Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1912-03-08
BIC BOOST FOR JEFFERSON COUNTY Editor of Arkansas Home stead Tells of Progress of Farmers in this Section. THE VALUE OF LAND Reviews Some of the Successors of
 Truck Growers Made Tour
 in This County.
THE VALUE OF LAND

farm paper, edited by John C. Small
 and published at Little Rock, has the following interesting write-up of Jef- ferson county and it's truck growers in a recent issue, following visit that was made to this county a few weeks ago by MT. Small:
 When you talk to the Arkansas Valley farmer the subject turns to cotton and corn, alfalfa and stock
 or possibly to rice, for on some ot these bottom lands, where the soil conditions are right, they have begun to grow rice, and it is one of the most profitable crop these farmers have ever raised. Cotton culture is an old institution.
 "On those big plantations they are still raising cotton, but by new and better methods; they are still raising. corn, but their yield is larger. The valley lands will always be the most productive of staple crops, and the most profitable under the extensive system of cultivation.
 Interest for the small farmer, the man who expects to diversity his crops and practice intensive methods: of cultivation lies, not so much in the valley region as it does on the higher pine flats and wooded hills, which lie upon the other side of Pine Bluff the uplands that have been overlook cd in years past, lands that can be bought now for $5 and $10 an acra It is there that you will find the poul- tryman, the dairyman, the truck grower, the orchardist, and the stock man. It is there, too, that you will find the prettiest homes, the best
 roads, the largest schools and the happiest and most contented people.
 Tracy Mills and. Oscar Mckenzie showed the writer the way out on the
 Sulphur Springs Pike through farm ing district that is fairly typical of the upland farming country that yoa
 will find about Pine BlufN It is prac
 tically all level, the topography be
 ing broken here and there by spring branch, these occurring frequently enough to indicate good drainage
 There are no wet places or stagnant
 water. The whole land is covered
 with light growth of pine and oak
 Years ago the sawmills came into
 these woods and took out the largest
 timber, but ill the meantime the trees have had opportunity to put o:l
 growth, and it is time to cut the woods again. But the most of this
 land is being developed, or is avail
 able for development into farms.
 When man goes in to clear him, self home in these cut-over pine
 lands he selects a site for his house near the public road and leaves for shade few of the graceful pines or shady oaks as ornaments for his premises and then sets to work tc clear his fields. If he does not wan, to do this himself, he can get such land cleared for from $3 to $5 an acre. It is no such task as removing the timber from the bottom lands. Ii does not take long, nor does it take much capital to get the farm ready 'or operation. With timber all around him and the big lumber mills only z ew miles away, it is net expensive 0 provide building material. The fact is that man can build a yer! attractive home here with about the same amount of money that he would have to invest to provide calf shed "up north"
 One of the first places that we stopped on this drive ccuntryward was at the home of W. T. Simpson who has converted a bit of this level woodland into as pretty countr, place as one would want to see. Mr Simpson is referred to as the Straw berry Man" He had shown some ol his fruit at an exposition some time before and it occasioned a great dea,
 of comment. People generally didn'1
 know that such berries could bt grown in the flat woods around Pins Bluff. On this 21-aere farm NJ Simpson has six acres of berries from which he gathered 200 crates to the acre. selling his crop for $2 {
 crate. He laised 415 bushels of swee
 potatoes on the same kind of land ant sold them for $i bushel. Mir. Simp son says that there is a good marke in Pine Bluff for anything that he hal to sell, and that his land will pro duce profitably anything he would want to plant. He speaks especial, of the fine grass and plentiful water which ,alxac cfnnk-raisinc Q ond dairy