The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1898-11-30
1898
Bushels.
4O6, ,e97, 900 5S3, 127,O 900

Total 4O6, ,6e7, 900 593, 127 900
The total corn crop Of the United
States for 1898 1926, 100000 bushels,
against l, ,9O2, 900, 900 bushels in 1897,
a gain of only23, 900, 900 bushels; wheer
as the gain in the routh alone was ia
900, 900 bushels. Omiting the south
the figures would show a large decrease
for the rest of the country. This is
very gratifying exhibit as partial Off
set to the low price Of cotton this year,
but before the south congratulates it
self too heartily upon these figures as
evidence of the growth Of the idea OF
the Investigation Of crops, it should
remember that the central southern
states have in this big corn crop just
little more than caughtup with the
corn crop Of 1890, allowing nothing for
the fact that in the meantime popuia-
ton has doubled. In fact, the corn
crop of Georgia for 1898 is 1000, 900
bushels short Of the crop of that in
1860, and if the average yield per acre
had not deceased as compared with 1897
the output in that state would have
heen about equal to the crop of 1850,
In the adjacent states the figures tor
1860 and 1898 compare as follows:
States 1850 1878
North Carolina. 80, O74, ,56S 34,170, 900
South Carolina. Is, ,O65, sos q, 500, 900
Georgia 80, 776, ,293 26, $50, 900
Florida -. 1924, 53S 4,377, 900
Alabama .32, ,761, 1914 80, ,6S1, 900
Mississippi :. 20, 563,735 39,93l 900
Louisiana 16, ,2O5. S56 27,7l9,O ,OCO
Total 157, ,275, 1856 1s9, ,s57. 900
Compared with 1897 the yield for
1898 shows a gain in Kentucky OF 26,-
Oo0, ,OOO bushels; West Virginia 3,OOO,-
900 bushels; Tennessee 100000
bushels; Arkansas IS, 100000 bushels;
Texas $1,000, 900 bushels; Louisiana
5000, 900 bushels; Mississippi $500
600 bushels; Alabama 100000 bush
els: Florida 100000 bushels; South
Carolina 1000, 600 bushels; North Car
olina 100000 bushels and Virginia
1000, 600 bushels; while Georgia shows
decrease of 5,500,000 BUSHES, and
Maryland 1000, 900 bushels.
Prior to 1860 under the system then
prevailing planters realized the impor-
tance of raising their own foodstutfs,
and thus cotton was largely surplus
money crop. This is still pursued by
the better class Of farmers in the
south, but under the tenantry system
Negroes and many ofthe poorer whites:
not being directed or controlled by
someone else, give nearly all OF their
attention to cotton-r@ising, buying
their foodstufs for man and beast.
Thisis not only destructive to indlvl-
dual prosperity, out at the same time
necessarily retards the progress OF the
whole south. What the south did be-
fore the war in raising its own food
stuffs can be done again. 1t is crafty
ing to know that slowly but surely the
tendency is in the direction Of divers1-
fed agriculture. Until the south gives
to diversified farming the attention
which it demands, ceasing to give so
large a proportion Of its attention to
cotton, its agricultural interests can
not attain the prosperity enjoyed under
the old food producing system that pre-
vailed prior to 1860. Although popu.
lation has largely more than doubled
between 1860 and 1898, the south has,
as shown by these figures, but little
-..-. H., ,,,~b+ ,,o IN Ire ,,rod II ct1on
of corn, while it still has less hogs than
it had 1860, the figures for 1860 being
1890, OOO hogs against l5,6OO, COO for
1898. Nothing could show the need OF
diversified farm crops more completely
than these statistics. They emphasize
the need Of an unceasing effort on the
part of the whole south to develop
wider range Of agricultural productions.