The Thibodaux sentinel. (Thibodaux, La.) 1905-1912, 1908-11-14

CONCLUDED FROM LAST WEEK ,
By H. C. STRIGFELLoW

Z
Colonel, do you diversity" YES,
sir, have enough corn to last me
now two years, but can sell what
don't need. | believe in diversity
ing. but not In trucking Raise stand
ard crops. Ny place contains 1900
acres. Have 500 acres In cotton. 400
acres mesquite grass, $50 acres corn
leo acres oats. On my zoe acres
mesquite have 65 mule colts, so or
ohead OF Durham cattle. am 90
Ing to get rid of cattle and stick to
mules Ticks are too bad,-und cattle
DO not pay. Mules pay well. Oats
Is q good crcp and pays. Mules pay
well; under'.and, / do not breed
mules. buy them as colts, feed and
take care OF them until they are
three years old, and reap a good prof.
IT, My cotton crop before boil wee
vils was $50 bales. Since boil wee
wills 100 to 1i5, but | have cut ex-
penses accordingly, abolished the one
horse sweep, took up the cultivator
and worked 20 to so acres to the
hand, instead of 20. Boil weeyils
teach you progress and economy"
We went through his pasture, 800
acres level valleys and sloping hills.
all matted with mesquite grass, with
o living stream of water flowing
through II. forming a combina ton Of
beauty that nature rarely develops.
Saw 65 mule colts making their liv-
ing on grass, with but little corn: In
fact, | believe Colonel Gibson told
me they had never tasted corn. BE
that as it may, they We're fine look
Ing lot of colts, all well developed.
round and fat. Also saw his fine
Durham cattle. he said, .'See that
COW, paid $3.50 for her mother. |
. love fine cattle, but | am gong ont
of the business; am too old to make
it pay; ticks too bad"
From the pasture we went to his
barns. They were filled with corn.
oats and hay and every work mule
seal fat under shed and an Andrew
Jackson rule OF discipline, that
ought to be practiced by every farm
er. From the barns we went to the
cotton fields. | had not forgotten the
gun barrel rows, and expected to
see crooked gun barreI, but not
20. Every row as straight as die,
and showed thorough cultivation. |
The cotton was waist high and not a
bloom in the field. Boil weevils |
claimed top crop and had >. He was /
making one-third bale to the acre. |
His corn crop was good. His oat |
crop consisted of $50 acres. Had /
20 acres up and was tall enough to |
crane; was then breaking so acres
more for spring planting and his /
salky plows were turning all vege-
tation out OF sight AXE this farm
as whole and it was the best reg
ulatsd farm | ever saw, and while
Louisianan farmers may think ST.
600 would not be much revenue
from 1900 acres in our years, re-
member this was net and in boil
weevil section, besides the colonel's
household expense in a town like
Corsicana is not a small item.
When | bid Colonel Gibson good
bye he said: Go home and tell your
people not to be discouraged: good
will yet flow from evil. The second
and third year of boil weeyils may
pass them through the crucible, as
IL did US here, but after that the
pest will grow less ravenous, and
you can again grow cotton. less the
top crop. After that bottom and mid
Ole crops can be made, but lay aside
the one-horse sweep and take the
eulttvator. Curtail the acreage in
cotton. heavy the second and third
year to escape loss. and stick to di- /;
versifed standard crops as l have,
and they will succeed
Gentlemen, believe it will pay
10 take the advice Of this success
lul and grand old man.
Near Corsicana | saw the only
,rop OF cotton that had oIoom on ,
i. Rode up to a farm house that
vas surrounded by cotton crop {
,f SO acres. All blooms weer gone, {
Except about / 12 acres immedi-
lteiy In front of the residence. ! {
lsked why that was. The lady of !
he house said she did not know, {
lnless 1t was because her guineas
lad lived in that i 1-2 acres all the
ear and proved a parasite to boil {
veevils.
l went to Waco, to Inspect the ,
ottton Immediately on the Brazos, {
nd what is known as the valley |
'ottom of the Brazos. Next to the 6
iser proper the soil is little heayf- I
r, but as the land recedes becomes
ighter. is much like the soil Of
ne Ouachita. c
In company with Captain Watts /
visited several farms east of the ]
'razos. This land is higher than the
Alley proper. yet some of it over b
owed this year. Found some poor
otton, but the majority Of 1t good.
No few crops opened close to
ae top. In no crop did | fail to find 9
OIL weevil. One tenant Las crop I
I nne cotton in a certain cut, and v
! another. the cotton is almost t
orthless, but with growth that
as fine as to weed. | said. "Ex- &
lain this to me-" He said. Well a
7, all the rest of my cotton is r
arch cotton. This ground was cold 4
ID wet in March an1 | put on II
anting until the first of May. Boil 2
eevils took it and l will never 0
ant cotton late again. J. B. Ellis /
Ened this crop. He had IL IL r
res of March cotton and counted 3
10 bales he will not miss it much
owed his cotton 10 times. Il
Then we went over the large T
rms of Messrs. Smith and Clinton, ii
'und a good cotton crop, which c
III average two-thirds of bale to