The Opelousas courier., 1882-12-02
Important Facts fol-. Farmers.
ASTOUNDING REVELATIONS.

Gle signed II. W. g., published In the
Atlanta, Ca, Constitution, contains
facts which may be of more practical
value than we have aver seen publish
ed in any article on enriching poor or
worn out lands. We wish to present
the marrow of the article to our readers
regardless of the space it may occupy
in ii columns. Every farmer and
gardener and horticulturist should cut
the article out, and lose or mis-
lay it. We have every confidence that
what is said in it about fertilizers and
poor lands, and the way to become a
prosperous farmer, is strictly true:
Atlanta, Ga, Sept. 3d. suppose
there are few readers of the Constitution
who do not remember Parish Furman.
He was a bright and brainy Senator
in 1876 and led the capital campaign
against Atlanta; was mentioned for
Congress, and / always esteemed him
as one of the best equipped and most
capable of our young politicians. A
few years ago he quit politics and went
to farming. / heard that he had set
tied on a thin piece of land with poor
prospects and, in common with many
of his friends, thought he had dropped
out OF affairs.
At the last agricultural convention
he electrified the older farmers of the
State with the details of the most as
founding five years. farming ever done
in a Southern State, and is to-day more
talked about in the State than if he had
served in Congress twenty years.
| have heard the record of his won-
derful work several times within the
past few months, and the comment with
which it is usually greeted is: "1don't
believe it," I simply say that | have
the authority of at least three excellent
gentlemen for the truth of the following
main points:
Furman started work with sixty-fve
acres of the very poorest land in Middle
Georgia five years ago. The first year
he made eight bales of cotton on the
sixty-fve acres, Oh less than n bale
to eight acres. This shows that it was
the poorest of scrub land.
Tie second year he put 500 pounds
of compost to the acre, and made twelve
bales of cotton where he made eight be-
fore.
The third year he used 1000 pounds
of compost to the acre, increased the
Eyield on sixty-fve acres to twenty-three
bales.
The third year he used 1000 pounds
Of compost to the acre and increased
his crop to f%orty-seven bales on sixty
five acres.
The fourth year he used 1000 pounds
of compost to the acre, and his crop is
certainly above eighty to the sixty-fve
acres, and may reach 100 bales.
He has done oil this work with two
plows and eighteen days extra blowing.
His official and detailed statement shows
that the total expenses were $4,000, and
his net profit $2725, a fine record on a
two-horse farm. In addition, the land
that was worth IS an acre FIVE years
ago, is now worth 800 an acre. So with
two mules this year he has raised at
least eighty bales of cotton, 1000 bush
els of oats and 400 bushels of corn.
Isn't that a better record than he
could have made in Congresss Hasn't
he done the State more good by this
demonstration than he could have done
by ten years of political speeches?
WHAT MR.. FuRMAN SAYS ABOUT IT.
/ had a talk with Furman to-day. He
is the very picture of health, prosperity
and intelligent enthusiasm. With s
perfectly Independent income, and The
secret of q better one in his hand, he il
truly o happy q He said to me:
"When / determined to 60 to farming
five years ago, I saw that it would no
do to farm in the old way. saw farm
ers around me getting poorer ever.
day, though they worked like slaves
I saw them starving their land so tina
each year their yield was scantier, ant
, their farms less valuable. / saw that
was still the pillow following the ak, ant
that as fast as a farmer starved on
piece of land he cleared out a new piece
With 100000 immigrants pouring int
: this country annually, and the publ
domain virtually pre-empted, | realize
that this wasteful system must sto
somewhere and soon. Worse than oil
: I saw that my own land rented to sma'
farmers was IS per cent poorer and les
!, valuable than it vas a few years age
! and that it would soon cease to pa
me rent. I knew that Georgia wa
! blessed with the best conditions of sea
! son and soil, and that if properly treat
! ed it would yield large results.
J " ] therefore selected sixty five acre
] of the poorest land | had and went I
work. The first thing, of course, wa
to enrich the soil. To do this there wa
but one way, to feed it and to give