The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-05-21
THE LAND RECLAMATION SCHEME

We are pleased to learn of the successful
onerations 80 far performed In furtherin9 the
nlan pf tho Louisiana Land Reclamation
Company. It will be remembered that this
company was organized some time ago. with
a specific object in view of retaining and re-
covering from tidal overflow o large tract Of
swamp and marsh lands in the parish Of Ter
rebonne, and of ultimately devoting these
lands to the cultivation of rice.
The tract designated embraced something
over 10000 acres Of land situated near the
Atchafalaya river and intersected by the
Bayous Penchant. Aux Chenes and other
streams The soil Of this tract though sub
merged at high tide. Is said to be quite firm
and solid when drained and susceptible OF
perfect drainage.
We have been informed by Mr.. G. II. Allen,
the president of the Reclamation Company,
that work has progressed very favorahly In
dredging and leveeing; that an experimental
field of seventy five acres of rice is already iu
cultivation on the tract, and that 1t Is hoped
To get the larger part Of 1t ready Tor planting
| by the next season.
| The company has two dredgeboats at work,
whose machinery was invented by talented
young machinst Of this State and manufac-
tured BY foundry Of this city. Proposals
were asked from Chicago and other cities to
contract for the dredging work. The lowest
bid from these places was to perform the work
for ten cents per cubic yard. The bids were
all rejected, and the company, now working
with machinery invented and manufactured
in Louisiana Is having Its dredging and level
ing rapidly accomplished at lower figure.
Should this land reclamation prove to be
successful, as it at present undoubtedly pro-
misses to be, 1t will establish an important
precedent for the rapid extension Of the agrl-
cultural interests OF this State. There are
countless thousands Of acres Of land In Lou
isiana, situated precisely as is the tract now
being recovered from overflow by the Re-
clamation Company. The soil Of the lands
to which we have reference Is firm and solid
; when well drained, and can be drained at a
small cost when compared with it's produc-
tiveness after reclamation. Once we'll ditched
and leveed, and these lands would have to be
drained only at two periods OF the year that
Is, for spring blowing and fall harvesting
The crops to whose cultivation 1t Is proposed
to devote them need to be flooded from April
to August, and the lands would be benefited
by being left under water after the harvest
ing of the crops, from October to February
There are he forests to fell, no rocks to be
removed from these fresh water marshes, but
they need levees about two feet high and shall
low bitches only, to be made equally produc-
tive with the rich alluvion of the Mississippi
river and the borders OF the delta bayous. II
Is safe to estimate that this leveeing and
ditching could be done at an expense less than
one-fourth of that entailed In clearing away
forest, while the annual cost OF drainage
would vary from two dollars to five dollars
per acre. With proper cultivation these lands
could be made to produce forty-tive bushels
OF rice to the AGREE, worth at present prices
almost sixty dollars.
One great advantage for rice cultivation
these lands enjoy over the higher lands along
the river and It's eff aents is that they woulG
never suffer the disaster Of q loss Of water
BY an early decline III the river Just such 8
disaster has visited the higher rice fields anC
occasioned probable loss of 40 per cent OF
the present rice crop.
| We congratulate the Louisiana Land Recla
, nation Company on the enterprise its incor
porators have manifested in this matter o
reclaiming a marshy wilderness from 1t
tidal floods and preparing it for the produc
, ton Of valuable crops. We hope that thei
t efforts will be crowned with ultimate success
and that the precedent they have established
f will be generally followed till with the exten
! of her rice fields more than doubled Louisi
4 ana will be the first rice growing State in tn
4 country.
5
The question Of the density Of population