The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-05-10
NORTH cAR0LINA-.-ITS RRSOUR-
CES AND INDUSTRIES.

Editor Southern SaGccess:-I have
received q copy of your excellent jour
nal, and though you have not asked
for my views as to its merits, take
pleasure in saying voluntarily that ]
believe it splendid publication for the
South. 1t is geographically neat and
filled with matter that cannot fail to
attract the attention of outsiders to
our wonderful resources and une qualled
advantages for agricultural and manu-,
featuring pursuits.
Such publications can advertise the
resources of States like Tennessee and
North Carolina more effectively than
secular newspapers, owing to the fact
that you make speciality Of your
work, and / cheerfully consent to write
a short article on this State.
North Carolina enjoys advantages
possessed by no other State in that she
has such a variety Of soil and climste.
With an extreme length of more than
five hundred miles, the State presents
almost every geographical feature
found In the United States. Tee east
ern part Of the State rests upon the At
lantic and the climate is mild. For
nearly hundred miles from the coast
many tropical products can be grown.
This section is rapidly becoming noted
for early truck and berry growing.
The many large rivers, bays and inlets
furnish water transportation for much
Of this truck to Washington, Balti-
more, Philadelphia and New York.
Fast trains take what does not go by
boats. The fish, oyster and lumber
business Of the eastern &c ckion is also
immense. The land is rich and level
as the prairies of the middle western
States. Snow seldom falls and frost
rarely occurs. tt ia no wonder that
thousands Of acres are devoted to
strawberry growing and that the Der
ries are but q little later than those
coming from Florida. Rice, tobacco,
peanuts and cotton are also largely
grown in the eastern part of the State.
Much of the middle and Piedmont
portions of the State is devoted to
fruit and grape growing, but the prin-
cipal crops are grain and tobacco. In
the hill and mountain portion of the
State, the fruit grower, the stock raiser
or the au-round farmer of the North
can find an ideal home in at least
twenty large counties, thickly settled
but with very good railroad facilities,
cheap lands, pure cold water, cool but
healthful climate. This section EN-
braces great health resorts like Ashe
vile and Blowing Rock. In fact lands
are cheap throughout the entire State.
But suffice it to say that North Caro-
lima is destined to be one of the 'gar.
den spots" of earth. The old geogra-
phies once told US that the principal
products of North Carolina are tar,
pitch, rice and cotton" True then,
but not how. We raise several hun
dred thousand bales of cotton annually,
it is true, but we manufacture more
cotton by 15, 600 or 90, 600 bales than
we raise. But what we are going to
do is not as interesting as what we
have done already. To prove that this
is really great agricultural State, I
will quote some figures from the United
States census reports of 1890, but
which are now too low after lapse of
eight years. In 1889 we had 178 $50
farms with an ocreage of % 651, 896, of
which 2, 1928, $50 acres were in cultiva-
ton. We still have nearly Is, 600, 600
acres of unimproved lands which can
be purchased at low prices. In 1896
this State produced 29, 6O4, 14S bushels
of corn, 4 62l, 922 bushels of wheat,
5 TT, 256 bushels of oats, 1,446, All
bushels of potatoes, 423. 5I9 bales Of
cotton and 65 629, ,17O pounds of to
baceo. In addition to this several mil
lion dollars worth Of miscellaneous
products. The crop and fruit reports
will fill nearly every blank in the
United States census reports. The egg
and poultry business of this State is
greater than it is II most of the States
of the Union, but l have no exact
figures.
North Carolina is also great manu-
featuring State, Outsiders are hardly
prepared to learn what has been done
along this line, and the end is noty ct.
We manufacture more than 80, 900, 900
pounds of plug tobacco annually. We
have the largest cigarette factory in
the world, also the largest smoking to-