The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1906-02-09
TEXAS FARMERS DON'T TAKE
HOLD AS THEY SHOULD.
UNCLE SAMPLE BELIEVES IN IT
Money Has Been Spent in Dsmonstra'
ton, a Market Secured. and Yet
The Hang Back.

Ness and w. NJ. HinSOn, the two Unit
ed States government tobacco experts,
arrived in Houston yesterday, to begin
an inspection of Texas tobacco lands.
1T is a downright shame that your
farmers do not take more interest in
tobacco growing" said Mr.. McNess.
The government has had all your
soils analyded and passed upon; has
kept experts in the state for several
years to teach the farmers what they
could about raising the weed A mar
ket has been found for the crop each
year, and at profitable figures; the
Southern Pacific has imported the best
kind of seed from Cuba, and yet-weil,
the farmer here does not get aroused
Mr.. HinsOn and myself are going out
among the husbandry and see If we
can not do some missionary work
among them. We are prepared to
show each and every one of them that
Texas soil raises a better filled than
any other state. In fact, we have .et-
tiers from over 200 we'll known tobacco
dealers to back up our statements. We
have not few letters from large dear
ers who claim they prefer the Texas.
grown to the Cuban filler. Then the
tobacco raised here commands much
better price than any other grown in
the United States. There is much
more money to be made in raising to.
bacco than in cotton or corn, and |
can not see why the farmers down here
will not be convinced. You do not see
Uncle Sam spending SO much time
and money helping the tobacco raisers
in Connecticut, Ohio, Kentucky or Wis
consin. In fact, those poor chaps I'm
there, in cold, inhospitable climate,
have to work out their own salvation
and hurry in their tobacco crop in a
few mOnths-harvest it, or an early
frost gets it. Down in this salubrious
climate you have months and months
to do the same work an Ohioan would
have to crowd into June, July and
August. A man requires no more ex-
pert knowledge to raise cigar filters
than he does to raise cotton-not a
bit. 1t requires experience to raise
anything that grows-the same exge-
rience the farm-raised boy has when
he starts out as farmer and supplants
his father on the old homestead. But
the government has been and is still
willing to teach your farmers how to
raise and cure their tobacco. Wouldn't
Northern farmer be greatly pleased
If his government would teacl. him
how to raise a crop that would pay
% per cent better thar any that he
understood, and, further, send a ouy-
er to his farm and take away the
crop, leaving some crisp notes in pay.
ment? 1t looks that way to me. Now,
here is another thing to consider: Tie
tobacco now raised in your state is
for cigar filters only. The Agricul-
tural Department thought it wise to
start the new industry here by raising
filters, because the wrappers are more
difficult to grow, the difference being
that even If the leaves going to make
nllers get worm eaten, injured by hail,
or in any such way, they are not lost
inside the cigar, where 1t is not seen
to the grower because such tobacco
will smoke just as we'll and Is placed
OF course a wrapper has 20 be flaw
less or the cigar will draw like a
oalky mule. Now, in time and as soon
as your farmers have mastered The
growing of filters, our experts will ther
educate them in growing the wrappers
which will command many times the |
price per pound paid for filters. Saw
at 75c pound for wrappers, see wha
money a man would get off one acre
OF land. He ought to raise, with good
cultivation, from 500 to 1000 pounds
to the acre. Just multiply these fig
ures and see how many acres he would
have to have in cotton to raise anr
such such. | hope we will be success
full in our missionary work and cause |
your good farmers to see the matter
IN its right light. There is no rea.
son why the known tobacco lands of
this state should not produce yearly
enough tobacco filters and wrappers to
make all the cigars annually smoked
by the people of America"
YAQuiS MURDERED TRANSFERS.
And Escaped With Wagons and Teams