The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1872-11-07
A Chapter on Rice.

| Rice was the great theme of Jeflerson
agricultural letters. He was surprised
| in settling for the first time in Il Catholi,
community, lt the vast quantity OF rice
consumed; for 1t was the great resource
OF all classes during Lent. Fish was ther
u costly article, so far from the sea. Vol
taire laughs at the Paris dandies of his
day who alleyiated the rigors Of Lent by
breaklasting with their instresses on q
fresh fish brought, post, from st. Malo
that cost five hundred francs "a delicate
mark Of attention, he observes, to 4 pretty
penitent. Rice, however, was the stand
| mo dish in France during the fasting sea
son, and the merchants timed their inl-
pnrtatons accordingly. Jefferson was
struck with the small quantity OF Ameri-
can rice brought to French ports and the
low price it brought. Upon inquiry he
was told that the American rice (Which
reached France by way of England) was
inferior in quality to that Of Piedmont and
not 50 well cleaned. He sent to Charles
ton specimens Of the kinds OF rice sold in
Paris, explained the Inconvenience of 4
circuitous commerce, urged the Carolin-
ians to send cargos direct to Harve, and
told them to be sure to get the bulk
Of the supply in port month before Lent.
As to The imperfect cleaning, he resolved
to investigate that po mt to he uttermost
Being at Marseilles in 1897, he inquired
on every hand cone arning the machine
employed in Italy to hull and clean the
rice No one could tell him. The vast
aational Importance of the matter, togeth-
cr with the warm responses which he had
received from Charleston to his letters
upon rice, induced him to cross the Alps
and traverse the rice country on purpose
to examine the hulin9 mill employed
there, to the use Of which he supposed the
higher price of the Italian rice was due.
81 found their machine" he wrote to Ed
ward Rutledge Of South Carolina, eek
actly such u one rs you had described to
me in the year 1888 ~
But he did not cross the Alps in vain.
Seeing that the Italians cleaned their rice
by the very mill used in South Carolina
he concluded that the Italian rice was of
Il better kind, and resolved to send some
of the seed to Charleston. 1t was, how
ever, part Of the harbaric protective sys-
tenn to prevent the expectation of what
ever could most signally bless other ma
tions; and no one was allowed 10 send
Sotl llCc oul Oi Luc COuHttJ JGHGFSOH,
falling back on the higher law, ''took
measures with u muleteer to run couple
sacks across th} Appennmes to Genoa; )"
but having sm4t faith in the muleteer's
success, he fill 81 the pockets of his coat
and overcoat w yh the best rice of the best
rice producngE Elistrict in Italy, and sent
it, in two parcels by different ships, to
Charleston. 'Fhe muleteer failed to run
his sacks, but Sthis small store reached
the Charleston society, who distributed it
among three rice planters, a dozen or two
of grains to each. These were carefully
sown and watched, usually under the
masters eye. The species succeeded
well in the country, and enabled the South
Carolina planters to produce the best rice
in the world. If the reader has had to-
day pudding of superior rice, its grains
We're, in all probability, descended lineal-
ly from those which Jefferson carried off
in his pockets in 1887.
He afterwards sent the society rough
seed rice from Levant, from Egypt, from
Cochin China, from the East Indies be-
sides an ''improved TOOTH of a rice mill,
He also perfected with the French Gov
ernment and with French merchants the
best arrangements then possible for the
direct importation of rice from South Car
olina and Georgia No man was ever
more vigilant than he in detecting oppor
tunities to benefit his country. James
Parton, in October Atlantic.