58 



making hay, as well as for alternate husbandry, to be plowed under 

 to prepare the ground for another crop. 



Common Oats ( Avena sativa) have been cultivated in Europe from 

 time immemorial. The oat grows but moderately in the colder parts 

 of the world, and flourishes best in the middle regions of the tem- 

 perate zone. It becomes sickly and unproductive on approaching 

 the tropics. Oats are easily raised on almost any kind of soil, from 

 the heaviest loam to the lightest sand. 



Indian Corn (Zea Mays) is indigenous in the West India Islands, 

 where it reaches the height of from twelve to fourteen feet, and com- 

 pletes its course of vegetation in forty days. It flourishes between 

 the fortieth degree of south latitude and the forty-fifth degree of 

 north latitude. It is extensively produced in some parts of Asia and 

 Africa. It is the common bread corn of the Levant, and of a large 

 part of Spain, Italy and southern France. 



It has made its way even to many parts of Germany, Belgium, 

 and the southern and central parts of England. Its widest range 

 of production extends over the whole of the Middle, Western and 

 Southern States, as well as Mexico, where it constitutes one of the 

 principal cereals for making bread, and the chief material for feed- 

 ing cattle and horses. 



Sugar cane (Saccharinum omcinarum), or the material derived 

 from it, is one of the principal staple products of Louisiana planta- 

 tions. It is mostly cultivated in the coast and gulf parishes. It is 

 a perennial plant belonging to the family of grasses. It varies in 

 height from six to fifteen feet. The stalk is knotty, with a leaf and 

 inner point at each knot. It is propagated by slips or pieces of 

 stem with buds on them. There are three kinds of cane which are 

 cultivated for the production of sugar. The old creole cane, which 

 has dark green leaves, a slender stem, and is close jointed. It came 

 originally from India, and was introduced in the West India Islands. 

 The cane from Otaheite is the most valuable. It has light green 

 leaves with a thick stem, grows to a considerable height, is very 

 juicy, and presents a luxuriant appearance. The cane from Batavia 

 is indigenous in Java. Its purplish leaves are very long and broad, 

 and the juice which it produces is preferred for the manufacture of 

 rum. The sugar cane has been introduced into Louisiana from the 

 French West India Islands. 



