New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1862-06-04


IS to 100 feet apart, and most Of the ground was
made ct an immense labor out OF timbered swamp.
It ia flooded by the tide but some of the plantations
on Cooper River have fresh-water reservoirs.
CAPE FEAR PLANTATIONS.
Thos. ID. Mesrs, of Wilmington, N. c., has rice
plantation on the Cape Fear River, where the tidt
averages about FIVE feet, which gives good over
flow to some 5000 acres of rice land in the vicinity
of Wilmington, which produces some GOO brsheis
Of rice year. of superior quality.
Mr. Mears's average was IS bushels per acre, upon
go acres worked by forty hands who do all the
work with hoes. The average crop on the river Is
fifty bushels, and average price eighty cents bushel
for paddy.
Hands average five or six acres each, besides max
ing provision crop. Mr. Mearss father made one
year an average of ll3 bushels an acre upon plat
of eleven acres. Col. Carson averaged one year
upon all his welltiled good land, ninety bushels an
acre.
FLOODING RICE LAND.
! As soon as any one of the incl0sed plots OF
the plantation is seeded, the water is let on go
as to just cover the surface, and kept on TIL
the grain ia sprouted, and then it is drawn Of
till the plsnts shoot the fourth leaf and then the
hoes are put to work wedding the weather is dry,
and the water is kept of till the second wedding, or
else it is plowed and kept on fifteen or twenty days.
which kills great portion OF the weeds. Then the
water is drawL off and the crop cleaned, and then 1t
is flooded again, and the hight Of water regulated day
after day. so that the plants just keep their heads out
Of water A crevasse or low food of fresh water,
or high salt tides, are equally fatal to the crop.
Watchmen are kept day and night on the embsnk-
ment to guard against accidents. 1t is crop that
an enemy might easily destroy. A single gunboat
could ruin million of dollars worth Of rice in the
run of one night ona river lined with rice plantations
The rice crop ripens the latter part Of August,
when the water is drawn oil, and the grain cut with
sickes bound into sheaves, and "toted' to the
canals, or out upon dry land, and stacked.
Some years the state Of the weather is such
that little or no hoeing can be done to the
crop. Water is then the sole dependence. Upon
" Rice Hope" plantation, above Col. Carsons,
crop of 90 bushels an acre was made one year upon
Is acres. never touched with hoes after planting.
That plantation has fresh water reservoirs, but the
water is not as enriching flooding from the river
These ponds cover 100 acres to water go acres Of
rice land But this is considered no loss, as none but
rice land aud just enough upland for corn and poti-
toes, &c. is valued, no matter what the area OF the
| plantation.
HOW RICE Il HULLED.
/ There is no grain, not even oats and buckwheat,
that has such Gu UNBEATABLE appearance rice. The
delicious white grain that comes TO us is nclosed in
hard, ridged husk, composed in great part OF SLEEK
10 sharp that il would out the teeth OF an OK in
! IA short time. To remove this bark without spelling
the grain is difficulty that ingenuity has overcome
The first process was rubbing between two stones
and then pounding in a wooden mortar, a process
that commerce could not wait upon. The principle
il still the sane IN, improved by machinery.
When the paddy is brought to the mill it ia iirss
run through a f.unng-aiil, and then through u
three-way separator the screen. of which take the
largest rice to one place aud smallest light rice 10
anosher and the sand TO "A third. The rice Is next
rua through bnrr.stons mill, set the grain is
rubbed, and of the hulls separated. 1t is then
elevated, md passed again through iauning-mil
that wiunows ont the loose hull. Then it is carried
TO screen that separrtes he haed grains from the
others, which have 10 pass again through the mill.
The hi'led gIain has rough, dirty appearance,
and If eaten in that state would have slightly gritty
taste. IL is not in merchantable condition. To
make it TO- it s carried 10 a set OF morars, ten or
tive I've in a row, each holding five bushels, where it
is operated upon two hours 10y large wooden pestle
that IL lif,ed up by cogs wheel and allowed TO
drop its weight into the ma-s, giving rubbing mo-
'lon dat separates the pellcle, and mashes all the
ot defective grains and those that not hulled
by the stones making them into - rice meal"
Tien it is again elevated to screen that separates
ALI the who's grains from the broken and meal.
| The broken rice and meal carried to flaming
mil that separates them the broken grains being
good food. and worth bali price. The whole grains
are carried to another machine, where all the dust is
brushed OIL and the grains polished by rubbeis 1t
goes ouce more to the fan and screen, and all that
comes down in the right place ready Tor packing,
and ell that goes over Is sent back to the mortars.
TIE PRODUCT OF CLEAN RICE FROM PADDY.
The preparation of s.Iable rice in u given quantity
of paddy may bp seen from the following statement
of II crop sent from Rice Hope" to Charleston TO be
hulled on account Of the planter:
l5g bushels average IS s ,l55 bs. made 81 %, Of
whole rice, which sold at cents pound aad
One esSs 30 Of iaio cs . a, 70
Also cask, 90 lbs, not sold, say.'.'......... 10 %
-Four casks of small ricc say........'..'...' 10 ~
2Ol bushels OF rice meal OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. l0l %
Total. LS9J 70
The charges for milling were....''.'....'.. SDo ~
Net proceeds Of 2lj9 bushels sl,'i8 ~
II is readily seen, fIom what we have said that 1t
requires large capital to establish rice planta-
ton, aud good deal of hard labor to keep it in
der but, 70 long as the work can be done by slave
labor and produces such paying crop AS it does, the
business will he continued.
Statistics of exports show the rate OF increase OF
rice cultivation IN this coGntry
The exports from Charleston, 5. c., are given at
Il COO barrels We take it that the term barrels