The Lafayette advertiser. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], La.) 1865-19??, 1909-03-05
EXPERIENCE WITH
The BOIL WEEVl.
Special Agent S. A. Knapp Of the U. S.
Department of AgricuIture's Co.
operative Demonstration Work.
OPEN LETTER TO COTTON FARM
ERS OF ARKANSAS, LOUIS
lana, MISSISSIPPI.
Interesting Account Of Conditions and
Successes in Sections OF Above
States Against Pest.

Successes in sections OF ABOVE
States Against Pest.
"The Boil Weevil has invaded your
states and will undoubtedly infest
every cotton producing county within
a brief period with the hope that
our experience and observations may
be of service to you, will state some
material facts that impress me.
Win we opened the office OF the
Farmers Cooperative Demonstration
Work in Houston, Texas, in January
1904, for the purpose of demonstrat-
ing to the cotton farmers how cot
ton crop could be produced in the
presence of the weevil, We found the
most demoralizing conditions that has
ever come within my observation. 1t
was quite general but some sections
were much worse than others. l par
ticularly recall the struggle we had
along the H. & T. c. Railway, especial
ly with the light, sandy loan soils OF
Limestone and Robertson Counties.
We found that the cotton crop had fal-
len the preceding year to fraction
of the average product of former
years, and that the people were so de-
moralized as a result, cotton being al
most their sole cash crop, that they
would scarcely listen to any argument
in favor of producing any more cot
ton. No language can clearly depict
the condition that existed. In num-
Der of towns many of the stores were
nailed up. In large section, one
half of the cotton farms had been
abandoned and on the remaining
farms people were trying to diversity
and find something that would be fair
ly profitable, without planting cotton.
Over quite section it was found ne
cessary to supply cotton seed and 9th
G. seeds FOR planting. 10 save the sit
uatlon. SION learned. however, ifai
10 most dl: aste.u!s fact in the
problem was III, ala RI a. d loss 81 ali
confidence on the part of the banks
and merchants. The sudden with
drawal of advances made it impossi.
BILE to cultivate large portion OF the
land in cotton because they could not
nay the labor. The labor left and ma
ny of the small farmers left for more
prosperous sections. In some way il
had become the current belief that
while possible that cotton croI
might be made in the dry and prairie
sections, that just as soon as the wee
vii struck the wooded sections OF East
Texas where the conditions were idea
for Information, SO many of the wee
wills would survive the winter that il
would be impossible to make crop
especially as Eastern Texas has
larger rainfall than the Western prai
ries. 1t was useless to argue the mat
ter; they thoroughly believed it and Al
required all the influence we could
bring to bear to induce them to plant
and manage their cotton crop accord
ing to our directions. To the credit
Of the merchants and bankers let it be
said that they generally rallied to oul
support and did extend, at our solic
tation, considerable aid to the farmers
The farmers were urged to live a!
much as possible on the products O
the farm and to raise Irish potatoes
melons and other early maturing crops
for market to help pay current expen
ses. This was done. We were oblig
ed to introduce an earlier and bette
variety OF cotton with which we coult
more successfully combat the weevil
Our plans worked exceedingly wei
and by the fall of 1904 confidence wa
entirely restored and the farmer
found that they had made more none.
than usual in single year becaus
they lived on the products of thei
farms and within their current In
comes. They owed very little AM
had made q pretty fair crop. The tota
cotton product in Limestone County il
1903 was 16,4O0 bales; in 1904, tn
year we commenced work. it was Al
500 bales; in 1906 it was 1890 bales
In 1908, while full reports are not In
it win probably exceed 1900 bales
OF course between these years ther
..ss so...e bad ciop vets, but even II
the bad crop years it did not fall any
where near the level of 1903. This |
only q sample Of what has occurred a
the weevil advanced eastward throug
the Timber Belt of Texas.
The worst thing we had to conten
against was the panic because it imm
diately cut on capital and affected tn
sinews Of war 20 that the people coul
Then. there are some people who ar