Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1870-11-18

the Northern States hndlng themselves III u Il
md knowing that the high prices Tor which
their lands can be sold will enable them to
liquidate their Indebtedness and purchase other
farms of equal Or greater, dimensions, have
beon induced to settle in Virginia within the
last two years. Others, attracted by the low
price of our lands, aud having only small
capital have done likewise. Some OF these
parties, however, have failed to realize their
exnectations, and have returned to the North,
declaring that they could not make living on
our Door lands. Unless the errors OF these
dissatisfied ones are corrected, disasters and
disappointment must behalf others IN like
manner. and greatly irinre the future prospects
Of Virginia.
The first Gro. which these persons have
committed is the expenditure Of all their funds
10 the purchase of farms, which can never be
rendered fertile without the use OF proper Ter:
ti!izers, which fertilizers can only be obtained
by N oney.
The second error is, that rejecting the advice
of the more experienced farmers IN The com,
muDities in which they settle. they have plo"'
cd lands now poor, and originally poor, so deep
ly as to bury tho thin soil beneath the poor
subsoil, and thus produce stcrllity; Wnlie
upon soil thus unWlsay treated, they nave
planted corn only four feet by one, having two
Il
their funds in the purchase of land, and making
q limited outfit, they find themselves at the
end of their first years operations without
money and without food Hence their dlssatI9
faction. 49,.
Suppose one Of these men had come to Viz
gipia with So, 900; be spends 81, 200 in The pur,
chase of seventy five acres OF land, and the
purchase OF teams, plows, &c; no then has
$500 in hand with which to purchase proVi-
siops and fertilizers. We will suppose he be
Gins operations iu the fall. twenty-five acres
of his farm are in woods, the remainder open
land and very poor. He buys $50 worth Of
Peruvian guano, 800 worth OF super phosphate
of lime. These lie mixes and applies to TWEEN
ty acres, making three hundred pounds OF the
mixture per acre. He may reasonably calcu
late Oh a yield OF fifteen bushels per acre, max
ing him three hundred bushels, two hundred
of which will bring him $500; then he has
doubled bis money on the outlay and has one
hundred bushels OF wheat Tor seed and family
use. The spring comes, and he applies the
same mixture to ten acres of land for corn and
ten Tor oats. He may reasonably expect TO
realize sixty barrels OF corn and three hundred
bushels OF cats, which would treble bis outlay.
In the meantime be sows clover seed on the
wheat and oat land, and the following year nc
has thirty acres of land yielding fine crop OF
grass.
La the summer he puts acre in rusabaGas
and in white turui ps-using the same tertIll,
zers-trom each of which he will realize from
500 to 1000 bushels if it be good season.. -
This will be an ample supply of food for hogs
and cattle during the tall and winter.
It. will readily be seen that these estimates
arc not at all exaggerated for fair season. and
that the clear profits of farming will be from Is
to 30 Der CT. To make the same profits from
the outlay in the high priced lands OF the
North, at least five, and, in many instances,
ten times as much will have to be resped from
them, which we know is never the case.
II Northern settlers will only espcud 50 nuch
OF their capital as will leave fund sufficient 10
buy fertilizers in abundance to start with, and
then plant and SOW as experience has proven to
be wise our State will SOON be lied with hap
py. conteutcd and frugal farmers,-Rtchnaond
Wing.