212 
SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
HOGS AND PORK-MAKING. 
EDrxoRS SoTTHERN CULTIVATOR — Can a planter afford 
to feed hogs when he can sell his corn at 80 cents cash, 
and a prospect in 3 days of its being worth 100 cents'? — 
Can he afford to neglect his hogs, even if he could sell at 
200 cents per bushel '? 
Suppose he requires 15.000 pounds of pork, worth say 
62 cents per pound, hauling, &c , &c., added, worth, say 
Si 000. The planter has 1000 bushels he can spare, and 
can sell for $1000. He has the hogs, if well taken care 
of, that will give him the pork, and if not attended to he 
will not make the half of it, but admit he sells $1000 
worth, and has $750 worth of meat, so he only buys $250 
worth and saves $750. Is there economy in it'? Hog 
stock neglected one year, may cut down the stock, so 
that in 1818, the planter would not kill $500, and 1859 
not that much. In the meantime, the demand increasing 
enhances price, and instead of 6^, it may be 8 or more 
Some planters argue that meat cannot be raised when corn 
commands 75 cents. Suppose it is so, but may it not be 
better to do so one or two years than to permit stock to 
run down, and when corn and cotton falls in price, there 
are no hogs to feed. 
When corn commands 75 to 100 cents, peas and pota- 
toes and pindars, and Sorghum (Sugar millet) should come 
in to supply most of feed. Not too late even in May to 
plant squashes, they produce much and cheap food. 
A calm, working discussion of this question, would no 
doubt, be of much advantage. Not controversy, but just 
such a discussion as if we were anxious for every South- 
ern man to see what is best for him and his country, not 
for the moment, but as a policy to be pursued* 
Yours, An Enquirer. 
Jones Hollow, AprU, 1857 
DESCRIPTION OF A SUGAR MILE. 
Editors Southern Cultivator — Take four pieces of 
timber 6 by 8, and mortice them together in the form of 
the ground sills of a small building ; a fifth piece fitting 
exactly in the centre of end piece. Let the foundation be 
about 8 feet long and 5 feet wide. In the middle of each 
end piece, set an upright post 4 by 6 if you prefer, and 3 
or 3i feet high. These posts must be well braced on each 
side. Dovetail into the top of these posts a stick of timber 
6 or 8 by 10 or 12, the wide side down. From end to end 
lay a floor upon the ground sills of25 or 3 inch plunk, 
about 2 or 3 feet wide. Three holes must be made in this 
floor in a line for the necks of the rollers to work in— the 
centre hole round — the other two elliptical. Similar holes 
must be made in the beam above for the same purpose 
The outer holes are elliptical in order to key them up to 
the centre roller, so that they may be almost in contact. 
The floor must be scooped out inclining gradually down 
from within a few inches of the holes to within an inch or 
two of the outside edges of the floor. This is for conduct- 
ing and coiitaining the juice as a reservoir, from which a 
pipe can lead the juice wherever it is wanted, or a play 
hole may be made to convey the juice into buckets. 
The Rollers are usually made of Live Oak, turned in a 
lathe, from 18 to 30 inches in diameter. Cogs made of 
Hickory or other elastic wood are inserted in each 
roller near the upper end. The upper neck of the middle 
roller is larger than that of the others and extends through 
the upper beam 2 or 3 feet to afford a fastening to a long 
beam, which is m.ucle curved or inclining to the ground, 
and to which one or two horses may be attached to give 
it motion. The necks of the rollers should work in boxe.s, 
made of metalic composition, and the ends of the rolltr 
necks ought to be banded with iron. It is proper to coun- 
isisink the cogs 
It is customary to pass the the Sugar Cane through the 
the two rollers on one side and back through the two on 
the other. When not in use, the rollers should be protect- 
ed from the weather. G. J. A. 
Brunswick, Ga., Moaj, 1857. 
P. S. — I have complied with the request of your corres- 
pondent in the June number of the Cultivator as nearly 
as possible. I am no farmer, but 1 have seen hundreds of 
mills, and my description 1 believe to be correct. 
BALING COTTON WITH IRON HOOPS, &c. 
Editors Southern Cultivator — As there seems to be 
a good deal of discussion going on among planters, as to 
the merits of baling Cotton with iron hoops, I believe 
it to be the duty of every citizen when he sees his 
fellows falling into error to warn them of that error. — 
1 here are several objections to baling Cotton with iron 
hoops. The principal of which is, the colion presses in 
our sea-port towns will throw away the hoops, and make 
the planter pay for ropes, they not being prepared for 
that kind of business. Secondly, if using that particular 
mode of lastening were to come into general use, the price 
of hoop 'iron, instead of eight or nine cents, would soon 
run up to a much higher figure, and as iron hoops are a 
foreign production, we would be injuring the production 
of our own Southern States, which every true lover of 
his country should never do There are also some few 
minor objections, such as the action of salt on the iron 
hoops in the holds of the vessels, and the cotton being 
packed with jackscrews in the vessels the fastenings are 
apt to slip off. The iron hoop is also worthless after it 
leaches its destination, the rope is worth something to 
make paper of the coarsest kinds with I have packed 
Cotton myself with iron hoops several years ago, using 
two rivets, which cost ten cents each, but finding that the 
presses would not receive it, I abandoned it We should 
recollect that all change is not improvement, and we 
should be careful how we suggest even a slight alteration 
in the management of a staple so necessary to the well 
being of millions as Cotton I would make one sugges- 
tion to my brother planters, that is, never to jRack cotton 
bales weighing over 450 or 500 pounds— you injure your 
screws, you wear out your negroes in treading it in the 
box, you waste time also, your bales being so heavy are 
torn in pieces by the handling of them with iron hooks. 
If any one would just walk around the depots of our rail- 
roads, and see the skinned and war-worn appearance of 
an 800 pound bale, he would easily become a convert to 
my opinion. This is only one side of the question. I am 
open to conviction, and would like to hear the opposite 
side. “ Dixit.” 
Burke County, Ga., May, 1857. 
THE SCARCITY OF SUGAR. 
The Providence Journal has a very sensible article on 
the present scarcity of Sugar, and its consequent high 
price. It argues that theie is but one way to meet the 
difiiculty, and that is not to eat it. If every family would 
resolve to diminish the consumption of sugar one-half, or 
one third, the evil would soon disappear, and this sicri- 
nce would really amount to but liule. T he present ex- 
orhitfintiy high price at which the article is selling must, 
>s a natural consequence, check its ct'nsumption for the 
sin'qile reason that the poorer classes, and even those of 
mod) r.ite means, cannot affoid to !)uy it. The Piovidence 
editor thinks that the present iiigh prices will h ive li e 
Ifi ct to stimulate all the domestic sourc.es of supply, and 
hat the presetit year will produce great qtianmtes ftom 
the maj.ff and also from the Chinese Cane recently intro- 
duced. — Balt. Patriot. 
