Richland beacon. [volume] (Rayville, La.) 1869-1890, 1889-02-16
Richland Parish.
ITS AGRICULTURAL PRODCCTS-TWO
CROPS RAISED on THE SAME
LAND IN A SINGLE
SEASON

SEASON.
! For the information Of any who
may desire TO seek a new home We
can say that no parish in Louisiana
Can er better inducements. Here
is soil that is rich and pleasant to
work, and susceptible of growing a
great variety OF crops. With good
cultivation cotton will produce 50)
pounds Of lint.rer acre. and by ferti-
hzing it can be brought up TO a much
higher amount. The best farmers OF
Richland are claiming to make this
year fifty bushels of corn per acre.
Irish and sweet potatoes can be raised,
with anything like good management,
IN immense quantities. ald a crop of
Irish potatoes can be raised in the
the spring and on the very same
ground fall crop can be grown
Fresh potatoes are in use about the
10th of April, and from that time
until frost. which usually occurs about
the middle of October. They could
be grown successfully for the market
in the fall but the people have never
tried the experiment as the lines of
transportation in the parish have
never offered any inducements to the
farmers to do this, there being no
North and South railroad, and, New
Orleans, having such a vast amount
Of territory adjacant to it that is en-
gagged in truck farming, Richland can
scarcely ship there to an advantage.
As to fruits, they grow as fine as
anywhere. Peaches come in about
May 10th, and continue until Novem-
ber Vegetables Of almost any kind
can be raised with but very little
trouble. Sugar cane natures well
here, and some of the planters are
turning their attention to growing a
sufficient quantity to make syrup for
their own use, but not as an article OF
commerce.
What is wanted is an increase of
population to help build the country
up. The present population is about
5000 or 1000 at this time. and there
is room and need for at least $4,000
more. TO the immigrant, desirable
home is offered. The climate of the
parish is mild. The spring opens
early. giving farmers a good orpor-
tunity to plant earley vegetables
Very frequently corn will do well if
planted in the latter part of January.
The writer of this article used roast
ing ears all during May of this year,
from corn planted during the first
days of February, and could easily
have grown cotton on the same land
The summers. though longer, are no
warmor than they are in the North
or West. The water is procured from
wells. which is cool and nice, most of
it freestone, and washing well 1t is
but little trouble to secure good well
of water either by digging or driving
pipe, seldom having to 60 beyond
twenty feet to find an ample supply
Land can be bought on easy terms;
wild lands at from 81 to So per acre,
to be paid in one, two and three wears,
with a reasonable rate of interest;
improved lands from So to $25 per
acre, or they can be rented for from
81 to s. A large amount of land is
worked on the share system, the owner
of the land furnishing it, team, farm
implements, etc, and house for the
tenant to live III, and getting half of
the crop, the tenant to have what
time he is not engaged on the farm to
work for himself. In this way an in
dustriaus man can make enough ont
side of his crop to go long way
toward paving for. the supplies that
he consumes while making his crop
The planter nearly always has extra
work on his farm that he wishes done
A good hand will cultivate easily
about fifteen acres, and some work
more This, with good cultivation,
should produce about eight or ten
bales of cotton and about $50 bushels
Of corn. The writer has seen young
white men come to. the parish and
work on that system at first until they
had money enough ahead to buy a
team. In a short time afterward, they
had good home.
Richland Is as healthy as the hill
portion of Louisiana. Its death rate
IL about twenty-five to the thousand.
There has been more sickness in the
parish since it has suffered from over
flow than previous to that time. But
now that there are such good pros
poets Of having the levee put up the
parish will be relieved of much of the
sickness We have been troubled with.
This fertile country, fully protected
from the ravages of overflow, certainly
is one of the finest belts of land on
the continent for the production of
cotton, and not only for cotton, but
also every article of agriculture adapt
ed to this climate.
There 10 ouo railroad IN tho parish