The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-10-17
RICE AND COTTON SUFFER.
The Storm Wipes Out the Rice and
the Frost Gets the Cotton.

The Rice Production Reduced Many
Thousands of Bushels-The Crop Not
Expected to be Over one-Third Now.
The Extent of the Damage to the
Cotton BY the Freeze Not Yet Fully
Learned-A Heavy Injury Feared.
The recent storm did great damage to
the rice planters in this section and re-
duced the already small crop in prospect
by many thousand bushels.
On a number OF plantations on the Sa-
vannah and Ogeechee rivers the banks
which had been mended up after the Au-
gust storm were too new to stand the
pressure and gave way, allowing the fields
to be flooded. There was great deal of
rice in stack in the fields, around which
the water rose to a hight of several feet.
The force Of the water was not sufficient
to carry away the rice, but the lower
portions of the stacks were thoroughly
soaked and the whole dampened. The
water soon receded and the planters
have been tearing down their stacks to
allow the rice TO dry. A great
deal of it, however, is said to be
so badly damaged as not to
be worth any further attention. The loss
ID d very SERIOUS one 10 lHb planters, VINO
did not expect to make more than half a
crop anyway after the August storm.
The early frost will also cut of the
late rice. About one-quarter to one-third
of crop is expected now. 1t Is estima-
ted that the receipts at this port will not
exceed 100000 bushels, large part of
which will be badly damaged.
DAMAGE TO THE COTTON.
Opinions as to the damage done to the
cotton crop by the storm vary. The ma
jority do not seem to think that the up
land cotton crop in this state will be much
reduced by the storm. The storm did not
strike very far inland. they say, its effects
being chiefly confined to the section near
the coast.
A great deal of open cotton was probab-
ly beaten out on the ground and will
come to market in more or less poor con-
dition. The factors have just about fin
ished working off the damaged cotton of
the August storm aud the prospect of an
other large lot of storm cotton is not rel
ished. 1t is thought that the higher
grades will be in greater demand now on
this account.
The sea island crop is thought by many
to be greatly damaged The Carolina
crop, it is said, will not be one-third
of what it was last year Opin-
ions differ as to the Georgia crop
but 1t is thought that the August and
October storms together will reduce it
somewhat and also injure a portion of the
staple. The injury to the Florida crop
is said to be slight.
EFFECT OF THE FROST.
The feature of the cotton market which
all the cotton men were discussing yes
terday is the frost Light frosts were
reported throughout all the northern
half of the cotton belt yesterday mcrning
and notice of predictions Of heavier trosts
over larger area last night were re-
ceived yesterday. One nights frost, the
cotton men said, means a bigger reduction
in the cotton yield than all the damage
done by the storms SO far 1t is esti-
mated that the early frost means a re-
ductiOn of 600, 900 bales in this years crop.
With a mild fall all the top crop would
have matured and this means a great
deal. 1t was the maturing of the top
crop in the open fall of 1891 that resulted
in the enormous crop of that year The
early frost will cut off this top crop al
most entirely as the greater portion of
the crop is late this year. The estimate
of Mr.. Shepperson of the New Orleans
cotton exchange of 6,S00,000 bale crop is
now thought to be above the mark.
The European buyers have conceded
that, with early frost, Mr.. Shepperson's
figures would be about a correct estimate
They have been holding back, however,
in hopes of an open fall and larger crop
With an open fall, the European buyers
that the yield would be fully
l ,000,0 900 bales more than Mr.. Shopper
son had estimated
The appearance of frost is expected to
send the market up at once, and ar i'm
mediate rise Of d to 4 cent is expected