The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1897-04-12
or Magnificent Agricultural Land
Under Water.
ABOUT FORTY TIIOUSANDFARMS
InsIudsd N the Area aud Splendid Cotton
and Wheat Crops DestrOysd-AH OF
Witch May Mean Untold Suffering for a
Half Million People and Hard Times fOT
= Mig section Of COunIry-An OHIeIal
Statement from Warrington.

lllNGIeSlS VI Nlc suuulclkt NlShASAH Va
the Mississippi valley south OF Cairo,
Ills. has been issued by the department
Of agriculture. 1t Is based upon chart
prepared under the direction OF the
chief OF the weather bureau. showing
the extent OF the flood on April G. To
this chart the department has applied
the crop statistics OF 1895. as represent
Ing more closely than any other avail
able data. the acreage and value OF the
crops OF 1897 now In Jeopardy, The sta
tlstlcs OF population, OF the number and
acreage OF farms and Of the value OF
farms and farm implements, are those
| OF the census ana the statistics OF live
| stock are the departments own ilSufes
for January !, 1897.
The total area under water on April 6
| was about 1850 square miles, Of whlch
| 1900 square miles Was IN Mississippi,
1900 square miles In Arkansas, l,'1O
square miles in Missouri, l,2OO square
miles In Tennessee, and lJO square
miles In louisiana This region contain
ed In 1890, 30 far IA can be determined
IN view OF the sOmewhat indefinite
boundary lines OF the flood. "A population
| of 1913, ,Gs5, Of which lsG,iSg or about one
halt was in Mississippi, 100, ,93j in Ar
| kansns and the remainder almost
equally divided between Missouri and
Tennessee. Taking the entire region
the colored population outnumbered the
whites In the proportion OF twelve 10
seven, the colorcd preddmtnRtinE in the
flooded districts OF Mississippi In the
ratio OF more than five 10 one and In
Arkansas in that OF two to one. In Mis-
| souri, and Tennessee. the population OF
the flooded districts Is largely white, In
the former state in the proportion OF ten
to one. and In the latter In that OF TWO
The flooded districts contain. Il is es-
timated. about 80 800 farms. OF which
about 1880 are IN Mississippi. nearly
ten thousand In Arkansas. and q IKE
number about equally divided between
Missouri and Tennessee. These farms ms
contain a total area Of about $500 700
acres, one-half OF which Is IN MisslAs"
| Ippl and rather over ne.fOurth In Ar.
| Kansas, the proportions Ia Missouri ana
Tennessee being about the same as in
the case OF the number OF farms. The
total value OF these farms with their
irnpruvements, farm implements, etc,
az close upon sixty-flve million dollars,
and here also the proportions In the
| different states are about the same os
above noted. ..-.,
The total number OF acres Improved
at the taking OF the last census was
about two million, and about million
and a half acres were last year devoted
10 cotton and corn to which crops near
| ~ qS per cent OF the entire acreage cuI-
| tIvated Is devoted. IL is estimated that
tho crops OF last year over three ana
| ree-uuarters million dollars worth re-
mnlned on hand IN the submerged re-
| CIon on the last Of the month, cotton
representing about 90 per cent OF this
amount and corn practically all the
remainder.
Millions Laid Waste.
The largest interests at stake 90 far
are those OF the state OF Mississippi,
whose fooled districts represent an In
veted capital In agriculture alone OF
close upon (or,y-two million dollars.
/ Over eighteen thousand farms contain
| inR two million acres OF land or an aH-
erage value Of about eighteen dollars an
/ orrc are under water In the country Iy'
| Inr between the Mississippi and Yazo6
| rivers Including some OF the most pro-
| duriiVe lands OF the state Their live
| atoclI even ut the present low prices, ~
| worth neatly three and one-half million
| dollars and the farmers ANA planters
nrc estimated to have about two million
| dollars worth OF the crops OF last year
| still on hand
Its inperllled interests, nearly ten thou
s,nd farms. containing one million
nrres Of land worth over fourteen mill
ion dollars being submerged. These
farms contain live stock to the value OF
ever one nnd one half million dollars.
and crops unsoId and unconsumeI to
Ibe value OF nearly nine hundred thou
anud dollars the entire RRI1culturaI IN
terpsta OF these lands representing a
value not far short OF seventeen mIIlIoh
dollars. ,o,.,,,., a.,
| NtiT1onrI represent q total capital OF
rather over nine million dollars, the hVe
,Lnuannd three hundred submerged
farms containing an area OF about -FOUR
| hundred and seventy thousand acres
| worth about HeVen ana Ohe-VuaFter
,,,tIiIon dallarE, the live stock represent
ING nearly one and OnS-haIt million
dollars more. and the crops on hhnu an
other half million. Tennessee ls NOT
ssr behind Missouri IN the extent OF its
| lmpcrlllcd interests, the number 9hu
ncreor ro Of the submerged farms being
,,,r,, ,,earlv the came. the entire value
Including one and une-uuHrter million
dollars fOr live stocks and four hundred
SN1usand dollars FOR crops on hand, be
| Inc over eight and one-hat million
| dollars -, ,.,,. ,,,s,,
What eGIrct the Hood viii have upon
,be crops ai tho present scnsou de-
nends upon the length OF us contihu-
ln"S ana the prncticability OF wheat
Manning after the subsistence Of the
GnnL 'rhe entire region Under water
nn NnrII q produced last year about
| tbrne hundred and seventy thousand
baics Of cotton valued Ht close on thlr-
| ,oHn million dollars: over eleven million
Lnsh1Is Of corn. worth about three mill.
IN rour hundred thousand dollars: ana
,,,bant OATS. potatoes, and hay worth
VA ctght hundred thousand dollars
more.
The most valuable portion Of these
rops was raised In Mississippi, whose
region now submerged produced nearly
+, nunrtcr OF million bales OF cotton.
besides other products mostly for local
'Vi'5S I'3S counties nearly or wholly cub
r,oToeJ are among the largest cotton
nrniiiclng counties IN the United states,
| Y,yn1 county which alone mas PF9dHe'
sG nynr INV thousand bales iu a sea-
| sSn ts 5nr hnir under water While I'ol-
ly1r county. COnhomn, lsHaQnena,
| Washington with q productive cHpac.
ttv of opr hundred thousand balcs), ana
other famous counties are partially
No Weather bureau predicts q fur
ther extension or the Hooded area Ou'