Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1868-11-26
"C0TTON rs KING"
BY GEORGE W. GIFT.
NUMBER ONE.

NUMBER ONE.
! Editors Memphis Appeal;
! The object Of this paper is to appeal to
/ the citizens Of Memphis in behalf of our
great agricultural stsples, cotton, corn,
etc. It VIII be my purpose, without re-
! llsctiDg upon the past, TO show that cot
| ton-growing can and may be made much
/ more profitable than heretofore; but In
/ order TO arrive at that desirable end 1t
Will be necessary to stimulate the grow
ers and experineRters by liberal rewards
for their pains and toll. 10 brief, pro-
pose thst the County Agr cultural Soci-
ETY., backed by the Chamber of Com
merce and the business men of Mem
phIs, offer the following prizes, to be
awardeA after the crops are gathered and
sscertaiDed:
l. $1,000 for the best acre OF cotton, pro-
vidsd the acre produces 1900 pounds Or
more Of liGt cotton.
.. $500 for the best acre of corn, pro-
vided the acre produces l25 bushels or
more of shslled corn.
3. $3.50 Tor the best acre Of oats, pro-
vided the acre produces 90 bushels or
more of ehelled oats.
Wv aNA thO OoSf NNa Q OA SSA NAOFCAf
provided the acre produces 81 tons or
more OF good hay.
The first point 10 be discussed is why
such princeIy Cffsrs shsuid be made
First OF all, the YhCs2erity ofthe country
depends wholly Upon the sueeess OF our
agricultural interests, and cotton, backed
by an abundance Of corr, etc., to furnish
bread and meat for the people and forage
for beasts, Is our main dependence With
g prosperous and wealthy rural populs-
tIOn, Memphis must improve and sd-
vance. In short, whatever will be OF
benefit to cur farmers, will be Of benefit
TO the city.
The adoption Of concentrated or IN
tcnsire system OF agriculture will insure
an increase in the productions OF the soil,
and relieve US from cur present utter de-
perdence upon negro labor. It behoOves
US 10 demonstrate that white farmers
may not only cultivate our fields with
their own hands, but by so doing they
can make three times as much money
per ecre "a upon the most favored wheat
lands on the continent. This, insist, Is
entirely practicable; and if the premium
mentioned above be offered, it will be so
demonstrated. Let this fact be estab.
lisbed, and emigration will pour Ia upon
Us as in the good old days Of 10 ln Cali
fornis lauds now waste and worthless
will appreciate, vacant houses viii be
filed, order viii come out OF chaos, and
money out Of the ground. There will be
no necessity for the everlasting whining
and crying and begging for Northern
capital, We will have enough of cur own
plenty to build cities, factories, mills,
railroads and steamboats,. II it can be
shown by practical results that three
bales of cotton and twenty-five barrels
Of corn can be raised In q single year
from two acres of land, / insist that 1t
VIII be worth millions. II, on the other
hand, the eXpeFlmenteTs fall below the
amounts state d, then ii will cost nothing,
II is possible that l will be met by the
assertion on the part Of many, and es
pecislly those engaged In growing cot
ton, that the yield referred to issn im-
possibility. shall prove to the contrary.
Mr.. David u ckson, Of Hancock county,
Ca, latitude S3{ degssss north) says;
" The greatest amount | ever made per
acre, IVES on four acres of upland. '
The crop vas 500 pounds seed cotton per
acre. 80 ClsltiCdtor, pol. Irv p. eT,-I
on part of which the yield HEs at least
5000 pounds per scTe. y. b. Cloud, Of
Alabsma, by maluTing poor "piney
woods" F" land, raised 6975 pounds seed
cotton 90 the acre. Last year Mr.. Dick
son gathered 43. 200 pounds seed cotton
from o sixteen acre field, at cost OF SSl
per acre Tor labor, fertilizers and pick
ing. The Eeld had been in cultivation
fer seventy years And as a browning
triumph, / will refer to the great stalk OF
cotton exhibited at the last fair held In
this city. II had upon it 523 open or
mstured b0lis. One hundred bols will
make pound OF seed cotton hence the
stalk referred to did yield % pounds.
Let the stalks s;and four feet spArt each
wy, and we would have on an acre
17z25 y 5.23-li .235 pounds! Let them
stand ave feet distant each way, and we
have 1894 \ 23-95l2; pounds. Three
and tbree-tenth (3.3) pounds Of seed cot
ton make one pound OF lint, AS addi-
ditioBal testimony, copy the following
from the hscon ga Telegraph, OF No
yembeT IS.
No doubt we are OF the eve OF an inn
portsnt change in the Georgia cotton
culture. We published yesterday more
than three bale crop 10 the acre, very
light lsnd-snd thirty bales TO as many
acres of came quality. This, at present
prices, Is q three hundred dollar crop to
. single acre, and an average OF hun
dred dollars to each acre Of a thirty acre
field, and this good deal above the best
cotton lStitU6e.Of Georgia. Such results
as these stimulate the universal feeling
among planters Ia favor Of small fields
and thorough culture. BbosVer lives
few years longer in Georgia will see five
bales produced 20 the acre, and will learn
that it is the kind Of cotton planting
which pave. AS labor will gradually be-
come the dearest element In cotton pro-
duetiOn, that is the one which must be
chis fly econOmised, and the way to do ii
Is to till q little land for large crops. We
hear no other ideas amOng4ntelligent,
reading pianters."
The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle and Sen
tiTieL Gays:
a tract CT FIVE acres OF land in Bull
lock county was prepared, this year, by
thorough ploughing, the depth of fifteen
inches, enriched by the application of
2500 pounds 500 pounds TO the acre-0f
mix,ure OF Peruvian gusno and phos-
pilates. The hill systepl OF planting was
adopted, and the yield was fifteen bales
Of clesn, beautiful cotton, and fine quail
lty, each bale Weighing 500 pounds"
Now I hold that when we know how
to make one acre produce three bales, we
m6y make other hundreds and thous-
snds Of acres do the came; ard when-
ever we understand the exact conditions
under which the "523-boll stalk F" was
produced, we may have thousands and
millions like it,. At ali events, there are
many men who will undertake the bpsi-
ness Of experimenting and studying the
plsnt, if the proper stimulus is held out,
1t is quite probable that ali this may
be called "theOry possibly, nonsense.
That, however, is immaterial. Call 1t
what you will, but offer the prize, and /
guarantee that 1t will be fairly won.