The Opelousas courier. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1852-1910, 1900-11-03
Observations i'm the Rice Country.
Nv. G. Moore, in Texas Farm and Ranche.l

NV. C. Moore, in Texas Farm and Ranche.l
There are about four hundred and
fifty miles of canals in Louisiana,
and about one hundred and forty
thousand acres in the rice culture !:
and one hundred and fifty miles of
canals in Texas, ndabout fifty thou
sand acres in rice. This last named
State has but recently, the past two
years, taken up the canal building,
and the indication is that there
will be many miles constructed with
in the next "a months. There is
probably as much land in Southern
and Southeastern Texas suited to
rice culture as there is in Louisi-
ana. .. ..
"What revenue DO these canals
get for furnishing water ?"
"They usually charge one-tifth of
the crops for all lands watered. If
they own any land, another one
fifth is charged for the land rent ;
therefore, the tenant pays two-fifths
of his crop i'll rent; if the farmer
OWNS the land, he pays one-tifth of
his crop for water.n
All the canal companies own
more or less land, and it is we'll
known fact that they pay handsome
dividends on the capital invested,
and which | am really informed, in
almost every instance, exceeds TWEEN
ty per cent. So far MS / have been
able to learn, the stock in all the
rice canal companies is above par.
"A good, hard, dinty rice, ought
to mill out one hundred pounds OF
clean rice to the barrel. This one
hundred pounds would be divided
about as follows sixty pounds of
head rice: twenty five pounds OF
number two, and. fifteen pounds OF
brewers rice. After the outside
hull has been taken from the rice,
there is a bran resembling wheat
bran, which is very fine for stock
of all kinds, and next to the bran
comes what is termed polish. We
estimate one ton of bran to one hun,
dred sacks of rough rice aud eight
hundred pounds of polish. This
reduced to a sack, would give TWEEN,
ty pounds of bran and twelve
pounds of polish. Rice polish re-
sembles very much buckwheat flour,
and is used quite extensively fol
food in foreign countries. Rice
polish is being very extensively
used i'll manufacturing numerous
kinds of trinkets, such as small
buttons used in shirts and which
resemble the bone button. It is
also used in making keys for pianos
and resembles sivoryssso closely that
an expert can hardly detect the
difference White door knobs are
also another commodity from rict
polish.
On our return, We witnessed the
| we'll irrigations at Jennings, Welsh
/ and Sour Lake; tho last named
place is in Texas. It is estimated
that fifteen thousand acres are II
cultivation under this system, whicl
is in it's infancy. The great advan
tage of well irrigation is that it vii
bring into cultivation thousands o
acres that canals can never reacl
on account Of the great distance
from streams of water. The charg'
for boring. an eight inch we'll is $3. U
per foot, and for a six inch vel
$500 per foot. The depths var.
from one hundred and sixty to tW'
Hundred feet. These are not arte
sian wells, and a pump and engin
costing $30000 are required t,
pump water from the well onto til
Hand. An seight-inch well viii wa
ter from Que hundred and fifty t
two hundred acres, according to tn
season. This method Of. rice irri
CATION has SO far been eminentl
Esuccessful. - 5. F<@re@
| The outlook for rice culture wa
never brighter than at this time
| The United States is heavy i'm
! porterof rice and it will be year
before the yield equals the con
sumption, if ever, as the rice land
are limited. There is two cents
Epound duty on imported rice, whic
J is a great advantage to the. Ri,
producer. The crop, with the e1
tensiye canals and numerous wells
lis a certaintyeeach year, forsiio rie
planter will attempt to grow TIC
u unless assured OF water from one {
these sources. 'tz5A
The police jury of Iberia paris
j Iplaces q very low estimate ON til
duties performed BY the justice