The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-05-26
THE PROSPECT FOR COTTON.
The Growing Crop.


We have come to one OF the years when cot
ton will BIZ cotton. The accounts from crery
mari. al the cotton belt are as unfavOrable as
they could well be. The dry weather Of last
week gave the planters little. bit OF moral, as
we'll as material sunshine, and no doubt the
colorcd troops and all their white leaders and
allies fought the grass nobly y; but another spell
of rain. imminenty threatened inns monoay
morning. will hopelessly deliver many q broad
acre to grass which might perhaps be saved.
So far as we can learn, there Is hardly any
such hing to be seen as promising stand OIL
cottbn. The whole crop Is more or less
sickly and feeble Many held. Is succumolng
10 disease and death before no Toe more po-
tent than the wei, cold rains and cool nlshls
and generally unpropitious weather. Add 10
these facts, that the whole cotton crop. Is
about mouth behind last year, and we make
M our minds at once that We are upon q lean
and unproductive cotton year, year ilKely 10
be- as signully unfruitful as last year was un-
commonly productive-a year which Will pro-
vide very completely for that !. ouoiesone sur
plus which the financial men dread SO mnch 10
carry over the summer, and give the world
pretty clean books to open the tall oi 1872.
The Crop In Mississippi.
correspondent writes from Columbus, Mis-
sissippi. under date Of the l7lh instant:
The present condition Of the corn and cotton
crops Is decidedly unpromislng:.in TACT great
part is not yet visible above ground From all
the information can gather (and my chances
are not llmilpdl from planters In Lhis urd tne
adjoining counties, fully one fourth less iand
will be planted in cotton as compared with last
Year. aud the same quantity more VIII Oe plsnt.
ed in corn. use the wordSii'wiil be planted
because great many have NOT yet put In any
COLON seed, and many have TO replant. Inc
cotton now up III and around this county rs
rnr cir Iuf %
,inuous cod aud wet weather: 1t has slckly,
yellow appearance, us though il would like
very much to die and not have to worry
through the hot. dry summer that is Inevitable
Corn is about five inches high on an average:
and Is anything but healthy In appearance.
have talked u good deal WIN many cotton
growers in our county during the last three
Or ioaT weeks, and find them heartily sick and
tired Of making three bales 10 the acre, having
lazy, gOod-fOr-no.hinS negroes TO depend
upon for labor, aud Then get only 'l2s cents
pound Tor the cotton. Planting is just about
i've weeks later thun last year. great many
are now engaged IN re-prepaiins The ground
that was under waller for some Time 10 re-
plant the corn and cotton that was destroyed,
and nlary others are commencing 10 put In
seed Tor the first time this seusOn. They Will
not realize more than half crop, for several
reasons: cotton should have been far enough
advanced BY this to have been chopped out
Two weeks siuce and under good growing
headway; the August rains, thai we never es-
cape, will rot The young 0ols, besides tempt
inr the dreaded boil worm; and the early
lr0sts we are sure to have next iall will cut oil
IL great deal that would have matured had II
been planted month ago and had hall
chance. have to day learned that half the
land in the ''pralrie" that was up in cotton,
has been plowed up and put in corn in cen
sequence Of The cotton being IN dying aa cOnt Ont
hall a stand" at lhat. notice there Is dis
position among The planters who have large
tracts OF land under cultivation to divide 1t
into small lots and let them olit to freedmen.
In lact the tendency is 10 arIn 'on Smaller
scale than they ever did.