New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-01-16
REV Plants for the south.

1 a country vi scCllOu Va CuUuLIS 40 oCAA-
sustaining in SD far as it produces within its
| own boundaries all the necessaries OF life
| for it's inhabitants. A degree of prosperity
| NAV be attained by commerce and depend
| ence on foreign provinces that may endure
wears, and even centuries, but sooner or
| later the evil effect, Of deriving all support
| from abroad will be felt ia waning power
! and declining influence. Our own lano
| stretches over many degrees OF latitude
and longitude, comprises IN its territory. al
most every variety of productions, polar,
| temperate, tropical, has all kinds of climate,
| every species of manufactures and mines,
and the term seif-supporting, in it's broadcast
| sense, may be claimed in our case as pecu-
! liarly applicable. Ii we take particular
| section, however, mentally detach 1t from
| the rest of the nation. anu consider 1t tor
the moment as foreign land. the condi-
| tons are changed. What was true of the
nation as whole, will not be true of the
detached section. The West is independent,
SO tar as the mere matter Of food is con-
| cerned but it lacks the manufactures of the
East. The East is we'll provided with man
| utactures and mines, bat the soil has not
| the prod Icing power of the Western plains.
| The Pacific States lack fOc nothing so far as
! food and wool are concerned but have few
| manufactures and little cotton, while the
| South has an abundance OF cotton and a
small proportion of fOod-producing plants.
Ii the Southern States, especially those
| bordering on the Gulf, were suddenly left
| to their own resources, they would probably
at first experience some Inconvenience.
They have been accustomed to rely on the
West tor grain, and if deprived OF this
source of supply, must hurriedly look
around either for native or imported food
plants to supply the deficiency. Almost
any part of the South, except strip of
land Immediately on the Gulf, will produce
corn. but generally in such small quantities
to the acre as practically to forbid the
culture. The uplands of Tennessee, Georgia
and some parts of Arkansas and Texas bear
fine crops, but the lOwiands will do little or
nothing in this cereal. Wheat may be
grown IN Texas, and to some extent III other
parts of the South, but the wheat producing
country is not sufficiently large to supply
the entire needs OF the population. 1t is
plain that the South, to be self-supporting
must rely on some other resource than the
grains of the north temperate zone. The
cotton balt ia, of course, in that zone. but
partakes go closely of the characteristics of
the torrid as to admit of little distinction.
1t is most natural then. considering the
climate, that the productions of other trop
ical countries should be considered in order
TO see which of them might be introduced
with profit. Rice is already cultivated to
considerable extent, and affords in some re-
spects an admirable substitute tor wheat.
Beside rice, which might be planted and
raised to q much greater extent than at
present, there are several other tropical
grains which, in the West and East lndles.
10 Asia and Africa. are largely used for
food purposes. Millet is the peculiar grain
of hot countries, thriving well where other
crops fail, and is largely used IN Egypt, the
north of Africa and in some parts of Ara
bia. In India, jowarri, kind of buck
wheat. is grown in great protuslon. and al
though the meal from it is coarse, it is very
palatable and exceedingly nutritious. 1t
would. no doubt, be very acceptable to the
majority of the Southern people as meal
and bread, after being once Introduced, the
trouble being in the first introduction. An
additional advantage Of the jowar1i is its
fodder. Ia several tropical countries 1t is
used for cattle food. proving very nutri-
tioue, fettening stock even when engaged
in the hardest work. 1t grows with great
luxuriance, the stalks often attaining
height of fourteen feet. and containing as
much sugar as the common sorghum cane.
OF course the old fOgies, who have been
accustomed TO hog and hOminy all their
lives would hesitate to adopt It, but it Is
not the less certain that an introduction OF
it would tend very much to the self-sup.
porting capabilities of the Southern States.
Another ,fOod plant that could be widely
used in the South is the common field pea
OF the Carolinas. 1t is now much cultivated
in those two States, and has many merits
as tropical plant. 1t requires very little
cultivation, and grows with such viyOr as
almost to eXterminate weeds and nOxiOus
grasses that are farmers pests The pea
vine is also an excellent fodder for stock,
and good fertilizer for exhausted cotton
land. 1t restores to the soil elements taken
away by the cotton, and in this respect is
also valuable to the planter. Besides. the
pea is a most substantial food. containing
from eighty to ninety-tive per cent of nutri-
tion-mucn more, indeed. than the best
beef. 1t is good food for hogs and all kinds
of poultry, and field of peas can be moved
and the peas threshed from the fodder in
the same way.as the threshing of wheat is
DONE The widespread Southern use of
these two articles, peas and tOwarri, would
render the South as productive of food
plants as it now is of cotton and the in
creased use of food better adapted to trep-
ical chimes than that now eaten, would di.
minish the aggregate of intestinal and other
hot climate diseases.-St. Louis Globe Dem
Ocrdt.