The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-11-13
LITTLE JOURNEYS THROUGH
ALABAMA'S ALFALFA BELT
by DAVID HOLT

! - miles. 1t contains many varieties
of soil. but the greater part of this
large area is aluvial bottom land and
Houston clay prairie soil.
Two years ago Mr. PEBBLES had a
fne piece of his bottom land drained
with canal which cost more than
81 600 to dig. Since that time he has
raised from 45 to IS bushels of corn
to the acre In that bottom with negro
cultivation and he expects to try scien-
tific cultivation on 1t In the future
just to see how much corn can be
| grown there with the best methods he
can devise.
on piece of sandy loam near his
home at Vienna. which is east of the
river, Mr.. PEBBLES raised this year $50
bushels of corn on an acre and a quar-
ter, using but little commercial fer
| tilizer, but adopting a method of cu1-
tivation that he worked out for HIM
self.
Is is estimated that there is not less
than 25,000.000 feet of timber on the
Lee place. and about two-thirds of IL
Is hardwood, the rest being pine. 1t
| grows along the water courses, par
| ticularly in the river bottom and oe-
cupies land that, when cleared ditched
and drained, will become as fine pas
ture, meadow or farming land as will
lie found in this country on the 9TH
! 10000. 900 feet of hardwood and pine
timber.
There are no less than 10 artesian
wells on the Lee place. 1t is easy to
bore to running water a the depth OF
from 500 to 500 feet. Almost every
settlement or negro quarters, has its
artesian well of pure flowing water.
| The water from some of the wells Is
said to contain valuable medicinal prop
critics and number of persons who
have come into this section troubled
with kidney or bladder troubles are
known to have been relieved after
drinking the artesian water for a
while.
Mr. PEBBLES says that the Lee place
is not for sale. and a man would have
to put up a pretty penny to get any
outlying part of it. Some of the prop
erty separated from the Lee place only
| by the Tombigbee, might be sold. but
not the big plantation. Its owner takes
a pride in his broad acres and Is con-
stantly improving them.
| one thing that makes the PEBBLES
properties valuable for those who
might wish to go into the hay and
| live stock industry on large scale Is
| the river transportation All of the
| places referred to herein are either on
or near the Tombigbee river, which is
navigated by steamboats, as far up as
DuS, MISS, during the nlSH waiter
OF the winter and spring months. This
would enable the blanter to harvest
and store his crop, fatten his cattle or
hogs and walt for the cheap water
transportation to Mobile or the cities
between here and that port.
The coming of the Alabama, Ten
nessee and Northern railroad which
runs through or near the property
mentioned, has added greatly to its
value, giving the farmers better trans
portation facilities than they had en-
ioyed before and causing the territory
to become more thickly populated with
desirable white citizens If the land
owners who control vast acreages in
this alfalfa country would consent to
! sell a portion OF their holdings In 40,
sc or 100-acre tracts, this portion of
the Lords vineyard would soon become
veritable check erb GARD of large ana
small farms, devoted to the cultiva-
ton of hay, live stock. corn. potatoes
and other food crops for man and
beast.
But It is mighty hard to break the
old-tim southern planter from the cot
ton habit, particularly II he owns
plantation where the staple can be
grown with a profit, and it Is safe to
predict that they will be raising cot
ton with negro labor on the Lee place
| for many years to come.
And IL Is a pleasant life. There arc
Wild keys and squirrels In the for
ests along the river. quails in abund-
ance In the fields and along the
branches and there Is an atmosphere
about southern plantation life that Is
almost irresistible TO those who have
the taste for the broad out-of- doors
way OF living. -"