The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1917-08-01

Considering the amount of freight
that is received from the twenty-five
to thirty bushels of wheat per acre
raised on the best wheat land in the
country with this enormous freight
on the perishable products of truck
ers we can get some idea as to what
this traffic means to the railroads of
the South and to their %cnnecting
lines in the North and West.
Every year sees a rapid increase
in this market garden work of the
South in supplying the North and
West with foodstuffs. Upon this
section the North and West are Who'll
ly dependent through the winter and
early spring for fresh foodstuffs, and
were it not for the South's activity
in producing vegetables there would
be a famine in the eastern and west
ern markets for cabbage, potatoes,
onions, berries, beans, peas and
many other things which are supplied
to them by the South in such album
dance.
One can scarcely pick up a South
ern paper from any of the truck of
food-growing regions of that section
without being struck with the amount
of freight traffic in these food pro-
ducts.
The Charleston district of South
Carolina reports having sent North
this year over 100000 worth of
white potatoes, while the Hastings
district of Florida, which has be-
come one of the most noted potato
growing regions of the country, sent
out about an equal amount this year,
or perhaps more, and Virginia sent
out $40, 900, 900 worth. All the way
down to Texas and Arkansas these
centers of food-prodcing activities
have been steadily developing during
the last ten to fifteen years, and the
nation is annually becoming more
and more dependent upon the South
for foodstuffs.
To these shipments of fruits and
vegetables there should be added
many millions of dollars of canned
fruits and vegetables and other mil
lions for the oysters and fish shipped
from the South to the North and
West.
In 1914 the value of the South's
canned fruits and vegetables amount
ed to over $22,OO0,O 900, of which
Maryland's share was S17,500,00e.
A large proportion of this great out
put in Maryland and some of that
in other Southern States went North
and West.
The shipment of canned oysters
from the South amounted in the
Census year 1914 to $1,3O5,000. To
this should be added canned crab
meat and shrimp. Millions of dol
lars worth or raw oysters are ship
ped West and North, and also fish,
especially to the West, from all lead
ing points along the South Atlantic
Coast from the Chesapeake Bay to
Texas. Full trainloads of oysters 60
out from Baltimore daily during the
rush season, and from many South
ern ports from Norfolk to New Or
leans vast quantities of oysters and
fish are daily shipped.
There are also shipped OF of the
South, especially from Tennessee,
Kentucky, and Texas, some millions
of dollars worth of turkeys and
chickens, There are points in the
South where the handling of this
business has become an industry of
great extent, furnishing food to
people throughout the country.
Indeed, when we begin to figure
on the various foodstuffs which the
South provides for the rest of the
country we are amazed at the mag
nitude of the industry, and neces-
sarily are inclined to wonder what
the West and the North would do for
fruits and vegetables, for oysters
and fish and other food products if
it were not for the abundant sup
plies sent out by the South. Count
ing the value of vegetables, fruits,
fish and oysters shipped by the
South to the North and West, it is
entirely safe to estimate the total at
largely over 5000, 100000.