S T E A Q HI G T U HA L. 0H R N & L
2
"PEOGSESS AND IMPEOVEHENT."
North Carolina Forever !
niCIIARD T. I'CLOHUM,
COSDUCTIKO EDITOR AND PUBLISHES.
EDWABD W. POU, CLAUDE B. DEHS05,
AS80CIATE EDITORS. W
JAMES R. THKSPEN, Tabbobq, N.. C,
' Editor Department of Agriculture.
EEGl'LAB CONTEIBITOES it BVUK SECTION f the SOUTH.
omolal Orttan of the Slate drange.
y Serotarlns o( Subordinate Oranges are fully author
4ed to solicit, receive and receipt fur sulucrlptlons to the
tTATE AGBICl'LTTBAL J0VBNAL. . . , : .
jff h. J. CORBEI.L, ESQ,., of Raleigh, Is our only regu
larly authorUed Travelling Agent.
W.J.WOODWARD, ESQ ; of the New' York ftmlh
la fully authorised to make contracts ror the Statb Auki-
Cl'LTDBAl. JoCBNAl..
Receipt by others than those named above, except
the tklUurUU Corp and persons thowhtg their enmmlstiont,
will not oe oonsuiereo. vaua.
RALEIGH, THURSDAY, i OrlE 4, 1874.
FORTH CAROLINA AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.
1-4TII ANNUAL FA I III'.;
' - " .
RALEIGH, OCT. 10th to OCT. 17th, 1874.
CfScsfs sr.d Executive Committee : '
president:
T. M HOLT. Haw River, North CarOllua.
vici-RKSiDENrs (state at large):
Co1 3. M. Heck, KulelRh. . lion. J. W. Norwoed, Hilla-G-v
T K. Caldwell, burke,. boro.
Mai .1 A. Euitrlbard, New Hon. W. 8. Battle, Tarboro,
Hanover, Dr. p. Mills; Cabarrus.
' PERMANENT VICE-PREBmESTS I
Hod K P Battle, Wake, Hon. R. H. Smith, HaliluX, .
Capt Juo. 8. Daucj, Edireeombc. t-
VICE-P.RESiriENTS (CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS)
1st District. ttb District.
James A. Leak, Anion.
7tb District.
. 3. Fiencb, Newllanorcr, E. Beloj'Forsythe,
W. A. Fuison, Sampson. M. L. Holmes, Rowan.
4tn Ulslrict. oiuKisinci.
Hon. J. C. Gorman, Wake, 8. C. Sheltou, Buncombe, ,
B. A. Capcbart, Granville. T. G. Walton, Burke".
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE:
Dr. W. J. Hawkins, Warren, Dr. G. W. Blacknall,1 Wake,
. . I. n n . . , .1' W !' n. V.Iau fl.lllMj
ui'U. x. r. ,.v, . ... - - -' t - i
John G. Williams, " - -L. C. Jones, Cumberland,
Col. I. J..oung, Granville,. J. P. Prairie, Wake, .
W. G. Unchurch, Wake, A. Pofw, New Hanover,
Cxil. Jos. J. Erwin, Burke, 1.. W. Humphrey, Wajne,
Hon. W. A. Smith, JoIinstou.N. b. Harp, Wake,
Col. 8. .L. Fremont, Ntw. Col. Wm. Johnston, Mccklen
Hanover, tmrg,
Capt. W. H.Green, Alamance, W. F. Askew, Wl;e,
Capt. A. B. Andrews, Wake, John 0. Blake, '
Len H. Adams, " A. Creech, "
Jordan Stone, " W.J. Hicks, "
W. C.Stronacu, Wake.
. TREASURER :
P. A. Wllcy,'(i. officio Member of the Executive Com
mittee,) Kaleigb.,
' . SECRETARY :,
R. T. Fulg'auro, (ex officio Member of the Executive Com-
mlttee,) Raleigh.
OFFICIAL.
R. T. F0LOHCM, Sec'y.
"E. C. Davidson mm announced himself
an independent farmers candidate-jor Con
gress in the Sixth .Histrict."' Raleigh News,
May 30tb.
We make no complaint no criticism of
the conduct of a cit;zen , of tbe (th District
who has announced himself willing to accept
the suffrages of his people and to represent
them in Congress. He has a perfect right to
offer to serve them, and , they, of course, to
elect him if they choose so to io. And if in
the opinion of a majority of the people of his
district he is' the fittest man in it to take care
of their interests in Congress, they will doubt
less assign him to the Jfosition.
Bet we suppose that the E. C. Davidson re-.
fcrred to above, is the Steward of the State
Grange. And we are obliged to infer, from
his course in announcing himself as the "far
mers' candidate" for Congress, that he it ask
ing for, And presuming upon, the support of
his brother Patrons of Husbandry, not be
cause of his peculiar fitness for a seat in Con
gress, bnt, mainly, because he is a Patron f
.Husbandry. If he is thus seeking the sup
port and influence of the Granges of his Dis
trict, then we enter our earnest and emphatic
protest against his action, and call upon the
members of our Order to rebnke his preten
sion by ignoring altogether his candidacy. .
"And this we do entertaining; the kindest
feelings personally to the Worthy Steward.
The National Grange, at its recent session,
in St Louis, issued a manifesto of the paf poses !
of the Order so distinct and unexceptionable
as to call out expressions of approval and ad
miration from everparty and every (ptefest
in the nation. One of the m est satisfactory
declarations in that manifesto was theollow
ing: : V
"Fifth We emphatically and sineeSr.aS-
sert the ott-repeated truth taught in fiftr or
ganic law tnat tue lirange, nauonai, ohp
Subordinate, is not a political or pany organi
zation. No Grange, if true to iu obligation,
can discuss political or religious questions, nor
call political conventions, nor nominate can
didates, or even disenss their merits in its
meetings." .; . .
What a pitiful evasion of thispledge will
be our action if we allow members, and officers
of onr Order to solicit and obtain the Totes of
Patrons solely on the gronnd of Granjje f ra
ternitv ! . , ' . r
Segregated as we arc by onr conditions of
residence and occupation we nave jotinjea a
Kotmn..! r.-r-ttve Union frir our inTfTec-
tnai and social elevation, and for our riWtdal
protection from certain pecuniary burofHfithat
we think the commercial world lias unjustly
and lnnecessarily laid npoii ue. . These impo
sitions, we think, have "beenherctotore sue'
cessfully fastened in our backs by certain se
crets of the trade. To rid ourselves ot them
effectually we are compelled to have onr se
crets. These secrets are justly the property
of onr e-rand co-partnership. We exclude
from our deliberations and from onr Order all
wlio are not interested in agriculture. Vft
make no apology for this exclusion. We say
we are attending'simpty to our own business
in our Order and are not attacking o4iuer
not passing any judgmont on anyrilJnts of
outaiaoro -But -rrhnt Womes 01 WIS iriumjiu-
ant vindication of onr right to exclusiyeness
and secrecy if, with doors closed to our neigh
bors engaged in other avocations, we Select
officers to make, interpret and execate laws
for tbcm as well as ourselves! Our exclusion
of them then becomes tyranny our secrecy
then becomes conspiracy.
No! let our noble Order keep entirely aloof
from all eolitical contests, avowed or dissem
"hind. Its wromises are a new evangel to the
tillers of the soil. They are to-day, elated
with hope of bletsings fast ripening fo frui-
tion. But the honr the Urange is recognizee.
itii.al nrgftmizjfctww, itllWUly7g
i.iis inisiiou not mniieo
Since the foregoing was put in type, we
have received the following note from Mr.
Davidson. We are glad that Mr. Davidson
resigns his pflicestn the Grange. , We think,
however, it he will persist in running -as the
"farmers' candidate" he ought to withdraw
from the Grange-altogether, not-remaining
even a private member of the Order : "
Capt. Ji. T. Fulghum : '
Dear Sir: You will-please give notice in
the Statb Aoriocltibai. Journal of my res
ignation of the offices, of Steward and State
Deputy in the Sia'd Grange, P. ot H., of
North Carolina. M
Your most rwp'y and fraternallyjt
E. C. Davidson.
Editorial Correpondonce, '
; WiilMi.vuTOK, N. C.,- May 27, 1874.
Dear.Jovrxal : I' send you some notes
of a brief visit to tlii. - plnce :. Jtunning
down by the Chatham Road and the West
ern R. R., we reached Fa yetteville in the
evening, about 8:30. .'
Kan ford, at the junction of the roads, is a
thriving little village, and ought to grow to
considerable size. Marks of improvement
were to be seen at most of the other stations
also.' We found the ancient town of Fay
etteville also looking better than at the date
of our last visit a year ago. Among others,
the elegant Lilly building hud been erected.
Rebuilding is goingon at several points. Our
party was comfortably entertained at Over
baugh's and drove to the steamer early the
next morning. - ' fc -
Passing through the falling houses and.
deserted gardens of Campbellton, i seemed
to us that the artist might find herti a scene,
which4 if sad jn some respects, was exceed
ingly picturesque, and well worthy of, the
pencil. Tlie Cape Fear is crossoa here by
one of the most substantial structures for a
private bridge that we have evorscen. Four
steamers lay at the landing. 3o'e took pns-
sage on the, Wave, Capt. W A.. Robinson,
and , were soon gliding- dwn the lovely
stream. ;
Green to the water's ed'ft, with oyerhaiig
ing foliage, in nature's nfld profusion and
endless .variety, the rapitfchangcs at the fre
quent bends of the siearn, were . kaliedo-
ecopic in beauty, Thecool. breeze was laden
with the perfume of the .wild grape, now
and then a kalmiailung out ite graceful
bloom, all along the superb deciduos cypress
of the South, (Taxodium,) stood sentinel-nte,
arrayed in the most weird and striking pan
oply of green and gray, the pendent masses
ef gray moss adding greatly to tne Deauiy oi
Ibe fresh green leaves, so fringe-like and
feftWut. Near the entrance of Black Kjv
r PiWds the noblest Magnolia Grandiflora
wJtufve ever seen. It was apparently four or
five feet in diameter, through the trunk. In
full bloom as it stood, it might well . deserve
the title "Queen of the Forest "
At this season, it is a. luxury to make the
river trip. The motion of the boat creak a
pleasant breeze, and ' with good company,
and the day's journey before, one, we knew
ho better place to woo the dokefar wmte.
We haiUbo clergy and finance; and the
school rbom,and the work day world represent
Tand, need Isajvtlieornnipresentinsurarice
man, with bis pleasing yolumy for instruct
ive reading yclept the Monitor? TTierewas
an " Octogenarian with us, with a memory
rich in anecdotes and incidents of the lives
of our best and greatest Carolinians, and we
drew freely from ' his rich stores of expe
rience. It is a pity the bright and shining
wit of the ancient fathers of the bar should
be lost for the want of some faithful Boswell.
The Cape Fear is believed to be the best
freight river in the South; and is the most
constant in the supply of water . It usually
suffers from low water only from September
to November. The freight down the river
is mainly naval stores, and general merchan
dize up from Wilmington. It is curious to
see how deftly the negroes manage the long
trais of barrels of turpentine, down the
steep banks leading , to the landings. The
freights up are. comparatively light, but up
on inquiry, we do not learn that the connec
tion at Sanford between the R. & Augusta
Air -Line, and the Coal Fields R. R. has in
jured the river trade to a great extent, nor
will it, unless a lower schedule' of freight is
adopted, to the' connection at Norfolk. -
Thq,navigation interests on the river arc
owned by the Express Steamboat Co. and
the Cape Fear Steamboat Co. They bought
tha c,iff;k from the State some years ago. As
'') ' miV if I fif tnopifJip thiTrYrr
navigable, tho vessels of oth,cr parties pay
toll, to defray a proportionate share..
The light draught of tho steamers would
surprise many. xxaaea down as w,as onr
boat, the Wnve, she only drew twenty-four
inches of water. At high water, the boats go
jip readilyiweuty-five niiJea- above Fayettf-
yille, to A verasboro , for cotton . atid : naval
stores. The scenery of that portion of the
river is said to be very beautiful ; the bottom
in rocky, and the course very straight.
Approaching the end of our journey, we
see the desolate rice fields, spreading far and
wide, in utter loneliness, the banks broken
down, tho weeds rnnning riot, the busy work-
eu all gone.
Tho rice field is tke scar yet left of the
wounds of war. No industry of tho South
was so vital'y struck. Unlike the production
of corn, wheat, or cotton, rice culture demands
an organization of acclimated labor, that shall
be available throughout the year, and at any
moment. It almost seeniB to demand, if not
slave labor, still a perfection of control equal
in its results to the requisitions of an absolute
master. This teems hard, but will be at once
understood : if we notice but a fact or two.
Suppose a northeast storm in the night and
the banks break, how1 long will it do to wait
for help to drive back the water t Or imagine
the hands going off in a body just as hoeing
is needed. What shall be done when the
birds come? They must be kept off, whoth-
er it be Sunday or any other day and for
weeks too. . .
The labor is performed among ditches nnder
a tropical sun ; it is hard atd unremitting,
and the acclimated race has scattered. . The
rice field negro- was a peculiar type, distinct
from all others. His very 'language was pecu
liar! his broken and singular expressions wonld
hardly.be understood by the African of the
highlands., ; Yet he was happy enough he
throve where a northern negro would have
died in a few weeks. Scarcity was unknown
to him-r-the very bounty of the fields and
woods, the streams around were sufficient well
nigh. The very ditches by which he labored,
gave him delicious turtle, and fish, in abund
ance. Yams grew almost abubdantly, and
his mabter's hog was his own. 1 Every year
this branch of labor added wealth to the Cape
Fear ; mills were, going np for cleaning it at
home, and prosperity smiled on every hand,
when the arresting hand of war, put a stop to
it all. The negro will not work in the rice
field ditch now, not he.' Of a happy family
we knew, where once a hundred were gathered
together, living in peace, and harmony, and
content, with religions services near, with a
Sunday school at the master's house, for the
children, with care and watching, assiduous
nursing and Bible leading for the sick, now
more than one-half fill untimely and wretched
graves around Newbern and Wilmington, a
few gain a living by crime, a few lie in the
penitentiary, a few gain a precarious living
on the outskirts of the towns, and a very few
exceptional cases still band together; and
makes a little rice, in small plots, as best they
can. The rice field negro is to be pitied more
than any of hi race. It may be thatthe China
man inny yet be available to restore the culti
vation of rice in that large. And valuable sec
tion of the State so well adapted to it.
' Bnt we have wandered away too far. Our
boat sweeps through the draw of the splendid
jail road " tridget a strnfliure of wonderful
strength combined with lightness and - grai
It is said it was necessary to go down seventy,
feet to find a solid foundation. The great
swinging gate is moved by a single person,
through its delicate balancing, and by appro
priate machinery. The well known works of
the justly celebrated Navasso Gnano Compa
ny aro in sight on the right as we glide down
to Point Peter and over to our resting place.
What a change across the river, on the
Brunswick side, as compared with the night
we saw it last, lit np by the flames of the
burning Navy Yard, and close at hand, the
gleaming bayonets of the Federal army, while
on our side we were bidding adien to beloved
friends, and making our departure with due
dignity. ' - ' '
. Here comes a little puffing tug, towing a
special institution of Wilmington, a barge
fitted for excursion parties. They have been
tot black fish, and are returning triumphant.
We round her very handsomely, and pas3 in
to onr wharf. Ye lovers of pleasure, who suf
fer the res angustue domi, think of a trip ot a
hundred and twenty miles, with two ot the
most symptnons-meals . we have seen, on any
boats in the conntry included, for four dollars.
the South.
Editor of the State Agricultural Journal ;
I have seen in a public journal an abstract
of the proceedings of the National Agricultu
ral Congress, -which assembled recently at At
lanta, in which it is stated "that a resolution
was nnanimonsly-adoptedfdecTaring it to be
the duty of the government of the United
States "to improve the rivers of tho , interior,
and connect thena with the ocean by artificial
water ways, giving the Mississippi valley con
tinuous water transit to the seaboard."
The proceedings of this Agricultural Con
gress, representing different sections of the
conntry, and composed of able men, mn6t nec
essarily Command attention and ret pec t. They
are not, however, above' respectful criticism.
I propose to examine briefly the question
whether the construction ot canals connecting
the. waters of our Southern Atlantic rivers
with those of the Mississippi, is calculated to
benefit the producer ot the South. ' "
'. It is claimed by their advocates that these
artificial ways will enable the producer pf the
West to pour out upon the Sonth a vast abun
dance of corn, flour, bacon,' pork, lard, &c., at
a reduced expense. Conceding this, the ques
tion is, how will this condition of things affect
the producers of the South t . Upon the class
who still produce grain and meat for market,
the effect of the competition with the Western T
producer, will evidently )e, injurious. But
this is comparative! ja small class. The :
great body of onr farmers and --planters no .
longer produce . a surplus of , these
things, bat on the contrary, consume all they .
produce at home, and are parch asers of West
ern provisions, to supply the deficit in home
production. Suppose that by means of artifi
cial water ways, grain and meat from; the
northwest can be laid down at our doors at -lower
figures than they nowcommand cheap
er in' general, than we can produce them on ,
our light lands with free colored labor, what i
will follow ? In that event, we may reasona
bly expect that the production of provisions
in the; Sonth will rapidly fall off. ; Only tho ; ,
strongest soils will then be planted irigrain ;'r
and theqnestion how to employ the land and .
labor heretofore, devoted to this purpose, will V
press ppon the planters for solution.. It would. ,
result ;itf the , production of cotton., Inri-
stead, of fopr million bales, we should rapidly ;
run up to five millions, perhaps 'six .million