The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1916-02-09
Many Desert Tobacco For
Easier Crop. .
A PREPAREDNESS MOVEMENT
Is Bringing Revival To a Very
Profitable Industry Long
Neglected.
HEMP NEEDS NO "sOIL REST

, winchester, n.y., FeD. ken
lucky and especially the Bluegrass:
section, will grow an enormous
amount of hemp this season, chiefly
because with the great preparedness
! movement, comes the construction
og battleships of every description,
and as hemp is one of the necessi-
ties in the construction of water
tight compartments, Uncle Sam will
likely be in the market soon for as
much as can be raised in this State.
the greatest hemp growing section
of the world.
Up until last year hemp sold for
IS and $6 per hundred, but with the
scarcity of help, growers gradually
drifted away from the crop, and
only about 1000 acres were grown
in this county, one of the biggest
hemp growing counties in the State.
| To-day hemp is bringing from
| $11.5O up, over 500 acres in this
county being sold at this figure last
week, being purchased by E. F.
Spears & Sons, of Paris, KY, firm
that holds big Government con-
tract.
Hundreds of acres of tobacco land
will be put in hemp this year, in fact
every seed that can be procured will
be planted. Already seed is bring
ing an enormous price and in few
days there will be none to be had at
any figure. Big tobacco growers are
blowing for hemp land, and the larg-
est acreage in the history Of thu
county will be seen this year. Many
have contracted for their 1916 out
put at from IS to SO, but the
wise" ones say they will hold.
If the preparedness program is
carried out by President Wilson, it |
is safe to say that hemp will soar
sky high in price. For the person |
whose mind invents a successful
hemp break, a fortune is awaiting. |
Although many machines have been
tried out, none so far have been able |!
to break the stalk, and separate the |
heads from the fiber as successfully |
as the Southern niger" with the |
hand break.
When the Burley Tobacco Society |
was at its height of prosperity it |
never witnessed as busy times among |
its members as exist at present |
among the farmers who are rushing |
back to the hemp industry with the
big advance in price. If hemp could |
command from SO up each year,
there would be practically no tobac-
co grown in the Bluegrass in the flu
ture, tobacco men say. Hemp can
be grown on the same ground year
after year for at least ten years, and |
the fertility of the soil is not injur-
ed in the least, where one year with |
tobacco generally calls for a seasons
rest, if a good crop of the weed is
to follow.
If the Burley district, which is the
chief hemp district of the country,
would stop growing tobacco, the big |
manufacturers would be put out of |
business, or else be compelled to |
boost the price up so high that it
would start the growers. back to
tobacco again. But, as the hemp |
crop is more profitable at, a figure
from So up, and helps the land in
stead of retarding it, like tobacco, 1t |
would be hard thing to get the |
growers back to the tobacco indus |
try, once they had established hemp
growing.
Hemp must take the place of the !
sisal which. is growing in Yucatan |
and receipts of which have fallen off |
in the last few years to practically
nothing in this country. 1t is claim
ed that hemp will supply all the
binder Irvine this year. and that on
account of the scarcity of sisal, 4. |
will be used in the grain fields of
the country. With the Government
already clamoring for the hemp out
put, and also demand for II by the
Irvine mills and other manufactur-
ers. 1t is safe to say that the Blue
grass section of Kentucky will draw
away from the tobacco industry for
a few years anyway, and cultivate
this important commodity.
Holds IA Half Million Pounds.
Stanford. KY, Feb. Josh b.
Jones. farmer. living near Stan