The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1881-10-22
lcoxMuNfcArEp.l
The Seasons.
TO the Greenville Times.

seasons and their fruitfulness, as Q
guide in estimating the crops of
dry seasons in the future. We
made one of the finest cotton
crops in the bottom counties ever
made in the year 1851. The early
corn crop was good; the late corn
OF that planted the last of May
and June rarely came up and where
a scattering stand was obtained,
some of the stalks tasseled a few
bore silks, without grains on the
cobs; and the corn was cut and fed
as fodder. The identical picture
has been presented on several
plantations near me; but with an
exception in favor of 1881 of sew
eral small fields planted in July,
that were favored with two or
three local showers and made very
fair corn, say 20 bushels to the
acre. In the year 1851 we had no
rain, not enough to cause one to
run out of it for shelter, from the
last of May till some time in No
vember. We had no turnip patches.
The crop was picked and housed
almost without q drop of rain,
and the outcome was immense.
We made IS bales in one cut of SO
acres. But the distinguishing fea-
ture of this year which all but the
writer have failed to notice, was
the absence of heavy dews in
July and August, which we always
have had heretofore; and this alb
sence was no doubt owing to the
course of the wind which came
from Il. n. Il. or S. L. from dry
and mountainous region from the
Alleghanies; not from the South,
where the vapor from the Gulf of
Mexico loads the clouds with mois-
ture. Hence, cotton is small and
the very dry state of atmosphere
has been the cause of the excep-
tional healthy season; for it takes
heat and moisture to produce de-
composition, and decomposition of
animal or vegetable matter produ-
ces malarial diseases.
We had two other dry years 1856
and 1857 but do not remember
any very notable events as regards
the crops only that the drouth
continued undated long after the
summer into the fall and the woods
were fred in many places and
green cane burned almost like
stubble or dry grass. There were
500 acres burned between the Miss
issippi River and Bogue Phalia on
each side the road from MelrosC
to Haltine's ferry. In 1880 we die
not suffer so much as did the nortl
west; the grass was then dried
up and parched they said by the
wind like the simeon of Africa
their stock suffered for water as
well as grass.
But beg leave to inform YOU
readers and l trust it may be ear
ried north and west, that we have
a grass here that has stood the
: drouth without fading and since
the shower on the 9th of Sept
has commenced growing rapidly
and in our pasture it is now from
/ 9 to six inches high; we have never
falling water in the Bogue or the
Mississippi river, here our stocl
frequently drink at certain places
that do not cave having a slOpinl
d bank and yet the "wonder grew
I chat with fine summer pasture o
Bermuda and still finer winter pas
ture on indigenous wild cane, ther,
is not stock ranch of any consid
erable size in this or any of tn,
river counties from Memphis t
Vicksburg. Why9 why7 | vii
. tell you; we are too far iron
Chicago and New York to ship oui
cattle there, the expenses woult
eat up the interest and touch upol
the capital, as Hasberger said
We are forced upon the home mar
ket and there is enough beef raise'
to glut that quick. Memphis is s,
bountifully supplied from mort
Mississippi Tenn, and Ark, that
the cheapest market this side o
Texas, Vicksburg is better, from
to 2 cents higher indeed some 0
our neighbors get their beef il
Memphis finding it cheaper than t
buy here in the country. But W
have remedy will you try it Boil
var
Lake Como Bolivar Co., Oct. l
p 1881. Yours truly,
BOLIVAR.
EE-e-@