Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1908-07-30
SOUTHERN CROPS.

Statistics of the past forty years Of
the production Of corn, wheat and oats
in the South are the basis for an In
teresting exhibit of progress, made in
last weeks issue ofthe Manufacturers
Record, of a general increase in South
e1n grain productivity. 1t ays
"The actual production of grain is
hardly a safe measure of the advance.
The average yield per acre gives the
real cue to the productivity. While
not equaling in average yields per
acre the average yields of the country,
the South as a whole has, nevertheless,
more than kept pace with b rate OF
increase in the whole country. In the
40 years between 1866 and 1906 the
average yield per acre of Germ had an
indicated increase from 25.3 to 30.3
bushels, or 1877 per cent. in the whole
country, and in the South from 1875 to
20.S bushels, or IS per cent; the aver
g yield per acre OF wheat had an in
dictated increase from 90 bushels to
15.5 bushels, or 56.3 per cent. in the
"hOiS SCNtA4t1 ; 5 49, 80 A-sC
bushels, or 1872 per cent. in the South.
and the indicated increase in the
average yield Of oats was from 30. to
31.2 bushels, or 3.3 per cent, in the
whole country, and 1913 to 24.1 bush
els, or 24.S per cent. in the South.
1.-THE acreage in corn in the South
increased from 1871, 1862 to 80, 0G2, 003
acres, every State sharing in it, but
the most notable advances being from
7sO,610 to 6,e34,657 acres in Texas;
from 1872, 722 to 2,237, 1897 acres in Ar
kansas; from 100, sos to 625 600 acres in
Florida; from 406,473 to 1924 ,291 acres
in louisiana; from S21 ,631 to 2,2O4, 922
acres in Mississippi, and trsm 1,O2l, 1897
to 1,935,347 acres in South Carolina.
The average yield per acre increased
In all the States except Arkansas,
Florida and Texas.
alabama, Georgia and Mississippi
were the only States showing q de-
crease in acreage devoted to wheat
the great increases being fl om 153. 9O4
to 1,22S, 1854 acres in Texas; from 1885,
769 to 31S,274 acres in South Carolina;
from 319.527 to 81S,624 acres in Ken
lucky; from se.867 to III 1888 acres in
Arkansas, and from 451 ,929 to 500, 4Ol
acres in Maryland. The total increase
of wheat acreage in the South was
from 1924 e6 to 6.345,s14 acres. All
h States except Texas increased the
averave yield per acre. One typical
effect of this is indicated by the fact
that while in 1856 Alabama raised $751;
$50 bushels from 1I5,432 acres, or an
average of 81 bushels to the acre, in
1906 it raised 1915, 029 bushely from
SO ,539 acres or an average of IL bush
els to the acre, and h a Georgia, which
raised 1,272,456 bushels in 1866 from
31S,114 acres, or 4 bushels to the acre,
in 1906 raised 3,161 ,O7O bushels from
316,1O7 acres, or 10 bushels to the acre.
"The acreage in oats IN 1906 was
nearly so per cen less than in 1886,
but the increase between 1866 and 1906
TIL most marked decreases were from
265 1863 to 1884 acres in Maryland
frem 512, 239 to 200 1913 acres in the two
Virginias, and from 2O6 ,2O8 to 1875, 66:
acres in North Carolina. The averag.
yield per acre fell off in Florida, Ken
but nevertheless the advance in thu
average yield for the whole South wa
much beyond the advance for tn,
whole country