The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1911-04-13
THE HATTIESBURG NEWS
that is three weeks longer than the

neavy, driving rain. tnat thoroughly
saturated everything not protected ex-
well. This rain was i'm
followed by long hard
freeze, and many weevil was conse-
quently encased in sheath of ice that
lasted for four days.
"The opinions of the "ice-block man.
to the contrary, Notwithstanding, we
have reason to believe that consid-
cradle number of hibernated weevils
persisted in this protracted freeze.
Except for the one hard freeze, we
have had one of the mildest winters
on record. January and February
were like March and April of the nor
NAL year. Is it not likely that many
of the hibernated weevils were tempt
ed to leave their quarters and that
they expended some part of their total
sum of vital force, and still further
diminished their chances of living I'M
til the cotton begins to make squares?
1--WE have had almost ideal weather
for the preparation of the soil. ! am
persuaded that more early and thor
ough blowing has been done in South
Mississippi than ever before, at least
by those that believe cotton must still
prove our main reliance as money
crop. That early and thorough prep
aration is one of the essential things
that many failed to appreciate in for
mer years and We can hardly calculate
the value of that advantage for this
year.
There was a marked Discrimination
of the labor to adhere strictly and
closely to demonstration methods in
former years. That Discrimination was
accounted for partly because of the
half-hearted allegiance of the land
owner to those methods, and partly
to the laborer's slowness to change to
something new.
81 know, by personal investigation,
on many plantations that the majority
of tenants, if rightly instructed and
rightly handled, will now render I'M
questioning obedience to all reasonable
orders. know, too, that it is human
nature for all men to do the most
thorough work when they have full
understanding and strong belief in
it's efficacy.
1T has been urgeu Dy pessimists
that the light rainfall during the last
eight months increases the liability to
heavy rainfall during the months OF
June and July, the very time when a
heavy rainfall is inimical to the best
development of cotton under boil
weeviT conditions. Granting this tc
be true, we still have decided advan
tage over other years. The almost
entire absence of rainfall during the
winter months means that we have
not a stored-up surplus of water in the
sub-soil, and on properly prepared
lands this thirsty sub-soil will Absorb
and take care of far more water thai
it could do following winters of nor
NAL rainfall. With the same rainfall
that we had in June and July Of 1910
We can therefore do more and bette
cultivation than we were able to t.
last year.
"a much larger per centage of tn
total area planted to cotton in 1911, /
we'll prepared and will be planted Il
quick maturing seed than was the cas-
in 1910.
"The greater familiarity of our Ia
Dor with better and more rapid metf
DDS of cultivation, will largely mil
imize the danger of the crop getting i
the grass-an almost fatal error
any calculation to make cotton unde
boil weevil conditions.
"a thorough understanding of tn
: above obvious advantages that are a
ready ours, can not but have the effet
to inspire confidence, and since tn
world was young, no man has eve
put forth his best effort unless he ha
> faith in his ability to perform his pr
> scribed task. Confidence in our abb
ity to do is prime requisite in tn
economic battle of ours, and yet
> would not inspire that blind unreaso
/ ing confidence that overestimates Of
own strength and laughs at Il
strength of the enemy.
"All the advantages enumeratt
L above may prove of no avail if We fl
j to do our work thoroughly. We kno
that we must make the bulk Of Il
II cotton crop in the months of June al
i July. To do that we must have
i quick-maturing variety of cotton, al
we must give it immunity during tn
/. time, as nearly complete as possib
against the ravages of the weevil. T
o only known way to give it this i
e munity is to destroy such oyer-w
tered weevils as come out on t
aotf1v hafara thew 20 n do m =,