The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1862-09-24
Dixie Staples in Southern Illinois.

Dixie Staples in Southern Illinois.
A late letter to the Chicago T1J,uA
from that asionishingly fertile region,
Southern Illinois, says
Tobacco has now become one of the
staple commodities Of Southern Illinois.
More acres have been planted this year
than ever before, and IL has a ranker
growth than usual. | made inquiries
among the best-informed farmers, 10 as
certain, IL possible, the amount of the to-
hacco crop this year. II viii be unpre-
cedentedly large 1000 hogsheads will
be forwarded from Carbondale station
alone, aud indeed many persons place
the amount al a higher figure than this.
COTTON.
! shall not enlarge upon the fitness Of
this soil aud climate for the cultivation
of cotton. Years of experience have fully
established the fact that we can grow
cotton fully equal ina quality 10 what is
known in commerce as "fair upland ~
At one-hall the price of the present ru-
ling rate, il would be the most profitable
crop that could be produced. la viii
hanson, Jackson aud Union counties, a
great many small patches have been
planted -- enough, probably, for home
consumption, and could seed have been
obtained at the planting season. there
would have undoubtedly been a large
| quantity OF the product for expectation.
! The Government, which had made an
| appropriation for the purpose generously
offered to furnish, through the patent of
| fee, cotton seed of a good quality TO all
who would undertake to plant IL. After
| much anxious waiting, the farmers of the
! State Of Illinois were supplied with the
/ Insignificant amount of seventy-liye
bushels, not enough TO plant a single field
upon the scale which some of our egruiers
had contemplated sad even this amount
! was not forthcoming until the railroad
company had sent special messenger
] TO look into the matter. Next year, left
TO private enterprise, we shall do better,
and it will not be long before cotton is
one Of the chiefcst products Of Southern
Illinois.
CHINESE SUGAR CANE.
The cultivation of sorghum, although
considerable, is less than might be expect
ed, considering that it grows very luXu
riously, almost as much so as corn, and
that its prolitableness has been clearly
established. 1t is laid that the machin-
cry for crushing and eyaporating is OF
the rudcst kind-the machinery in use
-herc-and that for this reason its fuller
development has been kept back Here
at DuQuoin is just the location for a good
sugar mill, and one Of large capacity
Power to work such mill could be OBJ
tanned at one or the other of the coal
mines, and | am but relating what some
of the best farmers tell me when / say
that if the necessary machinery is SCI
up, they will agree to plant thousand
acres with sorghum next spring. Wher
the cane is grown they will transport il
to the mill, disposing of it at a pric,
agreed upon beforehand, or for a share o
the manufactured sugar. One Thousand
dollars invested in this way could scarce
ly fail to prove source of profit to the
person who engages in the enterprise, anC
on the other hand il would stimulate L
an almost unlimited extent the produc
ton Of this very necessary article o
food.