The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-09-14

The states Fine Rice Crop on h Cape
Fear-The Products OF the Farm
Valued at sI32, 0OO-Manufaeturing
in the state prison

~ tnC SbnbC L
The Messenger yesterday noted the |
here of Mr.. F. 3. Arrendell, /
manager of the state p~enitentiary, who
came down to make arrangements for
harvesting the rice crop produced on
the Cape Fear by convict labor this
season.
Yesterday morning Mr.. George n.
Cannon, superintendent of the peniten-
farm at Castle Haynes and the states
farms on the Cape Fear. came over to
the city with a row boat, manned by
w negr convicts, and took Manager
Arrendell over the rice farms. A Mes
enger representative accompanied
them to see the sights.
BLEAKHOUSE FARM.
The first farm visited vas the rice
lands known as Bleakhouse, on Ea-
gle's Island, exactly opposite kidde
mill in h extreme southern part or
the city. On u way to
we had reveries of Dickens story, but
on arrival at the farm We landed at a
couple of little shanties on the mud
banks, and found nothing about them
or the place to inspire the
Bleakhouse is the property of Mr..
H. U. Buffers and is leased by the
state penitentiafy, with an option Tor
it's purchase. The lands under Guilt
walton embrace 100 acres, all in n
tract. These broad acres are covered
by a fine crop of rice that is "ripening
unto the harvest" The golden grain
was hanging it's head above the broad
expanse of water that has been turned
on while the crops is in it's last stage.
1t vas waving, too, but we say 1t was
hanging it's head because the crop is so
--..1.. IT. &Lot hoa1c nr0 han or
under their own weight. The rice is
from foul to six feet tall all over the
field and it was a sight worth seeing.
Upon approaching the rice field one
could imagine that Gen. Otis was over
there chasing Filippinos. There was a
regular fusilade from the guns of the
bird minders who were also shouting
at the top of their voice and clapping
hands to brighten away thousands of
destructive rice birds Ia were hover
ing over the rice and playing havoc
with the ripening grain. When fright
med from the spot they would rise up
and light in another, seemingly de-
termined to destroy the crop in spite
of the guns and all the noise that was
kept up by a dozen men. This was all
the work going on. 1t rather seemed
like sport but the bird minders get 60
cents a day for it, with the opportuni-
ty of bagging hundreds of sure selling
birds. Besides rice birds, there are lit
orally thousands OF coOtS in the rice,
~squeaking necessarily, but they hardly
ever show themselves above the rice
and the bird minders are not allowed
to shoot at them for fear of cutting
down the grain.
superintendent Cannon tells us that
the crop on BleakhOuse will yield from
40 to so bushels of rough rice per acre.
This is remarkable too from the fact
hat the crop was not sowed till April
18th.
NAVASSA FARM.
From Bleakhouse our party was row.
to the Navassa farm which the pen
itentiary authorities lease from the
Navassa Guano Company. 1t is also
Eagle Island and is two miles and a
half from the city up the Cape Fear.
Here there are 10 acres in cultivation,
n the rice is even finer than it is at
Bleakhouse. 1t is estimated that it will
produce from 40 to 60 bushels per acre.
The crop was planted April 18th.
THE LYRIAS FARM.
Two miles up the river from the Ma
vassa farm is the Lyrias farm. 1t con-
tainS 40 acres and the crop on it is
magnificent, although 1T was the last
to be planted.
superintendent Cannon is proud OF
IlBo IlCC SIOp dIIo LIZ IIdo SFCIy llSlNI ~
be. He takes a great deal of interest in
work and showed he crop with ev-
ident pleasure. He has had years Of
as a grower of rice and says
the crop is one of the finest he ever
saw. All three tracts, aggregating $50
acres, will produce from 1000 to 10000
bushels of rice and ait 81 or more per
bushel that means $1,000 ito $1,000 for
the state p~enitentiary. This crop was
produced by an average of IS convicts.
AMID the state will reap a big profit from
it. The harvesting will begin next
Monday, and for this purpose 100 con-
victs are to be sent here. At present
there are only "a few convicts ON THE
place, as after the crop was laid by
were SEM away Ito work on rail- !
Besides the rice farms, Superintend-
emit Cannon also has the management
ofthe Castle jig mes farm. There he
has 125 acres peanuts and $50 in
corn. The crops ait Castle Haynes are
very fine.
MANUFACTURING AT THE PENI- !
TERTIARY.
After inspecting the rice farms yes
terday Manager Arrendell returned to
the city at 1870 p. m. and left at $3.50
p. m. ON the Seaboard Air Line for the
Anson county farm. He tells us that
ilC1C OH z INV dOOUI 1,VOV COQINICCS AL
of which there are IS
and about $50 United States
prisoners.
In the ~penitentiary convicts are
as all able bodied men are
either ON the farms or are hired out to
railroad contractors.
Such convicts as are kept ait the
central prison at Raleigh are utilized
in manufacturing outing shirts for a
New York concern. The fusion add
.miniStratfon made a contract to make
shirts ait rs cents a dozen, but the
democrats refused to carry out the con-
tract n got the price raised to so
cents a dozen.
In the p~enitentiary there is ais a
factory that win produce 49,
600 to Is, 700 mattresses a year An ex-
ce1lent mattress is made from rice
straw, n all the straw OF this crop of
rice win be shipped from mere to the
for THAT purpose. The
three farms will produce about 500
o n OF rice straw this season, repre-
senting a value of 81, 900 in addition to
the grain. There is a greater demand
for mattresses than can be supplied.
The convicts at Raleigh are also uti-
in manufacturing bricks of su-