The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1889-01-16
THE SUNNY SOUTH
As Viewed by One of Our Trav-
cling Correspondents.

Editor OF The ESTERPRIsE:-
We left Bucyrus at 2 p. m Dec. y, for
Richmond, Va. Arrived in Columbus at
40 and left at G, crossed the Ohio river
at Ironlon to Ashland, KY, where we
we're sideiracked for four hours; left there
at 4 o'clock in the morning for Richmsnd,
where we arrived at 0 in the evenings at
II took the train for Petersburg, where
we stayed all night, and the next day went
to Stoney Creek, Sussex county, ~hrie
men and teams were waiting TO show US
the land. The country is gently rolling
and lays 10 the east and south, the water
soft, the timber whitewood, pine, oak, aud
sweet gum; but very few farms are
fenced, the top rail being taken of by tie
soldiers in the late war and has never
been replaced. The lands have been
farmed for at least l5O years and still pre-
duce fair crops without the aid Of fert :
izers Of any kind. Where you will fini a
man who has enterprise enough to mari
his land the crops are as good as any
ever saw in Ohio. Mari can be had for
the digging, It underlies all the country
and only costs two cents per bush. TO get il
out Without fertilizers the corn yields
from 20 TO 40 bushel per acre and 1000 10
1900 pounds seed cotton which was worth
cents per pound at the gin. Peanut,
yield all the way from 30 10 over 100
bush. per acre and are worth 81 per bush.
Cotton, tobacco, and peanuts are the
money crops Wheat seems to do as well
as here, but so much more money can be
realized per acre with the crops named
but little is grown. All the farming l.
done in the most primitive manner, or at
least 100 years behind the times. The
plowing is all done with one horse, mule,
or OK, the pillow like our one-horse corn
pillow. The best harrow saw was a small
old fashion, d 3-corner drag and the teeth
were made mostly of railroad spikes, and
drawn with one horse. Were we TO farm
here as they do we would surely go to the
poor house. The land Is sandy, easily
worked, and is underlaid with yellow
clay. Planting commences the last Of
Feb'y, and corn planted the 4th Of Jsly
will get ripe. Fruit Of all kinds seems "a
do well. But little attention is paid 20 the
orchards, and among the Southerners you
cannot find any canned or dried fruit, they
use II in the season and when gone they
patiently wait for another crop. / could
not find an apple to eat, they shook tn,
trees and fed them to the hogs. Black
berries went TO waste, 30 was told. by III,
thousand bushels. 1t seems pity tha
someone would not put up canning fac
tory and save the fruit that is wasted here
The land is cheap compared to ours.
can be bought from SO to $50 per acre an,
near the best markets in the United States
Petersburg and Richmond.
Society seems TO be good. The South
erner is noted for his hospitality and seem
glad TO see Northern men and enterpris
come South One thing seemed strang
to me. Ineyer heard an oath after W
entered Virginia, and they pride then
selves on being free from this vice. o
Sunday we did not hear the report of
gun although the woods we're full Of gam'
When we left, Dec. II, the weather wa
like September here, children were bar,
foot aud roses in bloom. We stopped
Petersburg and among other things of il
terest visited tobacco manufactory {
which there are 10 employing from 200 I
900 hands each. A gentleman showed U
around and explained the different PR
ccsses the leaf had TO go through before
became fit for market The stencil wa
more than some Of our party could endur
and they had to leave. II all The youn
men Just commencing to chew could onl
60 through one OF these manufactures
would certainly cure them OF the habit
We stopped In Richmond one day, whicl