The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-07-12

200 feet in IA hours time. 1t lies in
the region of the oil reservoirs and sui
phur beds of southwest louisiana and
southeast Texas: how far beyond is
not vet determined.
Through the wide extent of rice lands
wild and cultivated, which lie in this
region, flow 10 navigable and many
smaller streams besides a hundred irri-
cation canals which vary in length
from 1 to 45 miles and in width from 20
to $50 feet. These have many miles of
laterals and pumping stations, or re-
lifts wherever a fall in the incline of
the land throws the canal below it's
highest level. Tie canals are built in
the ridges, or high portions, of the
prairies which are from to % feet
above the surface of the streams that
traverse them. Some of these pump
ing stations have a capacity of 250 900
gallons a minute, but most of them
average 10000 to $4,000 gallons a min
ute.
The Chinese claim to have been Gull
tivating rice for 5000 years and their
crop has attained to 5000, 600, 900 barrels
annually. In this country the first rice
that grew successfully was in 1894 at
Charleston, South Carolina and in the
gulf coast rice belt in 1S47, while the
total rice production last season repre-
sented AZ pounds per capita. louisiana
and Texas produced over 300, 600 600
pounds between them, and have en-
larged their canals many miles, in
creased their acreage and arranged 10
produce double that amound this year.
Under the irrigation system a rice
crop never fails, as it is not subjuct to
the effect of low water in the rivers or
drought
over 30 rices mills, largely owned by
New York capital, are situated in the
rice centers of Louisiana and Texas,
exclusive of those in the large cities.
| These have a daily capacity of from
800 to $4,000 barrels, and can warehouse
as high as 100000 sacks of rice at one
! time. These sacks hold 1872 pounds of
rice in the hull, or 100 pounds and over
of clean, polished rice.
Notwithstanding the increase in ir-
rigating canals and rice acreage the
cereal did not assume great proper
lions as a merchantable article until
| the government took an interest in 1t.
| Then the rice association of America
| established a kitchen at the Buffalo
| exposition, where rice was cooked in
| 200 different ways by culinary artists
who could have made anything taste
| delicious. This was a great advertise
| ment for rice, and the association
which intended to sink money in the
venture, cleared $4,000 over and above
| all expenses. The Southern Pacific
railroad is reported to have spent $780,
| 900 in making known the values of rice
and is not maintaining rice kitchens in
! Washington and other large cities, with
! a view to educating people in the art
of preparing rice.
These various endeavors to furthei
| rice interests, combined with the work
! of the Carolina rice growers associa-
ton, have not only increased the de-
mand for rice as a nutritive article OF
Giet, but have increased the applicants
for rice lands. These lands have ad-
vanced in values ranging from 81 t.
SO per acre to from SIS to $5e The lat
ter is now an average price for the
best rice lands. This price is being
| paid for land under which oil is known
TO lie, with no idea of ever boring fol
oil on the part of the purchaser.
| Men who own rice farms in the irri.
! gated territory OF Louisiana and Tex.
as either put in enc deep-water well t
| every 200 acres to be irrigated, or pay
| the irrigation companies a sum of new
or more than $3.50 per acre to water
their lands. If the land is owned by
| the companies they furnish land, seeo
| and water for one-half the crop, OF
! furnish water only to any farmer 70,
! one-fifth or One-tourth of his crop
! The average cost of cultivation ar
| acre of rice is So and it yields $50 or
| $40 per acre so that nearly every man
| who leases a farm one season owns il
! the next, if he has an average good
| Crop-NeW York Times.