Delaware State journal and statesman. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1855-1870, 1867-03-22

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Special respondtnas the Journal and statesman
CAPEvnLE, NORTHAMPTON Co., VA,
March 1G, 1867.

Special rrespondtnes Of this Journai and sA'smAu'
CAPEvILLE, NORTHAMPTON Co., VA
March 1G, 1867
DEAR JoURNAL:-I take few moments oil
leisure this afternoon 10 give you some iuea
OF this place. 1t is six miles north OF cape
Charles, where company OF capitalists are
about building rival town to Cape May I
This is to be n Southern watering place,
where the elite of the South will gather
New York, as usual, seeing the advantages
of the place, is helping on the project; SO
New York drummers will be here in Hooks
to drum the Southern merchants for custom.
II is intended TO build large wharf, so that
New York steamers can stop at the cape
Just inside OF Smiths Island. This Island
is called after Capt. John Smith, OF Pocha-
hontas fame, and is in itself one OF the finest
watering places on the coast.
The land here is a sandy loan, with
good underlay of brick clay, easily improv,,
ed, and yielding fine crops when well titled
and cared for. The average yield oil cotton
IS about 1 800 lbs. Of seed cotton per acre, or
400 lbs. OF ginned cotton; 80 bushels OF corn,
$50 bushels of sweet potatoes and 100 bush
els Of Irish potatoes to the acre. Sweet po-
tatoes are the great paying crop here. One
OF my nearest noighbors last August realized
5000, clear of expense oftiling, ON four acres
of sweet potatoes. Irish potatoes pay well
alcOs L HO III St Iibp 10 lllAlltNN III WV"
and dug in May; and June the same year
ploughed up and re-planted the last OF June
for full crop; or is planted in cotton, just
as the farmer likes. One horse is all that is
used to plow; the soil is so easily titled,
more are useless Vegetables grow in great
abundance; and l think, from the warm
winters we have, comparatively speaking,
, this will be fine fruit country also; the sea
wind modifying the harshness of the lane
5 hn1n ~, nt, III Eni
instance, our rose and lilac bushes are now
in leaf. Early gardening is over. Peas
Y lettuce, radishes and cabbage are all up grow
a ing. The cattle can live out on the grass. -
: Snakes and lizards are beginning to craw
about. Oats are sOwn, aud look green OF
II the fields; and the farmers are busy getting
+ ready TO plant corn, which will be in full
: blast in two weeks from this date.
!, This is also one of the finest fishing local
2 ties ever saw. can buy more rockfsll
u trout, sheephead or bass for twenty. five cent
Il than you can in the Wilmington market ia
g $3.50. CLANS are ten, fifteen or twcnt
Is cents per hundred, according TO quality
Oysters cost you-the trouble of going TO III
y beds and picking up MS many ms you can TAX
W away. There are millions of bushels lyin
III within five miles Of this small village, thu
! people use when they want them, but the
u improve vastly by planting in the sma
90 SiOSNo w wa W VI Hul hl"iilHs MS -
~ fine opening for some OF your city oyst
W. W dealers. No business will pay better tina
u this.
i, The people here are averse to doing an
~ thing unless they learned it from Their a
~ cestors For instance; they still use the o
~ fashioned two-wheoled gigs, OF thirty yea
81 ago; or what Is still more in use, one OK
We small horsc.cart, which they denomina
M u. a tumetrill, tits nouncommon sight to S
cA several of these carts at II meeting house
~ a Sunday, or at the stores in the village
lls full OF women and children, as happy
w Princes. II is the custom OF the COUNT
Oh but looks odd to a stranger.
hc The people here are bitter rebels in tn
we politics, but clever, social set of well-meG
g. ing people, with that exception. have
lu, served them closely, and they will not
en- the negroes have any right or privilege tn
lis, can help, but once reluctantly wrung fr,
eh' them, they will keep their promise and
our the negro clear OF one thing you may
ole assured; the negroes that stay at home
ms, the farms in the country will to man V
hey and act with their former owners. while
nu- negroes that went into our army. and
seu town and city negroes, will colleague W