Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1897-04-20
Flooded Region tn Mississippi Valley
Estimated at 10, 500 Square
Miles.

| WASHINGTON, April 11.-A statement
showing the agricultural interests of the
! submerged districts of the Mississippi
Valley, South of Cairo, ILL.,, has been is
sued 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 food
has applied the crop statistics of 1896 as
representing more closely than any other
available data the acreage and value of
the crops of 1897 now in jeopardy.
The statistics of population, of the num-
Der and acreage of farms and of the value
of farms and farm implements are those
ofthe last census, and the statistics of
live stock are the departments own fig
ures for January 1. 1897.
The total area under water April 6 con-
sisted of about 1880 square miles, of
which Z 800 square miles were in Missis-
sippi. $500 in Arkansas. /. 700 in Missou-
ri, 200 in Tennessee and $50 in Louisi-
ana.
The region contained in 1890, as far as
can be determined in veiw of the some
what indefinite boundary lines of the
flood, population of 379.6S5. OF this
number 1S6, ,4S9, or about one-haif, were
in Mississippi, 100, ,235 in Arkansas and
the remainder almost equally divided be-
tween Missouri and Tennessee.
Taking the entire region. the colored
population outnumbered the whites in
the proportion of II to Z, the colored
people predominating in the flooded dis
tricts of Mississippi in the ratio of more
than to and in Arkansas in that of
to l. In Missouri and Tennessee the
population of the flooded districts is
largely white, in the former State the
proportion of 10 to and the latter 2 to 1.
The flooded districts contain about 3d.
500 farms. of which 500 are in Missis-
sippi, nearly 10000 in Arkansas and the
others about equally divided between
Missouri and Tennessee. These farms
contain total area of about $500, 900
acres, one half of which is in Mississippi
and little oyer one-fourth in Arkanaas,
the proportions in Missouri and Tennes
see being about equal. The total value
of these farms, with their improvements
and implements, is about $65 900 900 and
here also the proportions in the different
States ate about the same as above stated
The total number of acres improved in
this territory at the taking of the last
cenous was about 100000, and about
l 100000 acres were devoted last year to
cotton and corn. The live stock on hand
January of the present year was valued
at over 81 SOC, 900, divided in much the
same proportions as other farm property.
1t is estimated that of the crops of last
year over 50, 600 worth remained on
hand in the submerged region March 81,
cotton representing about two-thirds of
this and corn nearly all the remainder.
What effect the flood will have upon
the crops of the present season depends
upon the length of its continuance, and
the practicability of wheat planting after
the subsistence of the food. The coun-
ties wholly or partly submerged are
among the largest cotton producing coun-
ties in the United States. Yazoo county,
which alone has produced over fifty thou
sand bales in season, is half under wa
ter, while Bolivar, Coahoma, IssaqueDa,
Washington with productive capacity
of one hundred thousand bales) and other
famous counties are partially submerged.