Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-06-27
SUNFLOWER LANDING.
The Crops in the Vicinity a Failure
Almost Beyond Recovery The
Planters Discouraged.
Special Correspondence of the Appeal

| Special Correspondence of the Appeal
SUNFLowER LANDING, MISS, June 22--
| can't ra-ist the ton - I-s---- A1fas@
| the readers OF your highly valued paper
some of the many disadvantages under which
/ planters in our vicinity have labored since
they began farming operations for the year.
| The memorable flood of 1882 swept
| nearly every vestige of fencing, leaving the
places to be deprecated on by stock of every
| description. Bear in mind that the water
| did not subside sufficiently to commence
! planting till April 10th, and then only on the
| highest ridges. 1t was then SO late that we
| did not have time either to split new rails or
hunt up the ones that had been drifted into
the sloughs and bsyous on the places; 30 we
we're compelled to improvise temporary
| fences as best we could, and they are so
worthless that you might say the majority
of places are without fences now. Our pillow
| stock that weathered two months of overflow
| on mounds and portions of levee over which
| the water fiend dared not raise his head,
| came out of it as poor as skeletons. We
were.very fortunate, however, to save any at
all. Then, just as they began TO recruit a little
| by giving Them all the corn, hay and oats
they could eat, disease gets among them
| called the "pinkeye," which in many in
| stances proved fatal. That disease damaged
| us and retarded our planting very much.
| We commenced planting cotton about the LIST
of May, and just as it was coming up prettily
and we were congratulating ourselves that
| notwithstanding the disastrous overflow we
would get good stands Of cotton, here comes
the hardest flood of rain and hail that ever
| descended from the heavens, completely
overlooking us again, this time with rain
water, which stood on the land so long rs to
completely drown out the stands of cotton,
| thereby necessitating a second planting. Just
at this juncture the strongest hearts began to
despair, but by degrees we worked through
III alraa fha
that certainly the worst was over and that
our road to a big crop was open and clear,
with nothing before US but hard work and
plenty of it. Alas, how vain. Cold
weather, the coolest and most unsea-
sonable ever known in this country,
has been with us continually till within
week or two ago. 1t was so cold during the
entire spring that vegetation did not grow to
amount to anything, and the result is the
most backward crops ever known in this
section. forgot to mention that we have
had in the greatest abundance every plague
known to the Mississippi valley. Buffalo
gnats were our constant companions Tor two
long months, the longest, it seemed to me, l
ever lived through, doing considerable injury
to our stock. Last, but not least by any
means, are the worms. We have them now
and have had them since the cotton came up.
Their ravages have been fearful, and they
are doing incalculable damage now. The
stand of cotton in many places will hardly
amount to more than half stand. Planters
are replantng even now, as late as it is. L
ILL the assertion that there never
twas as much replanting IN the valley as
there has been this year. 1t may have
occurred to some OF your readers that have
not mentioned the corn crop, and they may
be anxious to know the reason therefor.
The reason is, we have no corn
A great many of as have planted corn, but
the worms would eat it up as soon SIT would
come up, SO we are waiting for them to leave,
if they ever will, before we replant. 1t is
worse than folly to plant corn for the worms
to destroy. The prospect here is certainly
gloomy, but no one knows what may come
of it. But as late as it is, it seems TO me
that full crop can hardly be counted on.
l am fully aware that little or no credence
is given to crop reports written by planters,
but the above is simply statement of facts;
facts as they actually exist; no coloring nor
no desire to color on the part of the writer.
They are bad enough without any color or
paint. You might as well try to paint the
lily as to color them. In conclusion, it is due
the labor of the country to mention the fact
that they working quite we'll, if not
better than ever knew them to do before.
And the planters, though discouraged and
disheartened, are pushing ahead with indom-
table courage and energy, which in my opin-
ion reflects great credit upon them. B. C.s.