St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1885-09-26


sufficient to plant out fifteen acret,
and SO on increasing its own pro-
duction.
Louisiana lands will yield three
crops a year; each crop will give
ten tons of ramie stalks to the acre.
From the SO tons of stalk, say 1890
pounds weight. eight per cent. OF
fibre will be obtained and shipped
10 the International Fibre Co., oil
New York. They will guarantee n
return of from ten to fifteen cents
per pound, or they will purchase at
eight cents per pound. When the
ramie is bleached and carded it is
worth from 40 to As cents; and
foreign markets are now prepared
to take a million tons at these
prices. IF. then. our planters would
turn their attention to the growth
of this plant, soon our STEAMBOATS,
wonld come into New Orleans via
the Mississippi river heavily freight
ed with bales Of this easily cult
waited product.
The machinery for decortication
aud fibring will cost $7OO. 1t will
require in addition an engine of
from Is to 20 horse power. The
operation of decortication is not at
all complicated. The stalks of ra-
mie are passed through the break
of the machine, which has four roll
lers meteorological, with surface
of unequal sizes. and the stalks are
thereby cut out of the bark. The
bark is then passed through the
fibre machine, when the fibres will
be perfectly separated and cleansed.
The machine acts with rapidity,
and does not cut or scrape the fibre
There is absolutely no loss of fibre
during tue process. The entire pro
cess can be managed by four labor
crs Of ordinary capacity.
Overfows do not hurt ramie; it
has no enemies in worm OF cater
pillar. nor is it affected by early
frost. tits twenty times more val
liable, and five times easier to cult.
vate than cotton. 1t is FIVE times as
valuable as rice, and far easier to
cultivate. 1t is three times as val
liable as sugar, ami five times easier
to handle, and is without those un-
certainties that ever overcloud the
sugar and cotton crops.
The cost of the machinery for a
ramie plantation, including brakes,
fibre machine, power and buildings,
is, in all, not more than $250O; and
this vii! clean and prepare for
market $50 acres of ramie.
1t must not he forgotten that the
ramie. once planted. continually
yields crop after crop, and year af-
ter year. without replanting. 1t
yields additional roots, SO that with
out further outlay you can increase
your acreage. The ramie defies
the Interference of the cocoa-grass.
The product of $50 acres of ra-
mie should be Mt lenst 1900 tons Of
stalk, or 15.OOO.OC0 pounds, yield
ing 1900. 900 pounds Of fibre; and
at the low price of eight cents per
pound, would give a return for the
crop sold here on the market of
fully $9G, 000-from which deduct
the cost of labor, say 10 or Is per
cent, will leave SO large a return
that one need not hesitate to plant
ramie. 1t must be remembered
that, unlike cane and cotton, there
is no need of replaEting after the
first season. hence the Gust of labor
is tritiing; aud, also, must not be
forgotten those besetting uncer-
tainties that threaten the producer
of rice, cane and cotton.
The lucrativeness of ramie cult
vation is more than sufficient to in
duce its being made a staple pro-
duct throughout the Southern coun-
try. Louisiana in particular. be-
cause tue plant grows more luxuri-
antly there than elsewhere.
The importance of the develop
ment Of the advantages of ramie
planting is obvious, and at this
time cannot be computed, for evil