The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1899-03-15
TOBACCO VS.. COTTON.
What Marion County Farmer Thinks
About the Two.

the Zee Dee hustler. OF Maroon. ;. e..
Will no doubt be read with interest BY
or readers The article was written
BY Marion farmer Here it is.
The question agitating the minds of
great many farmers Of Marion county
as well as other sections of South Car,
olina at the present time is the differ,
ence as money crop as between the
cultivation of tobacco and cotton, and
this is a very important question tc
the farm ers at this time, hence it is
that | wish to give them a few facts as
| see them for their consideration,
will state in the outset that | am to.
bacco man, but it is not my wish nol
purpose to bring any undue influence tc
bear in favor Of tobacco that | cannot
state facts to sustain. | admit in the
outset that when the farmers have cult,
waited for long period Of time any
special crop as a money crop, it is well
for them to consider ard calculate be.
fore making change, but when they
know they are losing money every yeal
on that crop has not the time come fol
them to stop. consider and calculate, il
there is not some crop which they can
cultivate that will pay them? I will
now proceed to state as to the cultiva-
ton of cotton as given to me by quite a
number Of farmers and indorsed by g
great many others, if in error it is their
mistake and not mine, as don not claim
to know from experience. | am in.
formed that il the section mentioned
that the average Of lint cotton per acre
will not exceed 250 lbs, we will put
that at SC which is more than last years
crop was sold for, which would make
s12 80. I am told to pick out, gin and
bale will cost 100 lbs per acre, that
would leave 81 80 per acre to fertilize,
to make it produce the average of 25C
per acre, for the cultivation and hand
rent Farmers is it not a reasonable
calculation to make, to say that thi:
| nOUIO SUOu uUiL AISCll.
Now, the first proposition have tc
make on the side of tobacco, is that fol
every farmer in Marion county that car
show his cotton bill for the crop Of
1898 with any profit, | will agree tc
produce fifty tobacco bills for the crol
OF 1898, showing ten times as much
profit per acre. The. tobacco bill:
as compared in large numbers show
that in this section the land will pro
duce on an average 1000 pounds of to.
bacco per acre, if properly manured and
cultivated. | know of very few farm.
ers that got as low as $4,000 per acre
for the last crop and from that to $3.50.
90, and as | wish to be conservative on
this side of the question | will say that
I am satisfied that the tobacco bills in
Marion county will show, an average Of
at least s75 90 per acre for all cultivat,
ed in 1898 but I do not advise the farm,
ers to plant tobacco, baseing their cal,
culations entirely on the crop of 1898,
/ for no one knows what it will do this
year; at the same time there is no room
for any doubt if the crop is properly
cultivated, but what it will pay severa.
times more profit than cotton, this fact
is not only true for the crop Of 1898
but for several years with large mum
bers of farmers in sections where they
pay special attention to the cultivation
of tobacco; unless they intend It do thai
in sections where none has ever been
raised, it might be to the interest Of
those. wishing to raise it to group togeth.
er and get good man that understands
his business to show them the first year
1t would not cost one much, and II
addition to the profit they would get in
the first crop by drying time, they would
gain information that would enable
them in many instances in the future
to manage successfully for themselves.
I have heard some good farmers say the
best investment they ever made on
their crops was getting experienced
men for then first crop in tobacco that
it not only paid them well in the sales
of that crop but the information gained
for the future, was was worth more to
them than the amount paid out. |
would not have any one to understand
me to advise them to plant tobacco on
any land that they would plant cotton
on, for that would not d., but am sat
isfed from what I have seen of the
lanIs with some few exceptions, the
majority Of the farmers have land that
will produce good tobacco if properly
cultivated; it is always best to select
land that is so located as to have some
natural drainage, then run your rows
the way to give them the advantage Of
the drainage; by this, in the case of a
great deal Of rain, you keep the fibre
roots from dscaying which Away causes
the tobacco to damage and get in such
condition that there is no improvement
in it by anything that you can do, that
you may not fail to understand this,
will state that tobacco planted on land
with no drainage in case of excess OF
rain gets in what the tobacco men call
drowned out, and in such cases is Of
very little value. l don't think any
mans experience has been sufficient to
tell Improvement in tobacco damaged
from the drouth, especially when prop
erly managed when we do have seasons.
l. in error let me know.
The ZIONIST MOVEMENT.