The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1888-12-15
TILE DRAINAGE.
NEw ORLEANS. La, Dec. 5, lSsS
The Etlitor az the Times -Denoerat
NO. %

In the Planter and Sugar Manufac-
turer of Nov. "a on page PA occurs
the following about the sugar expert
ment station; "Plats 4 and are
duplicate experiments upon tiled and
untitled land. Results on these are are
as follows: While the tiled plots have
this year given a largely increased
tonnage in some instances as much as
ten tons increase to the acre sugar con-
tent has been from l to 2 per cent
less. Such difference was not observ-
able last year, but this year the tile
drained cane continued growing until
it was cut SO far the sugar planter.
The small decrease in per centage of
sugar is evidently brought about by |
the continued growing of the cane, and |
probably ere grinding is over the bal
auce will be in favor of the tiled land |
in per centage OF sugar contained, as
well as in increased tonnage. What
other investment is there that promises
the planter such large, sure, speedy
and continued returns ON the money
invested as tile drainagel In the
whole civilized world the benefits Of II
are acknowledged, and such has been
the faith in the returns and the con-
sciousness Of the urgent need of this
improvement that as early as thirty or
forty years ago the governmnt of
England loaned money to farmers to
tile drain their lands, and by such
efforts added TO individual enterprise
nearly all the waste land Of Great
Britain has been reclaimed long ago,
and the productive capacity of the
island probably doubled
In this country neither the govern
ment nor the state, interests itself in
such matters directly, but the beneficial
results from tile drainage are so
marked, and so great, that the farmers
in the Northern and Western States
have taken such an energetic hold of
this improvement that their lands are
nearly all tie drained now. Much
remains to be done there yet, but II
will not remain undone long. In this
[ State, as well as in the rest of the
: South, there has hardly been start
made yet, but what has been done
t, where done well, has led on continual.
! ly to more extensive operations. There
, is no greater field for the future of tile
drainage, and no place whore II is more
. needed than right here in this lower
: Mississippi Valley, for no crops except
5 rice, will grow on this land without
drainage. The planters have mad,
herculean efforts to dry their land by
Z open drainage, and If man was Il
, tell an Illinois farmer that IL requires
, here nearly 10000 rods or 100000 feet
or 100 miles of open bitches to drain a
thousand acres Of land, his question ei
veracity would have to be uncommon-
ly well established TO be believed at all
Yet such is the case, and the worst
part of il Is, that the making of the
bitches is not all, but they always are
needing repairs and cleaning out AS
soon as your back is turned on them
they commence to I'LL up again, by dirt
caving In, weeds, grass and bushes
growing in them, and the continual
efforts to keep them clean drain the
planters pocketbook as cflectually as
his lands. Not so with tile bitches.
When once the work is done intclli-
gently and honestly, it is done forever,
and the beneficial effects Of il extend
further to certain limit from year
to year, the ground getting more po-
rous and mellow by the entrance and
action of the air, the burrowiDg of
worms, etc. Marked as the increase
in cane is, as above stated, the increase
in the yield of corn would be greater
yet, for after the land is thoroughly
tile-drained, the open bitches can be
plowed so that the corn can be cult
vated with teams both ways, and there
by the weeds and grass kept down at
minimum cost.
Corn can stand less wet than cane,
for have seen good cane grow upon
fields where corn would have been an
entire failure. With tile drainage the
pitiful yields of ten to twenty bushels
per acre with which the planters have
, to be satisfied now, would be repla-
ced by crops of forty to sixty or more
bushels per acre; and the brave but
often Intellectual struggle Of the plant
! ers to raise feed enough for their
stock would be superseded by full
granaries and plenty to sell.
/ In Illinois and Iowa one man and
team can raise forty acres Of corn and
4 there is never a hoe taken to the field
the ground being clean without them
People could do the same here If tn,
land was tiled, by having an extrI
h team, the soil being heavier here anC
harder to work, and the growing o
corn might be made quite an item
OF course the gross yield would no
be as much as with cane, but the ex
: pense would be SO much smaller too
One bushcl of corn will plant four tt
six acres at cost of ten to fifteeI
cents for seed per acre, while the seet
cane costs $40 to $l5 per acre. Ont
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