Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1859-04-22
is the result of each precinct :

Total. II sos bales.
The census of 1910 gives the crop at 1900 bales
1850 1907 bales but in the year 1858 make 1908
bales averaging 400 pounds. Those who are familiar
with the agriculture of the county express confident
belief that the crop at distant day will be more than
doubled. Large tracts of first class land have their
native forest growth and others that have Teen exhaust
ed have not yet been renovated by the hand of improve
ment.
A considerable part of the country east of Fishing
Greek and Tar River few years ago covered with
a swamp waste nterspersed here and there with oak
ridges and islands. This is drained with fourteen
leading canals, -four of them to be finished during the
present Year, varying from ten to twenty feet in width,
and from three and half to five feet deep, and about
four to five miles in length One of them is three miles
long, thirty feet wide and three and half feet deep
another miles long, twenty feet wide and four feet
deep the most usual size is fifteen feet wide and four
feet Deep Much of this country covered with its orig
inal forest growth now the draining is nearly compile
ted the cearings will advance with greater rapdity
Last year it produced 4O43 bales of cotton; OF
our most intelligent and skul planters have expressed
the opinion that it be made to produce three or four
| times the amount of the last crop.
Between Tar River and Fishing Greek much valua-
BILE land remains to be brought into cultivation, and no
doubt exists to the capacity of this part of the coun
ty to double its crop On the South and West side OF
Tar River by far the largest part of the creek river
and swamp lands have been brought into cultivation,
and some neighborhoods very high state of improve
mcnt in this part OF the county arc tracts OF pney
lands, we'll supplied with muck and mari, which, applied
in sufficient quantity to the soil gives good crops of cot
ton, both in quanty and quality. There are also large
districts Of wet flat pncy lands with clay subsoil Of
equal value when drained and treated in like manner
stiff clay undertaking the clay subsoil requires much
labor to open the necessary dces and in consequence
of the winter freezing to keep them in good repair
During the present year of our best and most en-
crprsng planters has introduced on river plantation
the system of tile drainage which, thus far gives indca
tons OF perfect If like success had in the
wet flat clay subso piney lands, vast deal will be adj
ded to the cotton growing capacity of the lands of the
county so much that will not venture estimate Of
the quantity that would be increased by such system
of drainage
In the year 1858 many of our best planters made a
supply of provisions and omeght to nine bales e cot
ton to the hand Other sections of Eastern North Car
olina with the system of cultivation and manurng
will do as well as Edgecombe. Why then emigrate tc
the newer States to make cotton They in their turn
will be exhausted and require manure then we shall
have the advantage of them crop requiring less
time for cultivation and maturing will more time
= for maturing. EDGECOMBE.