The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1869-02-10
What is an Acre Worth.

When the Southern farmer, be
lie largo or small one, will right
~ compute tho value of an aero,
and set tho proper worth by it,
We may thon expect that material
and real wealth to the State that
is only now imaginative. We
call ourselves an agricultural poo
pie, and admit that tho wealth Of
our State lies in it's productions.
10 great extent, wo may say
altogether, that as II people we
arc dependent upon our cotton,
rice, and tobacco crops for what
! money we make. AS TO our corn
crop, We hardly feel like counting
it in, if VIC judge from tho thou
, sands Of bushels that are bought
West to supply tho demands Of
our people, and the thousands
upon thousands Of dollars We send
out OF tho State for that article
! alone not counting tho millions
of pounds Of bacon that VIC buy
, also from the West.
Every man That cultivatcs few
acres Of land, imagincs that ho
must put half or two thirds in
cotton that cotton il tho only
thing that will bring ready mo-
ncy. We could not have n word
to say about planting cotton, if
each acre planted brought 81 bag ;
but when we know that it tullcs
from three to four acres Of our
worn lands to make q bag, we
feel that it. is labor, and money
thrown away, and that the farmer
has never for u moment sat down
and calculated tho worth of an
acre well manurcd and well work
cd.
An aero Of lnnd we'll manurcd
well taken caro- of, is worth from
$50 to $50. An acre that will
bring twenty-five bushels Of wheat
and thirty bushels Of corn the
samo year, is worth 500; and
any pains taking farmer can make
an acre produce that. The ma,
nurc dropped in stables or yards
ny horses, COWS, hogs, sheep, &c.
will manure ono aero well. We
speak Of the small farmer, tbc
man with but little stock. Care
and economy is all that is needed
to save manure but 80 long as
we drive along in our slip shod
way Of making and saving ma,
nnre, We may expect but poor
returns from tho soil. If the
small farmer could bo induced to
tako half The pains tho New Eng
land farmer docs on his place,
there would not be farm in
baldwin county that would not
be worth at least $40 to the acre
But what wo desire to call the
especial attention Of our farmers
il to the importance Of manuring &
at least ono aero well and plant.
ing it in something that will
bring him 500 clear 1t can be
done and done easily, but there
must be system about il. Let the
small farmer who reads this look
at tho nearest city or town, to
which he trades and sec what ar,
ticle Of provisions soils readily.
Take, for instance, sweet potatoes
everybody eats them, and thoy
have a ready sale; they keep well
and can be sold by the wagon load
or bushcl, at from fifty cents to
one dollar.
A farmer knows how many
bushels an aero will bring, and
he knows that he can get n hnn-
drod dollars an acre even at fifty
cents bushcl. Take tho ground
pea; it will sell readily and bring
II good prico. Take onions, tako
Irish potatoes, take peas. Put
tho aero in anything but cotton,
and it will bring more money than
cotton would. Much manure is
sometimes saved and wasted by
trying to manure ten or twenty
acres, when it should havo been
put on one or fve. Farmers get
discouraged and say it wont pay
to save manure, because thoy have
tried it, and their crops wero a
failure, and failed because they
tried to do too much with too