Cheraw gazette and Pee Dee farmer. [volume] (Cheraw S.C.) 1838-1839, 1839-01-09
M. MacLean, Editor and Proprietor.

''' "''o SoooSll Sui piiSliIs tIiuiuci'y """N''
have fallen in some cases upon most worthy
receivers; A; and there are none in whose
successful and profitable cultivation we arr
more gratified than in the cases of the Ind
viduals named above. In general these
unexpected v.statious Of good fortune have
fallen upon class OF cnllivators. who
usually work more for the public benel
than theirbwn, and whose improvements, o'
schemes, subcc; them to ridicule, and otter
to loss. These are the book farmers anc
experiment-makers--and especially thcregu.
lar and deuoted readers of the Farmers
Register, or other agricultural periodicals
To this last fact we desire partcslary to
call attention; and would be much benefit
ted fit could be presented fully 10 the view
of all who have made nothing from this gol.
den harvest, simply because they had read
nothing concerning the cultivation which
has produced it.
We shall take the liberty Of speaking
more fully of Mr.. WeIler's case. because j,
is one of peculiar interest. He settled
himself on piece of miserable poor land
and with very little prospect, as his neigh.
bours thought, to make bear subsistence
from its products. He has devoted himself
principally to vine and mullicaulis culture.
Some notices Of his useful services to agri-
culture, in The former department, have been
heretofore given in this publication. OF
the latter, the principal circumstances are
as follows. Five or six years ago, being
then, and iong before, q regular reader of
the American Farmer, he was induced by
its recommendations (all of which we owe
TO is former Editor, Gideon B. Smith, 10
begin the cultivation Of the multicaulis. Ele
bought of. J. Hitchcock. of Baltimore, a
plant, OF about foot in height, for which
he paid dollar, and % cents more for get.
ting it to his residence. From this small
beginning. all his stock, and many other,
now large stocks. bought from him, have
grown. NJ. We,lcr'S sale Of plants, before
this season ofspeculalion anu high prices
had commenced, amounted to aboat $4,000,
and, this fall to $4,000 more, though made at
6 Gems the loo:, and before The rise to half
tho present current prices; besides reser.
wing enough stock TO double Or treble his
crop mex: year.
Let Il not be supposed from these or
any otter s!a:cmonts of enormous profits
from raising n,ultcaulis plants. that we de-
sign TO have it inferred as our opinion, that
we expect them 10 continue. The greater
part of the present prices Of mul,caulis is
bubble, blown M BY specula-
ton; and that par: must burst sooner or
la,er,. (whcn. we cannot prcdict;) but the
intrinsic value Of the plant will remain
and silk culture should be really undertaken
bv only one in every hundred. the demand
thereby created SHOULD maintain, for two
seasons, tho plants aud buds TO one-eigth
Tor perhaps one.siyleen,h) part Of their
present cxhorbi,ant prices, the cultivation
will still be highly profitable to all who plant
even at the present high prices. If there
should BE- no demand of purchasers, and no
design in the cuhivafor to raise silk scorn,s,
then of course he will lose his whole outlay.
Oflhesc, or Of better chances, adyenturer
mus, Judge for himself.
We proceed to give extracts from our
friend Peasants letters. He will not con-
fine his efforts to merely raising mulberry
plants for sale, but will feed silk worms the
next season, on u considerable scale. For
this purpose, he has acquired possession Of
the Bcllona Arsenal, in Chesterfield, which
.ill be converted from its late warlike name
and purpose, to a laboratory for tho peace
full and useful labour of silk culture, under
the direction Of its present worthy occu.
pant.
"On the subject Of one.bud cuttings Of
multicauIis can give thee my experience
this year, which perhaps may be Of some
value. 1t is probably known to thee, that
with scarcely any exceptions, there was a
great failure in getting cuttings to start last
spring. John Carter is the only cultlvator
know who has succeeded we'll. Next to
him place myselc--but at considerable
distance in the rear. To the north, not
more than one in is or 20 grew. The
failure was owing to peculiar season, for
| never saw cuttings start better than mine
did. An excessive drought, at the time the
plants began to root, dried them up. lnPre-
pairing my, cuttings, out Of some OF the
strongest and best wood, I cut 10000 or
1000 with one bud. The one.bud cut
ings l planted to themselves in the same
sort of ground with the others; and they
all subsequently, dried alike. Taking The
pleco atlargc, they stand as we'll as the best
spot Of two-bud cuttings, and much better
than the greater part of them. They came
up with great regularity, and have grown
off very evenly.
"If the season is propiiious, there is no
reason why cutting with one bud should
not grow as we'll as one with two buds. A