Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1847-06-12

long time TO eoms. The consumption
the United States Is now over 40 per Ger
greater than ettr total products, and frot
our increasing prosperity and wealth. 1t
augmenting much beyond the ratio Of ou
population. When our W wants are fiI
" supplied, there Is nothing to prevent gu
entering upon q successful competition will
the foreign article in European ports, a
we have heretofore done In cotton, grain
beef, pork, lard, and the products Of III,
dairy.
The introduction Of the ribbon cane inf,
This State from Georgia in 1917, by givint
a harder variety than the Creole ant
Otaheite, before used, has enabled the
planters to extend its successful cultivation
greatly beyond the region originally sup.
posed to be- suited to II. And II does no
admit Of a doubt, that when all The land II
the Gulf States, adapted to the cane, il
reclaimed and put into the best condition
for the harder kinds, under the best system
OF tillage, with the most efficient and eco.
notnical conversion Of The product into
sugar, these states alone are capable Of
producing far beyond the aggregate pro.
duct of the whole world in 1874, which
was below 10000 tons.
IL.
] will occupy the remainder of the spaes
shall presume to claim for d single mum.
Der, by briefly noticing one Of the improve.
mehts in this culture, that, / am confident,
must be rapidly adopted hereafter, through.
out the entire delta, and which, more than
any other, and perhaps than a1l other uni.
ted, will inevitably contribute to this result.
From the unvarying level Of this sugar
region the excessive rains that frequently
abound during the growing season the
great heights Of the Mississippi and its
minor outlets, during the same period. pre-.
senting a head of several feet above the
level OF the cultivated land; and where the
soil Is not porous aud liable to an excess or
water On the surface from this hydrostatic
pressure, It Is so tenacious in
OF the pfodomlnance Of clay, as to hold Il
to The great injury Of vegetation, and from
the constant elevation of water in the rear.
coming within u few inches Of the surface
and being permanently backed up by the
waters in the Gulf, are therefore incapabIe
OF being changed from each of these con
dltions separately, and hence, immeasura.
bly, more when combined, and bearing I'M.
on the same area, 1t is indicated c%opeln.
sively, and beyond all eavil or dispute. that
draining deep and thorough drainin4 and
grand agent in rescuing additional sugar
lands, and making those already e%ultrva.
ted, vastly more productive than they have
hitherto been. This laudable sntet prise
has already been commenced by a few in.
tell gent planters ; yet having been but re.
Gently attempted, It's results have not yet
what every principle Of ve-
life teaches, nay, compels us 10 be.
lieye they must be, when thoroughly car.
ried oot. shall describe this system az 1
seen it on three extensive plantations.
The first is that Of Mr.. Andrew Hodge,
- i.14,s,I.1 f. ..aaf III T..
Barataria. This was formerly one
Df the numerous outlets Of the Mississippi,
commencing opposite Lafayette, just above
The city, and enptying into Barataria Bay,
m arm of the Gulf. Its communication
with the river has been cut off by the lev6e.
1n its right bank, and the bayou now serves
IS q drain for the Gulf which, from violent
ind long-contlnued winds, sometimes raj
'es the water opposite the plantation to a
Of three feet, As but little of this
and is higher than four, and much of it not
extending two feet above the ordinary level,
I Is obvious that even a temporary rise
be u serious injury 10 the growing
,rop. TO prevent this, the entire cultivated
and, consisting Of some 700 acress, is pro.
ected by continuous embankment Within
md contiguous to this, is a large ditch
communicating with numerous leading and
ros s.ditches of four 10 ten feet wide. A
anal, twenty-five feet on the surface, and
tx feet in depth, receives the drainage
all these minor bitches, and conducts
he water Of the edge Of the bayou, where
t is discharged. If the water within be
than on the outside, as sometimes
it is permitted TO flow out by a side
;ut but If it be required to sink it lower,
IS is generally the case, the draining wheel
8 resorted to. This is twenty-six feet in
liameter and five feet wide, and is placed
a small building over the ditch,
which is here reduced to a hume Of brick
masonry, supported by solid buttresses a
end. After passing the centre of the
Wheel, the bottom Of the outlet curves up.
ward, following at the distance of half an
nch the outer edge of the wheel, till it
caches within two feet Of the general
evel outside, when it is discharged, and
off through selfadjustiDg iron gates,
bat open outwards by the pressure Of the
water, and close from its reaction.
The buckets of the wheel are five feet