Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1893-02-16

bic land and must make small area
support the greatest number of stock
possible. assert, without fear Of con.
tradictloh, that there is nu grass thai
win at all compare with bermuda grass
for this purpose in Tie sotith, and ess
pecially in this part of Texas, and 1t is
but matter of time, and d short time
at that until the post oak country
south of mesquite will be one Of the
finest portions of Dallas county, and it
can not remain long in its present al.
most worthless condition. Entcrpris-
ing men will see the advantages to be
gained by buying these cheap lands
and clearing them up and putting them
in Bermuda grass which will make u
better pasture than our best pasture
land will make, and then this almost
barren waste will team with fine
diaries, supported by fine Holstein and
Jersey cattle, feeding upon the finest
grass in the world.
In the summer of 1890, after | had
layed by piece of corn where wished
to make hog pasture, I commenced,
just after d big rain, to set out Bermu'
da grass every six feet between the
rows OF corn, by dropping little pieces
of Bermuda and pushing them into the
ground with stick and by winter the
grass had a very good start In 1921
the grass pretty well covered tho
ground, and in the spring of 1882 !
fenced it off and turned my hogs in and
they have cost me but little since that
time, and It has supported other stocls
in addition, AMI would support all the
stock | have, for that matter, with u
little extra feeding. There is only
about five acres in the pasture, and this
pasture is on the poorest land nave,
in the southwest corner, in what was
once an old cowlick When ] bought
the land portion of IL was SO inns
pregnated with alkaline matter, that
after being brought into cultivation no
vegetation would grow on Il greater
portion Of this land, which now has the
finest Bermuda grass all over it ever
saw grow anywhere. In fact much
finer than ON my best black land, and
which demonstrates that the worthless
mesquite spots can be made the most
valuable part of every farm by putting
them in Bermuda grass
The thing to be desired by every
farmer is a grass that is perennial, nu-
tiicious, and adapted to the climate in
which he lives. We have grasses that
do well when massed, such as alfalfa,
melilntus alba, etc, which are Abe
next best grasses have tried to
Bermuda, bat they are not at home in
this climate like the Bermuda, which
will live In spite of neglect, and when
given Il fair chance makes astonishing
returns It has the capacity Of with
standing any amount Of heat and
drought, and months that are so dry as
to check and dry MP the prairie grass,
will only make the Bermuda grecner,
the more thrifty, and, with the eXcep'
ton of few weeks the past winter, it
has furnished good grazing for my
stock the entire year. Hogs thrive up
on its succulent roots the entire year il
no rings are put in the nose to prevent
them from roofing, but it is best to ring
them, rs they can get sufficient from
its foliage,
When was q boy often heard this
grass praised by some farmers and
cursed by Others ust as the Johnson
grass is getting it now, but it has long
since been the chief pasture grass for the
descendants of those who cursed it 50
much, as they have learned to know a
good thing when they have it, and so il
will be some day here
The southern states should raisA
their own pork, butter and milk, and
less cotton, and Bermuda grass pas
lures is the thing to do it with The
southern farmers could be the most in
dependent men in the world if they
only would look at things in the right
light, for there is no country that will
produce more and with as little labor.
--Silas G. Lacley, in Farm and Ranch