The national Republican., 1861-12-31
COTTON IN ILLINOIS.


---fhs .oaicaso Tribune publishes summary
Of the statements of thirty-nine persons, who
have had practical experience, some Of them
as long ~ thirty years, in raising cotton Ia H.
lin,is. Thee statements ara In auswer 20
questions p6posed ~ the lllinots Central
Railroad Company, the agents Of which are
still engaged 10 collecting additional testimo
ny upon the same mkJect. .-s,s ~
These statements establish the fact, that cot.
,nn may be raised in Illinois from three to
Ave hundred pounds per acre, and with scarce
,y any danger from frost. The portion Of iii.
nois In which this is practicable embraces, &C.
cording to the Tribune, ten or twelve millions
.of soses Ex.Lieutsusns Governor Casey states
1t as including the south halt Of the State.
All the early settlers In Illinois from the South
seem to have been iu the habit Of raising cot
ION The habit was given up gradually, twen-
y and thirty years ago, and for the reason, as
given uniformly by all the witnesses, that fac
'nry-made cotton cloths became 80 cheap that II
was better economy tobuy them than 70 raise cot
t)n and spin and weave It at home, This shows
+ r what use cotton was formerly raised in Hi
nois, that is, to be worked into cloth In the
| household, and not to he sold. II could not
then be raised to be marketed In It's raw state
without being at q disadvantage with more
Sou,hera cotton, in distance from New Orleans
Now, since artificial routes to the Atlantic from
tie Mississippi, us low down as Cairo, or even
Memphis, have superseded the natural one Of
the river, this disadvantage no longer exists.
Lieutenant Governor Casey, who emigrated
from Middle Tenn ssseo to Jefferson county, Iii.
npis. says: ..,...,
al had been in the habit of ising all the
| cotton the family used prior to coming to this
State. For twelve years after came to Illinois.
year sufficient for home consumption, and dis.
continued raising cotton there because cotton
goods could DO purchased cheaper IN the stores
than made at home. We used Tennessee cot
ton seed. Planted usually about the first of
May. and picked out during the month of Sep.
tember. Usually we had no trouble from
frost.
II have no doubt but that cotton could be
raised to advantage In all the south half Of Iii.
~. CASEY.
"Mt. Vernon, Jefferson county, Illinois,
December 9, 1861"
This is a sample Of all the statements and
TO quot. one, gives a correct idea of the
whole. ."
At the present prices and prospects Of prices,
OF cotton, we may well suppose that the amount
oi cotton raised the next season in Illinois. will
be limited only BY the limits Of the seed which
can be obtained for planting.
In odait;on In nl;noto tho Sraa S,.tas bo 20
in Kansas broad belt of territory, In which
1t Is not merely possible to raise cotton, but
which is admirably adapted to that plant in
both soil and climate. That is true Of the
whole Neosho valley lying in Ksnsus. The
strip Of lauG in that S ate fifty miles in width,
lyiog south Of Fort Scott, (now temporarily
encountered with Indian rights,j s known to
be as favorable to Gotten as any part Of Ark
ansas or Of the Indian territory. Fer the pres
ent, remoteuess and expense Of transportation
constitute a drawback upon cotton cultivation
, In that quarter; but that Is difficulty easily
remedied BY railroads.
10 Illinois. the question Of the labor necessary
to raise cotton is being discussed. The exploded
absurdity, that negroes are so superior 10 the
white race-that cotton can only be cultivated
by black labor, is, Of course, not attempted to
be revived among the intelligent people OF
Illinois. II, however, there is temporary in
suficienoy Of white labor svr the sudden and
perhaps large requirements Of a new ssos, an
| abundance OF " "contrsbands," trained to cotton
picking can be had from the conf.cated estates
of Arkansas, Tennessee, and LouiSisna rebels.
II Illinois does not choose TO relax her "black
laws," and to let in this kind of labor she has
ooly to wait little longer, until 1t flows in
from the Atlantic States and from Europe.
Wherever wages ale offered, there labor will
be sure to come and if Illinois wants a new
million Of people TO raise cotton, It is a want
which the world will supply as soon as 1t J.
made known.
ALEXANDRIA REsEIs AND pEIoS MEN.-On