The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1852-12-23

1921, 743 bushels; in 1880, it had increased tt
1886, 9l6 bushels.
Barics-The barley chiefly cultivated in the
United States il the tw0-rowed variety which
is generally preferred, from the fulness of It'd
berry, and its freedom from smut The yield
varies from 30 to so or moro bushels per acre
weighing from as to So pounds to the bnshel
Barley has never been much exported from
this country us we have been consumers ratll-
or than producers of this grain. In l747-4S,
there were shipped from Charleston to Eng
land Is casks.
The consumption of barley for the past year,
in tho manufacture of malt and sprituous Ii
auors amounted to $3.50, 900 bushels Accord
ing to the census returns Of 1910, tho annual
amount of barley raised in the United States
was 4,l6l ,5O4 bushels; in 1850, 5,1670l6
bushels
POiatoss-The census abstract passes very
| lightly over the returns of this crop, but gives
us some interesting facts in respect to the his
tory of the root which, however, has heretofore
appeared in many printed books.
The amount of sweet potatoes exported from
South Carolina in l747-48, was 700 bushels !;
that of the common potato exported from the
United States in lS20-'2l, 90,SS9 bushels in
ls3O-'3l, 1855 bushels in lS4O-4l, 1876, O95
| DusutlS, III loOO-O 81, lUO,o4l DuSnClS.
According to the census returns Of lS40 the
the quantity of potatoes of all sorts raised in
the Union was lOS, 29S,000 bushels; of 1850,
I0I, 055 $50 bushels, of which 80, 259, 1875 were
sweet.
Ameriean Wine.-The quantity of wine an
nually produced in the United States has be-
come . subject of some discussion since the APP
pcarance Of tho return in the seventh census
| hot INTO Ia
l24 900 gallons rs the produce of that year. II
has been stated in the public prints, that since
that period the culture of the grape, and the
manufacture Divine therefrom have grown into
business of considerable Importance in the
| States bordering on the Ohio river, and that
several hundred acres havo been planted in
| vineyards in that valley, which Yields at the
rate of 300 gallons of wine year The total
product of the Union, in 1880, was given at
22l ,2i9 gallons But during the intervening DO
Rod thore had been added TO our own territory
California and New Mexico, which in the latter
year produced e0,7lS gallons. This quantity,
deducted from the aggregate, leaves 1908
gallons for tho portion of tho Union covered
by tho returns Of 1910, indicating ~ gain of
only $4,000. This is probably an under state
ment, but IT seems to prove that no consider
able progress has yet been made towards sup
plying by home production, the demand to
moot which importations OF foreign wines to ii
very large amount arc annually made
The consumption of vino in tho United
States though by no means general amounts
IN the aggregate to large sum. The imports
during the year ending Juno 1851 were
6,l60000 gallons, Of which, probably, three
iourths consisted OF the wines Of France Tho
value or invoice cost Of the article was
81, 1000. The average consumption of for
ogn wines was therefore, in quantity, but about
one-quarter OF a gallon for each person, and
in value only ten cents The coincidence is
somewhat remarkable, ihat this ia almost pre-
cisey the rate OF consumption of imported
wines among the people of Great Britain. But
in France, according to official returns, there il
produced and retained for consumption nine
hundred million gallons of vino, allowing
twenty-five and three-quarters gallons to each |
person in the population.
Ii appears from other tables in our census |
returns, that tho quantity of ale and spirtuous |
liquors produced in tho United States, in 1850. |
exceeded sc, 600 900 gallons
Hemp and Far--According to the census
returns Of lS40 there were raised in the Uni
ted States 9525lA tons of flax and hemp
Of 1850 350y3 Of hemp, and 77l5, 96I pounds
Of flax
The corrctncss of the returns as to hemp
in the seventh census has not yet been perfect
ly verified in a tow instances, there being some
doubt whether the marsbals have not written
tons where they meant pounds II, however,
the returns are allowed to stand without re-
duction, it would appear that the cultivation
Of hemp and flax has not materially changed
since 1910 In the returns of that year as
stated above both of these articles were in
cluded under the same head In 1910, those of
Virginia gave 1884 tons of flax and hemp
together. In 1850, only lll tons of hemp and
500 tons Of flax were returned Such q fall
ing off in production would amount almost to
an abandonment of the cultIre of hemp in
that State, which there is no reason to suppose |
has taken place.
The discovery of now methods for separating |
the iibrous from the woody parts of the flax |
plant has, doubtless, given vigorous stimulus
to its cultivation in the United States The |
process of Chevaler Clausen first attracted |
general attention among us in 1850. Though |
considerable quantities of flax have been pro-
duccd in former years it has been raised prin-
cipalIy for the seed, which commanded q re-
munerating price. Tho want of cheap and |
speedy process for separating the textile from
the refuse part of the stalk has Occasioned |
vast annual loss of useful material to the |
country. Should the attempts which have
latoly beon made to apply Clausens invention |
succeed the production OF flax in tho United
States may become of great Importance, and |
be advnntage0usly used not only alone, but in |
the manufacture of mixed lsbrics ~ it ap- |
pears capable of being spun with wool, silk,
and other tbrcs.
SIX Coeoons-Aiter an interesting review
of the attempts to establish silk culture in tho
United States We have tho following facts
In about the year 1891, the project Of rear
ing sik-worms and establishing iilaturos Of
silk was renewed in vs.fious parts OF tho Union |
and the subject was doomed to be of ~ much |
importance, that it not only attracted the at
tention of Congress, but afterwards received
encouragement from the Legislatures of sevo-
raj States, by bountes offered for all tho raw
silk produced within their limits for certain
periods of time. The business soon began to
be prosecuted with extreme ardor, and con
tinued several years resulting in tho establish
mont Of extensive nurseries of mulberry trees |
and ended with the downfall of the famous
"morus muticaulis speculation in 1915.
The amount of raw silk exported from Gcor-
gia in 1850 was Ils pounds in 1855, 1913
pounds; in 1860, $50 pounds; in 1906, more
than 10000 pounds in 1910 900 pounds
from South Carolina, in l772, ass pounds In
1865 there were raised on Silk Hope Planta-
ton, in South Carolina, $40 pounds Of cocoons;
in Mansfield, Connecticut, in 1893, 265 pounds
of raw silk in 1927, 2,43o pounds; in 1891,
10000 pounds; in Connecticut in lsi4, 1920
pounds; in the United States, the same year,
800, 100 pounds.
According to the census returns of 1910, tho
amount of silk cocoons raised in the United
States was el,552l6 pounds; of 1850, i4,763
pounds,
From the above it is obvious that the pro
duction of cocoons has decreased since 1910,
46 7S9 pounds and since 1874 3s2, OFT pounds