Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1895-02-14

General McCausIand as Farmer.
A correspondent of the Ricbmon

A correspondent of the Richmond
| lVa.) Times writing from Point
Pleasant, w. Va, gives the follow.
ing interesting information about
General McCausland, whose name
during the war times was so familiar
| to the people of this section.
{ General John McCausland, of Con-
tederate fame, is well known to the
readers Of the Times as a fighter, but
they may not know him as farmer,
and as such l propose to make some
mention of him.
The Generals home place Is about
fifteen miles up the Kanawha river
from this place and in the county of
| Mason, the richest in farming lands
OF any county in the State.
Here he has a magnificent stone
structure or family residence, with
all modern conveniences and luxur-
les, while his barns are models, and
OF course the fences and gates are in
good keeping. In addition to the
home place, the General owns six
other farms, and while he has COM
petent managers in charge, he gives
personal direction and supervision
to all. He tells me that sometimes
he takes in the situation on one of
these farms from the car window of
fast moving train, and can tell at a
glance whether the troops are en-
gagged as he would have them. 7
imagine he is one of the few farm
ers in the country who, In the man
agement of the business brings to
his assistance the telephone, tele-
graph lines and railroad trains. He
uses all three.
The lands of which he is owner
are rich, but while differing widely
from that financial policy which
makes the rich richer and the poor
poorer, he does believe in making
his rich lands richer, and to encour-
age his neighbors in making poor
land richer, too.
He is an enthusiastic believer In
the tile system, spends large sums of
money in that direction, and Is sat-
Isfied that he makes no better in
vestment.
He was once a larger grower of
tat cattle, but has too much good
sense to cling to any particular
branch of the landowners business
If 1t ceases TO be profitable, and of
recent years has been paying most
attention to hay, potatoes (Irish, of
cOurse,) and tobacco. He had FORTY
acres in potatoes on one farm last
year, and sold 1000 bushels from
the venture, and but for the excess
sive drought, would have realized
$4,000 bushels. They were sold for
sixty cents bushel, on the place.
He Is preparing to plant 200 acres
next season. AS stated before, he
cultiyates tobacco, and successfully,
too-the dark, shipping tobacco on
bottom lands, and fancy light va
riety on the hillsides.
The farmers of Southside Vir-
ginia will envy his mode Of hand
ling it after 1t Is cured and of selling
1t after 1t Is ready for market. He
simply removes the leaves from the
stalks, and puts them in one pile,
without the trouble and expense of
asserting and tieing into bundles,
and the city buyers come to his
barns and buy the mass as it Is, and
then remove it for further handling
to the city factories.
This saves to the farmer much la
Dor and money. For his last crop
oftobacco he received 81 cents round
at his barns. 1t Is folly to say to
such a man that farming doesn't
pay. What an example, too, has
this good, wartime leader and
fighter given to the leaders since the
war He has never been an aspi.
rant for office; never cared to shine
in inaugural procession nor on re-
union or memorial OCCASIONS, and
has holy horror of footlight noto-
riety.
He stopped fighting when the war
ended, and went to farming.