Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1902-05-16
MAJOR cHlLDs's SOUTHERN TRIP
Growing Tobacco Under Cover-Su-
matra Seed Sent to Wndham
County-Some Valuable Trophies.

Maj. and Mrs. ?. W. Childs. Miss Ruth
w. Childs and Mrs. Gatty returned from
the South last week with health much
improved from their four-months trip.
They visited North and South Carolina
spending most of the winter In Florida
where Mai Chlds sent the Republican
an interesting sketch of the growing of
Sumatra tobacco under cover at Quincy
whore thousands Of acres of tobacco are
raised under cover. some OF il growing
more than 10 feet high and selling in the
market for a fancy price some as high
as 81 "A pound The cover under which
the tobacco is grown is made Of laths
and cheese-cloth. thousands of yards of
the latter being used for the purpose
Some of the covers are entirely of hath.
both sides and top. and each stalk of the
tobacco Is supported by n string from the
overhead cover. Sub surface and over
head irrigation is furnished during the
growth period of the weed and the tenn
pcrature under the covers is invariably
from % to 80 degrees warmer than in the
sun outside, which promotes rapid
growth. the crop being harvested in nine
weeks from the time of planting which
is done about this time.
The Quincy tobacco growers use
special fertilizer produced from feeding
cotton seed meal and the industry. which
Is exclusively confined to that region in
lars in its successful promotion. The
Connecticut tobacco growers have had
the advantage of expert growers from
Quincy in the installation of the new
system in the valley. These experts
have been furnished largely at govern
ment expense in the hope that the scheme
might he successfully pursued in New
England. The Sumatra seed has been
Furnished not only to Connecticut grow
ers, but Congressman Haskins has Sent
a supply to Windham county tobacco
farmers for experimental purposes
though 1t is not known that the latter
will adopt the plan of covering this
season. 1t costs the Florida growers
where lumber is much cheaper than here
about $3.50 an acre to build a substantial
cover of laths and this cover will last
about four years. while a cheese cloth
must be renewed annually. The Florida
product is carefully put up in palm leaf
covers imported from Cuba and when
ready for shipment is almost an exact
facsimile of a Sumatra package
Maj. Childs also wrote up for the Re-
publican the Charleston exposition in
interesting detail, also the visit of Presi-
dent Roosevelt and party to the EXPOSE
ton. His letter on North Carolina and
the growing popularity of its Governor
Nycock was a taking article with the
North Carolinians, who reproduced it in
several of the state papers.
Convey Of quail which Mai. Chlds
sent from the south in the hope that
they would Propagate IN the forests here
unfortunately received hard treatment in
transit whereby several were killed
though the balance of the flock were
lef- for tie eXntiimeut.
Miss Childs sent home a Tennessee
thorough ed, known as a single-foot
saddle horse. which is a handsome and
valuable animal
one OF the professors of the Florida
state College presented the party with
four live alligators. one of which escaned
while another died, leaving two to make
the journey successfully. A nine-foot
alligator skin was one of the trophies
of the Florida trip.