The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1880-10-02


comparatively little labor, and require
very small amount of fertilization
Where fertilizers are employed, how
ever, the production of crops may bt
increased almost indefinitely.
4 TIMBER.
As before stated, the parish Ii
abundantly supplied with timber, full
" one-half of the entire area OF the
parish being more or less heavily tim
bered with the best of building pine on
the uplands, and every conceivable
growth of this latitude in the bottoms,
among which may be named the cy,
press, in almost inexhaustible brakes,
and several valuable varieties of the
oak Pine and cypress lumber is ex-
ported in large quantities from the Sa-
bine, Calcasieu and Mermentau rivers
to Texas and Mexican ports, and sew
eraI steam tugs ply on the Calcasieu,
towing schooners and other sail vessels
with logs for the steam saw mills In
operation in the parish, whose united
capacity is about 100000 feet of manu-
featured lumber per day. There are
also five planning mills at and in the vi
cinitv of Lake Charles. The numerous
saw mills give employment to a fleet OF
from thirty to sixty schooners, each
with carrying capacity of from TO-
900 to 100000 feet of lumber. Be
sides oak, pine and cypress. the forests
of Calcasieu contain gum, hickory,
maple, mulberry, sassafras, magnolia,
bitter pecan, willow, black walnut, syca-
more, beach, blackberry, linn, dogwood,
persimmon, ronwood and numerous
other small trees and shrubs common
to the latitude. Wood is commonly
used for fencing purposes, but there
are some hedges and wire fences in the
parish.
WATER.
The parish includes over 500 miles
of water, safely navigable at all seasons
of the year for vessels Of not over five
feet draught, with an increase of about
one-third during high water. The Cal
casieu river flows almost diagonally
through the parish. from northeast to
SOUTHWEST, and empties into Cacasieu
lake near the northern line of Cameron
parish. The Aiermentau river flows
along the eastern boundary of the par
ISL, through Grand Lake, in Cameron,
and discharges its waters into the gulf
some fifteen miles to the eastward of
Cacssieu Pass. The Calcasieu river
has among its tributaries the West
Fork and the Bayous Indian, Serpent
and English, ali of which arc navigable
for small craft. There are also numer-
Gus couIees and small streams of water
throughout the parish, the
most Of which are abundantiy supplied
with water all the year. Lake Charles
is basin OF the Calcasieu river, the
channel of the river running along the
west shore. The east, west and south
sides of the lake are bordered with
bold bluff banks, in many places deeply
covered with marine shells. The
lands bordering the lake, like those of
the river and its branches, are not only
of superior quality, but seem to be ad-
adapted to the growth of fruit
trees, SO far as tested. The lake is
nearly two miles broad opposite the
town Of Lake Charles, aud is two miles
wide north and south, being almost
circular in form. Steamboats, and
schooners from the Calcasieu river to
the Mexican Gulf trade across the lake
in all directions, and land at the saw
mills and wharyes. lnthe more north
ern portion of the parish excellent wa
ter is secured from wells, which are
rarely more than twenty feet deep, but
eistern wateri is usually preferred for
drinking. The water of Lake Charles
and the rivers is clear and soft and is
preferred for washing purposes. In
the pine regions exist numerous springs,
some of which are said to possess val
liable medicinal qualities.
FIELD CROPS AND THEIR YIELD.
The crops principally raised in Cal
casieu are corn, sugar cane, cotton, rice
and potatoes. OF these only cotton
has been exported heretofore, but the
interest in rice culture will doubtless
soon result in the production of large
surplus of this staple for shipment to
markets abroad. During the year
l870the following crops were produced
in Calcasieu parish: Sugar, rs hogs
heads; molasses, ll20 gallons; cotton,
605 bales; corn, 39,95O bushels; sweet
potatoes, 10, 5l2 bushels. The average
yield Of these crops per acre is ,estima-
ted as follows: Sugar, from ilI2 to i
hogshead; molasses, ! to i lI2 barrels;
rice, 8 to ~ barrels; corn, ll2 to 90.
bushels; sweet potatoes, 30 to 80 bar
rels; cotton, lib to 3I4 of a bale. Irish.
potatoes being raised as a garden crop,
the average yield cannot be given. In.
the north of the parish fine crops of
oats, rye and barley are produced, and
the cultivation of the same is becom-
ing more general. Taking the parish
as a whole, itfmayib be said to possess
.