Saturday press. [volume] (Honolulu, H.I.) 1880-1885, 1883-05-26
JtTg ~ TUp sOrTUgRS sTtTrs.
. pos.ib,y sood MN.


spectacle calculated to provoke reflection 10
scc her lands among the richest in the world,
steadily growing poorer. and the men who I'LL
them grow puurcr and poorer, a. the cotton.
picking seasons roll by These planters, az
farm managers, are vastly inferior to their
women. During The war, when oil the able.
bodied men In the state were clad in gray, and
were getting killed by northern bullets and by
camp icvcrs, the state was sclfsuppouing.
The women, children. and negroes produced
enough provision, To- feed Themselves and the
absent men. They raised enough stock to re-.
plcnish the lussc, in agriculture and war.
They wovc sufficient cloth 10 clothc themselves
and their soldier. The war ended, the men
returned and took charge " the plantations.
From the date Of their return, the course " the
state has been steadily into debt. OF course,
the prime impetus downward was given by
the carpet. baggcn. Those men should have
been shot on sight They should have been
declared public enemies, and price put on
their dishonest heads, The public safety re
qurcd their destruction.
Cotton, cotton, cotton, everywhere cotton,
and unless 1t be- on the Richardson planta.
tons, where convict labor is used, every pound
Of II IS produced at a loss TO the cultivatof
not M implied OF indirect loss, but an actual
loss Of tbout cents pound. The loss on
this years crop Of cotton in Mississippi is over
100000
Every intelligent planter in Mississippi under.
stands that the system Of agriculture in vogue
through the state has got to be changed (;
that they must diversity crops that they
must cease the overproduction Of cotton and
turn to mixed farming and the raising Of live
stock or that the warning now sounding
mournfully over the lands Of the richest agh.
cultural state in the world will swell 10 a death
toll as the American descendants Of the slave.
boil 4 - al. II
by moncyenders. So deep and firm rooted is
the knowledge these men have Of the impcnd
ing disaster that they eagerly investigate any
proposed crop that promises to enable them to
practice mixed farming. The assertion that
cotton will always remain the main crop Of the
state is probably safe one. That being true
and the plant being imperative in its demands
Tor attention al certain times, II is hardly pos.
sibe to cultivate grain on the same plantation
tina, is, not on an extensive scale. In vain
have these planters long searched for a crop to
help them in their dire extremity. ! think
that they have at last found it,
Five years ago Mr.. {. Mcnelas, a Greek
merchant, who, as is the want Of Greeks, has
traded all over the world decided to engage in
the growth Of jute. lie had an exhaustive
knowledge Of the requirements Of the plant as
to soil and climate This knowledge was ac.
quired in Bengal, where he resided for many
years trading for the products Of the soil.
Having decided 10 attempt the cultivation OF
jute in this country, Mr.. Meneas spent many
months in visiting the different states Of the
union. lie examined the Pacific slope. Find.
ing no lands and climate that met the require.
mcnts OF the plant in the west, he entered the
cotton states, and, after a thorough inyestiga.
ton, desired to purchase this plantation that
lies some fifty miles south of Jackson, the cap.
ital OF Mississippi. lie asserts that in this re-
gion lie the best jute lands in the world
lutte is plant much similar in appearance to
the wild sunhowers Of the west. II is to the
preparation Of the fibre Of this plant for mar.
ket that the planters of the Mississippi are
turning their attention. Few people are aware
OF the commercial importance OF the fibre and
the marvellous growth of the industry of manu-
featuring it into gunny CLOTH bagging, mating,
rope, carpets, paper, and purlaps. It is mixed
with cotton wooden. and silk goods. To show
the magnitude and growth of the lutte industry
insert the following statistics:
Exported from Calcutta 300 bis Of 800 lbs ,a2,99o
RsRoed from ss eHes Ss 1s72 BIS q 800 Is7so67
Iueo,fed into Umted Sfatef $3.50 $50
Butts, bales OF 800 lbs.............I,I63 ao467a
Rejection bales OF 900 lbs. 1872
The value of the jute imported into the
United States in 1879 was about $1,000, 900.
The value of the raw material produced in In
dia last year was about $50, 900 900, estimating
Jute to be worth cents per pound, which
am assured is its value in the exporting port
Of Calcutta. Almost all the exports Of India
are sacked or covered with cloth manufactured
out of jute Every bale of cotton that is grown
IN the United States is covered with cloth made
out of lutte. The value of the manufactured
products Of jute exceeds $Ioo, ooo, 900 per an.
mum. 1t is the control of this industry that the
southern planters wish to secure. The i'm.
mense production in India is carried on by
laborers paid from 10 to IS cents per day.
All the processes employed there for separat.
ing the fibre from the PULPIT filled woody shell
inclosing it are by hand. The serious obiec.
ton, and one that threatened to be fatal one
to the remunerative production Of jute in this
country, was the lack Of proper machinery to
enable the American producer to successfully
compete with the poverty-stIcken laboreIs OF
Bengal, who cheerfully work for sum barely
sufficient to buy the small quantity of rice
necessary to keep them alive
Satisfied that the soil and climate OF Missis-
sippi, which produces a cotton fibre far supe-
Nor to any grown in India, would also improve
the jute fibre and enable the American pro-
ducer to control the market, Mr.. Menelas was
not discouraged by the lack of machinery. He
knew that some day a machine would be in.
vented. Machines were invented, tried, and
dhluC. III 1904 MI. Il. ~. Sfnltn OF 81.
Louis perfected machine that met all require
ments. This machine separates the tough out.
side husk OF the stalk, which carries the fibre,
from the pulpy interior, and cuts the husk into
strips about quarter Of an inch wide and the
full length of the stalk. After the mechanical
operations are completed the strips are made
into small bundles and completely. submerged
in water for about two weeks. This bath dis.
solves the gummy substance that envelopes the
fibre. When the gum has been dissolved, the
jute is removed from the bath and cleaned by
allowing running water TO pass over il. Then
il is dried, and when dry is ready for the
market The hbres are as long as the stalks OF
the plant say from seven to fifteen feet. When
properly prepared, they are Of ayellowish white
color and exceedingly fossy. The yield, as
obtained by actual experiment on this farm, is
from fifteen hundred To two thousand pounds
per acre. The Mississippi jute would be worth
about AZ cents in New York. Mr.. Menelas
asserts that he produced the fibre for AZ
cents per pound this year.
Great advantages will result to the south.
ern states from the cultivation OF jute. In
three months and half from planting the
seed, the crop is ready for the market. The
plant is drought proof II resisls wet weather
successfully II has no insect enemies. The
seed can be sown broadcast on a el-prepared
ground. and, after narrowing thoroughly, the
crop requires no further attention until ready
TO cut. II booms-cutiing time is determined
by the boom--soon after the cotton crop has
been laid by, and before picking begins. The
production of jute would supply the cotton.
planter with an article to sell at the season OF
the year when he is always short OF money; il
would also supply the southern railroads with
transportation during the months when they
have but little to do. To successfully produce
the fibre, there must be an abundance OF water
ON the plantation.
1, may be that this industry needs the foster
ing care of the government II this shall prove