New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-09-01
18fi-5.
Total .222,513 1854 2l0,130

RICE.-The cultivation of this cereal in
Louisiana is assuming more imposing pro-
portions every year, and has already at
tanned an important rank in the staple pro-
ducts of the State. Most of the soil along
the Mississippi below DOnaldsonville, and
also on the lower Red river and on Bayou
Lafourche, including large amount of un-
improved land, is adapted to this culture,
and the production may be expanded to
ten times its present volume Well settled
plantations are in demand and difficult
to buy. commanding $25 to $40 per acre.
To show the prosperous condition OF the
business, it may be stated that as a rule
the property is unincumbered, the public
Offices showing few mortgages against rice
rice plantations. The advantages possessed
by the section of the State adapted to rice
planting over other lice producing countries
will, NO doubt, in time become generally
known and appreciated, and attract settlers
bither for that purpose. Among these ad-
vantages we note, as one of the most i'm
portant, the health of the plantations.
1t is seldom considered necessary to re-
move to summer quarters during the heated
terms in order to escape fever, presenting
in this particular q remarkable contrast to
the culture in Carolina, where, from June
until frost, the planter rarely ventures to
sleep at his plantation, single night passed
in the vicinity of the rice fields often result
ing in fatal attacks of country fever"
The negroes may safely remain upon the
plantation, but the whites, with few excep-
tons, which do not include the planter and
his family, must seek a retreat either on
the nearest pine lands or at the sea shore.
This enforced absence from the field of
labor lie, of course, a serious evil, and often
makes lice planting failure, where it
would otherwise be success. No such
dangers exist in Louisiana, and although
to some temperaments the rice plantation
may be less ealubrious than the sugar or
the cotton plantations, yet no one hesitates
= to cultivate rice from any apprehension of
sickness. In fact the comparative health en-
iOyed by the Louisiana rice planter upon
his plantation presents an important argu-
ment in favor of the cultivation. In brief
sketch of the history Of the culture in our
State, We remarked in our last annual re-
view that not many years had elapsed since
the period when the demand for city con-
sumption and for the West was mainly sup
piled by the Carolina product. At that
time we had regular lines of first class briggs
and schooners engaged in that trade, in
which q considerable capital was invested.
Little was then known of the Louisiana
grain, except frem the limited receipts by
grocers and others engaged in the lower
coast trade. Grown from inferior seed, and
cleaned in primitive mills, it was mostly
dark and broken, but was, nevertheless,
popular among our Creole population, who
preferred it, not only from ita being cheap
er, but because it was thought to be
sweeter and more nutritious. Gradually,
however, the most approved seed from
Carolina was introduced among our
planters, and, as the cultivation OF
the crop was extended, the most I'M
proved milling machinery was employed.
and the mills turned out more perfect and
whittier grain, having all the good proper
ties of that which it superseded. During
the war the demand for consumption in
creased; an additional stimulus was i'm
parted to the culture by the interruption to
the coastwise trade, and until 1S63-64 our
annual receipts avers ged g, 46l sacks, but
in ls64-65 sunk to l3,443. In 1866 they
presented gratifying improvement, since
which time they have pretty steadily in
creased, and have to q considerable extent
superseded the use of the Carolina product.
The culture is no longer confined, as for
merly, to q narrow strip on the rear of
plantations below the city, but has ex-
tended to the prairies and even the uplands,
and the aggre gate yield has been conse-
ouently materially augmented. In lS69-7O
the crop was 1OO,7 4S bble, with receipts at
this port of 70 1874, and for several years this
was the largest on record. In 1901,
owing to the low stage of the river, and q
disastrous crevasse at Bonnet Care, the
yield was cut down to 1891 bbls. This
discouraged planters, and rather checked