Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1857-03-31

plantation near new DraunIels' 1oAa9' 90
follows: - o4 Il
"For the last six months have hardly
opened paper, whether devoted TO agrl-
culture, politics, religion, sporting affalrs,
or what not, without seeing some notice OF
the Sorgho Sucre, or Chinese Sugar cane;
why have not a perfect right to add my
experience to the general stock of informa-
ton in relation to the cultivation OF this
new grain, or plant, or whatever 1T may be
| termed? To begin, then: In October,
| 1855, purchased in Paris small paper
kof the seed. do not think there was more
than two heaping tablespoonsful OF It, or
three at the outside. l brought 1T With me
to New Orleans, and on arriving sent 1t
here to be planted When L reached this
| place early in May last, it was just peering
above the ground, two rows of 1t IN a ten
acre field, which had been devoted In the
main to millet, oats, and q little Indian corn
and four short rows i'll our garden; the lat |
ter planted last.
in the larger field had shot up, headed out
and ripened, Notwithstanding the drouth,
and heavy heads were cut for seed. The
oats meanwhile had come up, the millet
was hardly above ground, while the lndl-
an corn was parched and drying up for
want of rain, Two or three mornings al
terwards, on looking at the field from
, hin close by, | noticed that the two rows
of Sorgho Sucre had entirely disappeared,
while rows of Indian corn on either side
were still standing. On close eXamlna-
: ton l ascertained that lot of ho9s-hogs
are apt to do such things-had broken IN
, to the field, and devoured the Chinese SUI
oar cane root and branch; it was cut clean
| to the ground by the porkers, not sign
or vestiye was left, while, as already stated
l the stalks of Indian corn on either side
were left standing. | was thankful had
saved the seed, and thought little more OF
: it.
l "Some few days after this-perhaps a
: forniyht-the rows planted in the garden
= were examined, the heads of seed found to
# be ripe, and the greater portion cut and
l brought to the house, leaving the tall
;, stalks still standing. On cutting down
one of the latter, which must have been
d ten feet high, / found it to be exceedingly
3 heavy, and on tasting the cane 1T seemed
d to me to be AS full of saccharine juice as
e the ordinary sugar cane OF Louisiana. "A,
= the same time had two or three imported
@ French Merino sheep in my yard, in grea
d want of green fodder, and on cutting the
le grain into small pieces found that they
L devoured 1t with the greatest avidlty AT
r ter this fed them daily on 1t Tor som'
n time, Il single stalk furnishing agood bait
y also gave some of it to fayorlte mare
she eating it even more greedlly than TN
OF sheep. Some three weeks after the ZIP
IN heads of seed were cut, noticed that new
- heads had shot up from the same stalk
and these new heads blossomed, filled, ant
b. ripened in September, and were cut ant
ID BROUGHT to the house. All this time yo
ut must recollect we were suffering from tn
unprecedented drouth, and Indian cor
and sweet potatoes, water-melons, pump
in kins. and the like, had died down to tn
, ~ very ground.
he II now became more interested in tn
to Sorphu Sucre than ever, and although
le- still fed out daily to the merinoes and mare
DIS left portion of the stalks standing. Som
es new heads were seen shooting out, an
Die these in turn blossomed and rlpened
TIC did the first. [ kept no account OF date
De, but think this third crop OF seed from u
in same stalk, ifso L may call it, was gathere
ell. about the first of October; it might ha'
been during the second week OF tn
sc month. L planted some of this last see
bv way of experiment; it came up rapid
the looked thrifty, grew until it was ne'r
m knee hirh, and was finally cut down
su- frost in November. A great number
,la- shoots or suckers, which had sprung L
SUI from the stalks first planted, were cut do'
at the same time; the Sorgho Sucre ca
led st,,d a,,1, hind Of drouth. but the fiji
SUI sharp frost kills it to the ground. AL
will 1vhat .noount of seed do YOU think 1 gat
cred from the little paper purchased
the pou;s9 Nearly. if not quite, two bus
de- els, and had not the hogs broke into t
this field. | believe I should have had thr
our 1t certainly yields in the most miraculo
yet manner; beats everything IN dry W.
p ther. a.aLH ...il... ..IE.
l,e,, - "Of its properties for the production
~ SUGAR I can say nothing: l only know I'll
III" III # tas tes like the common sugar cane,
- is full of Juice about the time the II
G "a heads ripen AS a green fodder 1t
= Tf beats everything else which grows: hors
sheen. and hogs are certainly lnordlna
AIy llv fond of it, and so full are the stalks
r. saccharine matter that they must be b
nutritious and fattening. cannot
- what kind of bread or cakes the seeds
- ~ afford. nor can tell what kind OF dry
III der the plant will make when cut gre
H. these experiments 1 have yet to try,
CtiS now that have the seed L intend to d
iU ON n cr,and scale l shall plant 1t IN ro
20 80 or drills, shall SOW it and shall cut II
-, ~ different stages to try its qualities as
-. fodder Let me repeat over and
aoain. that it stands drouth better t
90 ANYTHING. we have-does not seem to
I'll, ouire rain after it is once up.
reuly Yours, DC,
rther G. w. K.
arger 5H .I n1 .m
~ 70 Ev A letter in one of the London
.,Joo pers asserts that Y ell, the Governor oil
-, - ton. China, has, during the short tlm'