Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-02-07
Live Stock Is Keystone Of
Conspicuous Success
Achieved on MiIIhaven ES-
tate of E. B. Conner
BY RALPH SMITH

Of which 800 are in Burke and 49,
| 200 are in Screven, about sixty miles
below Augusta, in the valley of the
Savannah river. About half the
estate is in cultivation; the remainder
is in timber and pasturage.
The magnitude of the place is i'm
pressive, likewise it's completeness,
but neither is half SO much so as
that it is being operated by Mr..
Conner under boil weevil conditions
without the loss Of a dollar. This
| condition obtains because cotton is
the surplus, and not the sole crop
of the plantation.
Sugar, salt, rice, coffee and tea
are the only commodities required
at Millhaven that are not the prod
uct of it's soil. AS a matter of fact,
| the demand for these, excepting only
salt and possibly sugar, is limited.
| With the usual far-sightedness and
sagacity that has marked his sue
cessful business career, Mr.. Conner
has seen to it that his enormous
estate is self-supporting That was
primary consideration when he
acquired the property and that has
| been a cardinal virtue of it's opera
| ton.
Within the miles and miles of
fence that enclose Millhaven there
are upwards Of 5000 head of cattle
and stock-steers, COWS, goats and
hogs. There are no sheep on the
place, but Mr.. Conner expects to be-
| gin breeding them this year.
Live Stock Keystone of Success
Live stock and cattle are, in fact,
! the keystone of the successful arch
| that supports Millhaven and makes
it a paying proposition for MIR. Com
err. 1t is the contention of authorl-
ties that the profitable production
of cattle and live stock represents
the last word in farm Investigation.
| Experience at Millhaven has Vind1-
Gated the soundness Of the conten-
ton. Beef cattle and hogs are pro-
duced profitably on the estate chief
ly because all Of the feed stuff re-
quired for their keep is raised on
the plantation.
Mr.. Conner has not sought to make
his cash returns from cotton pro-
vide funds with which to purchase
feed for his beef cattle, hogs and
goats. He has sought and has sue
| ceeded in producing at Millhaven a
super-abundance of feedstuff for his
cattle, hogs and goats. Indeed, corn,
hay and oats are produced at Mill
| haven in such quantity that it has
| been possible to market thousands
Of bushels and have left in the
barns, cribs and silos more than
enough for home consumption.
1 visited Millhaven by appoint
ment, driving from Augusta. Mr..
Conner was engaged in a'meeting of
the directors of the Bibb Manufac-
turing company, of whose board he
| is chairman. The directors meet
at Millhaven because of Mr.. Corners
i'll health. He is much better than
few months ago, and is now up
and about, but hardly equal to a
railroad trip, so the board meets
| regularly at Millhaven.
Mr.. Conner, DR., Manager
The Conner residence is one of the
prettiest in the state. 1t is situated
near the heart of the immense es-
tate, overlooking Brian creek, con-
Venient to the railroad station of the
Savannah and Atlanta, running be-
tween Savannah and Camak. The
| dwelling contains every modern con-
venience, and it's beautiful setting
makes it one of the most attractive
homes of the state.
The management Of N1illhaven is
vested in Frank w. Conner, a
nephew Of it's owner. Mr.. Conner,
Jr., is the general superintendent in
fact as we'll as name. He is a de-
lightful gentleman. who feels a deep
Il @I0yN
ment of Millhaven. He has the same
fOndneSs for cattle and live stock
as his uncle, who spent many wears
as a ranchman in Texas.
What my nephew tells you about
Millhaven l indorse,' said Mr..
Conner. ''FIe knows the place and
knows it we'll"
Driving over the immense estate,
Mr.. Conner, Jr., told me many things.
He began with cotton.
Texas and Georgia Different
"Growing cotton in Texas and
growing cotton in Georgia under
boil Weevil conditions. are entirely
different things" he began. eli
matte conditions have everything to
do with the boil weevil, and climatic
conditions in Georgia and Texas are
dissimilar. 1t usually is hot and dry
in Texas durin.; the period in which
we are getting our heavy rains.
Cotton is :. gamble today, as /
see it. The boil weevil has made
it SO. There is no way to check the
ravages of tn; weevil after it starts
flying. That has been my observa-
ton at Millhaven, and we certainly
have hade experience on this place.
Much is said and written about
calcium arsenate and other poisOns.
None of them is effective once the
weevil starts flying. The best thing
we have ever had at Millhaven was
a boll-weevil catcher, patented de
vice, drawn by a mule. 1t consists
of a pan, partly filled with kerosene,
and a fan propelled by the move
ment of the mule. We used man.
of these machines on the estate with
good results. The fans cleared the
cotton of thousands of weevils.
But even with the machine and
other things, it is absolutely neces-
sary to make your crop Of cotton
before the migratory season for t
weevil sets in in August. 1t is be-
cause we recC gnize the Importance
of this that we plant as early as
possible-the last of March or the
first of April.
vi COuISeJ early painting 1dS Up
drawbacks and dangers. The
weather may ruin US, but we usual
ly SOW plenty Of seed, so that if sOmt
of the cotton is killed we still have
an abundance left for a crop.
"As a rule, II normal times, we
raise from one to one and one-fourth
bales of cotton to the acre at Mill
haven. Last year, however, our pro-
duction was reduced t oabout one
third bale to the acre, and this, de-
pite the fact that we curtailed our
acreage.
I'VE are increasing our acreage in
Continued on Page 6, Column p