The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1883-12-08
COUNTY, AND TEE yAzu, DELTA

lowing pages the present condition aud wants Of
Washington county, Miss. the largest cotton praw.
ing county in the United States.
washington county is situated on the Mississinpi
river, having river front of eighty-fve miles and
an average depth of twenty TO thirty,fye miles II
contains FIVE hundred and ffty-six thousand and
eghty nine acres of land of which four hundred and
nity'three thousand one hundred aud seven acres
are assessed to individuals; ninetytwo thousand two
thousand two hundred and twenty.one acres are
held BY the State for taxes, and nine thousand nine
huhdred and sNty-one acres are held By the School
Board for educational purposes The total assessed
value OF the land is s2,569S27. The total assessed
vane OF the personality is S950,s96. About 350;OOO
acres OF the land is susceptible of cutvation while
at present there is only 100000 acres ofland in eu
tivation. All the land not in cultivation ia heavily
tlmbered with white oak post oak, willow oak, water
oak, turkey oak, pecan shellbark, hickory, red
sweet gum, sassafras, elm, ash, holly, blackberry,
cypress, and cottonwood.
Jno. L. Campbell, Prof of chemistry and geology.
of Washington aud Lee University, Lexington, Va.
says OF the Delta that "probably not one fourth of
the plain is cleared and the other three fourths per
haps four ffths is covered with probably the heay.
lest forest on the American Continent. We have
seen forests where the trees were more crowded
and more feeble and attcnuated in consequence; but
here the trees usually have room for the full devel.
opment oftheir trunks, which are from two to four
feet in diameter, and 30 to 100 feet high A volume
would be required to portray fully the wealth of
timber which burdens this vast alluyal paia.' See
Campbell and Rufis' report of Physical Survey IN
Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi, along the line of
the Georgia Pacific Railway And we add along the
line Of the New Orleans, Louisville and Texas Rail
road-bctter timber and better auds can be found
than either of these gentlemen saw in their survey
The cultivated lands rent readily at six to eight
dollars per acre. according to location and improve
ments. Tmbered land can be purchased at two to
five dollars per acre. The New Orleans, Louisville
and Texas Railroad runs for distance of 45 miles
through the county, and an ayerare distance of Is
miles from the Mississippi river; aud the Georgia
Pacific Railroad runs through the county from east
to west. The county is well protected from over
flow by System Of evees maintancdby local tax,
which has cen greatly reduced hy the aid of Con
gress Greenyillc the county site is located on the
river and is the highest point between Helena, Ark
andVicksburg Miss. Ii has population of 5000. Two
Banks of deposit and discount; one hundred stores
! in nourising condition, doing annual business Of
two million a year; there is also largo cotton seed
oil mill owned by w. s. W. H. Stead of Liverpool,
England in successful operation located here.
Tho population of the county amounts to about
80, ,OO0 The agricultural interest Of the county is
confined principally to the cultivation Of cotton,
annually producing forty to fifty thousand bales Of
cotton, weighing four hundred ane fifty pounds each
As the cotton crop Is expensive, requiring constant
labor to grow and gather It, planters require cons-
erable money, which has been freely supplied by the
commission merchants of New Orleans, at the rate
of per cent per annum, with commission In addi.
ton at l.2 per cent, with certain other exactions,
such as requiring tue shipment to them of one bale
of cotton for every ten dollars advanced, to be by
them sold OH commission at 2 IL per cent the pro-
ceets to be credited as the cotton is sold and IN de-
fault of shipment of the number 0f bales agreed mp
on. then commissioners at the ratio of sl5O per bale
is paid upon the deficit The loan and agreement to
shin certain number of bales of cotton on them Sc.
cured by trust deeds covering everything the pant-
er owns. His note is then given as an evidence OF
the amount agreed to be loaned discounted at and
/ 8 liz por cents commission, and deducted and the
balance placed to his credit. Thus at the start the
planter pays about II per cent. per annunl for bis
money with which to grow his crop ofcotton Many
of the plantations are mOrgagedat the rate of S5 to
900 per acre. bearing interest at the rate of 10 per
cent per annum. Money cannot be obtained by
planters at New Orleans except upon the pledge OF
cotton: he is thus compelled to plant cotton excu-
Nyely. and depend upon the West for corn, pork
and mules. The result has been that the West has
grown rich and the South poor. What country III
the world, confining itself to the growth of any one
agricultural product, has ever succeeded especial
IL when to make that product, large sums of money
must be borrowed at IL per cent. interest. Inc
planter being year after year dictated TO by the cot
ton factors of New Orleans in the management oil
his plantation compelled TO sacrifice all other inter
sst to that of cultivation of cotton has grown res
five and dissatisfied aud anxious to throw of
the woke that has prevented him from utilizing his
lands in a manner that would be of more profit to
him and less to the cotton factor and set him free
That the security offered is ample, we will again re-
fer to the amount of land in cultivation and the an
nual yalue of the product which we have ascertain