The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1875-09-18
Experience with Jute In Louisiana,

Mr.. T.. Lefrsnc, of New Orleans,
who has devoted much attention 70 the
culture of both jute and ramie. in
forms the department of agriculture
that he has succeeded in raising the
first regular crop in America, of which
he recently shipped nineteen bales to
the markets of st. Louis and New York,
to be tested by the manufacturers.
His crop was raised in Plaquemine
Parish, Louisiana. and he believes the
cultivation of the fiber will be rapidly
multiplied by other planters Of that
section. Mr.. Lefranc writes to tic de-
partment as follows:
As explained before, this jutc fiber
was decertica.ed from dried plants
which had already given their seed. 1t
is the second product of the stalks,
and for that reason the staple may not
be highly classed in comparison with the
India article worked in green. But I
have put enough of good quality in the
bales to prove that We can advantage
ously compete against foreign jute
The decorticatipg machine cleans it
more thoroughly and secures a larger
qusntum of strong filament than the
ordinary Hindostan. The refuse of the
machine is good for paper.
Regarding the economy of this new
industry l am now practically satisfied
that the figures of onst have given in
my treatise were sufficiently high. Our
expenses for cultivation scarcely reach
$40 per acre; for multiplication, SIS
These are still subject to improvement
wherever a closer organization can be
established.
The yield is also satisfactory. Wber-
ever the stand was normal, we Obtained
the proportion OF one ton per acre. In
average the lint is of over two pounds
per ioot nigh on the surface of an acre.
ana me plant averages ten feet in any
land" '' inoiS'
MI. Lefrance speaks very confidently
Q. ms success IN organizing the labor
His machine, he SAYS, is act1aliv a ny
duclng fact. 1t works verv we'll end
on dried stalks, which have f;rs, fn u
nished their seed, as well as on .re.n
plants, thus securing the important 10.
suit OF obtaining both seed and fher
from the crop. The fiber obtained 4.
strong and fine enough TO brine fron,
four and half to five cents a n,,u.s
IN gold The faculty of workiro The
PANT dried isSimportant, a. II e4iends
the manipulating period tbrouob tbe
auli winter season. when labor is abnn.
DAFT and cheap. Mr.. Lefrano rep,a,Ls.
the production or yield is as isroe
as the ability of the feeding hands csn
reach. The punches of fifteen oar or
twenty stalks engaged at the time are
almost instantly Transformed into clean
hLament- Hemp, ramie. hibiscus and
any long hbrous plant are eouaIlv we'll
treated by the apparatus, which canac
10y and power can be increased so as 70
produce tons and tons daily" 81 90 ~
These assertions are based nm trra
practical facts, and as soon AZ thew Mi
De peheved and spilled in our long.
es1ale growing sections, the conntry
VIII cease to be tributary ,or our e1 actua1
enormous import of foreien sto ,Ia'
! rom new Observations, can re assert
tnas ordinary jute growth gives an S sv'
e en OF at least one ton per ecra NJ
nner. and that the whole COS. Of -, %
duction will not exceed sos. In oaoS
MOST land jute grows ten feet in 49,
sge, and has one-third of its hodv n
aoer; The mower and reaper an11;ad
Oh wheat cut jute perfectly we'll 1''