Louisiana go to the St. Louis, New Orleans, and 

 Fort Worth markets. Packing plants at Jacksonville and Chipley, 

 Fla. ; Moultrie and Macon, Ga. ; Andalusia, Mobile, and Birmingham, 

 Ala. ; Natchez and Vicksburg, Miss. ; and New Orleans and Baton 

 Rouge, La., are having a stimulating effect on the cattle industry of 

 the region. 



The Piney Woods region is well supplied with means of transpor- 

 tation. Lumber operations on a large scale necessitated the building 

 of many railroad lines which interlace the whole territory, and it is 

 not necessary to make long drives to a shipping point in any section. 

 Moreover, bad wagon roads make it a distinct advantage to market 

 home-grown feeds through cattle. 



Figure 13 shows the distance to the principal markets from a cen- 

 tral point in the cut-over region and the location of packing plants 

 under Federal inspection. 



EXPERIMENTAL WORK OF IMMEDIATE IMPORTANCE. 



The changes and developments in the beef -cattle industry of the 

 Piney Woods are so recent and unexpected that very few improved 



