The Sunday Oregonian., June 03, 1917, SECTION FIVE, Page 3, Image 67

Uncle
MILLIONS OF
&y FRANK G.
(Copyrtgrht, 1917. by Frank G. Carpen
ter )
N:
EW ORLEANS. La. A biff part
of our food for the future
will come from the low. wet
lands along the Mexican Gulf. I mo
tored this morning through a 7000-acre
plantation, which has risen from the
bed of a swamp. This great farm is
within five miles of New Orleans and
In the very heart of the Mississippi
delta. Five years ag-o it was covered
with water, and it adjoins a territory
which is more dreary than the darkest
parts of the Dismal Swamp, of Vir
ginia. On one side of it Is Lake Pont
chartrain. and on another are forests
of cypress rising out of marshes and
swamps. Txiday there are still a hun
dred acres of the original swamp on
the property, and this has been pre
served to show the miracle made pos
sible by pumping and draining the
flooded lands of the delta. This land
Is covered with trees and the water
extends far up their trunks.
The remainder of the tract is as dry
s-s a bone. The water, the marsh and
the trees have all disappeared, and the
eoil is so smooth that it crumbles to
dust In your hand. There is hardly a
stone or pebble in the whole 7000 acres,
and its fertility Is such that it sur
passes that of the valleys of the Meso
potamia, the Nile or the Ganges. The
tract has been cut up into small farms,
and tens of thousands of orange trees
are growing upon it. Between the rows,
crops of various kinds have been plant
ed, and an army of negroes and whites
la working the fields.
My visit to this farm was to investi
gate the potential bread basket that
Uncle Sara has way down here at the
mouth of the Mississippi. Our war
with the Germans and the high prices
f grain and meat demand that the
food lands of the United States be in
creased. Before the troubles in Eu
rope began we were already importing
corn and beef from Argentina and mut
ton from Australia. Our population has
been growing faster than our food sup
ply, and the great American stomach
had already surpassed in size the ma
terials needed to fill it. With the new
immigration from Europe at the close
of the war, the demand will be larger
than ever, and It is absolutely neces
sary that we increase our agricultural
empire to the fullest extent.
We are doing something toward this
by reclaiming the dry lands of the
West, but their possibilities are noth
ing in comparison with the potential
food wealth now lying in the swamps
of the South,' and especially in the Mis
sissippi delta
According to the scientists of the
geological survey, there are in the
neighborhood of 80,000,000 acres of
good land in the United States which
Is more or less covered with water.
J1 . "H S
JYodem Poultry Culture
Every year thousands of baby
chickens are lost from the ef
fects of a disease known as
white diarrhea. From this cause
alone the financial loss is so
great that ,it has crippled many
chances for success in the poul
try industry.
For many years scientific poul
try husbandmen have been study
ing the cause of this trouble In
chicks, and have arrived at vari
ous conclusions, but they all
agree that it is a very destruc
tive condition to which baby
chicks are susceptible and, where
it becomes prevalent, it is very
difficult to eradicate.
BY M. L. CHAPMAN, -Judge,
Breeder arid Writer.
Mr ANY observers are firm in their
belief that white diarrhea is
transmitted from a hen which
has previously had the disease and that
the germs, lurking in her system until
the laying period, are transmitted by
the eggs. By this theory the chick is
hatched with the disease, and must be
put under treatment immediately if
fatal results are to be prevented. Other
authorities contend that the disease is
a result of debility in the breeding
stock: improper care of eggs intended
for hatching; improper methods of in
cubating or brooding: chilling, over
heating, or improper feeding methods;
Insanitary, poorly ventilated and filthy
quarters; musty or sour feed and many
other causes of like nature.
From the standpoint of a practical
- poultryman it is freely admitted that it
is possible that chicks may be adverse
ly affected by any or all of these con
ditions and. as a result, may exhibit
symptoms of white diarrhea in various
stages of intensity. Any of the above
conditions may so weaken or so de
bilitate the chicks that they cannot
successfully withstand the infection of
germs which would lead to a condition
of diarrhea. -
Disease Is Being Eradicated.
It is some satisfaction to know the
cause of a disease and the manner in
which it is transmitted, but after all
what the poultryman most desires is
instruction as to ways and means for
its recognition, prevention and cure.
From the fact that the disease has
not spread throughout the country, and
that it is being stamped out on most
farms, to a great extent, indicates that
it is possible to guard against it.
Where the disease is transmitted
through the female it is very difficult
to stamp out on account of the uncer
tainty of detecting the particular . hen
which is affected. Where the disease
is traced to any of the other causes
mentioned above it Is a matter which
is in the hands of the operator.
Low vitality of the breeding stock,
incorrect methods of incubation, and
irooding have mora to do with, the
Sam's
ACRES OF RICH FOOD LANDS
CARPENTER.
This, at the lowest calculation, repre
senths a country bigger than Great
Britain and Ireland. It is equal to the
three etates of Indiana. Illinois and
Ohio, and it is ten times as big as that
little garden patch which we know as
Holland. The soil of our swamps is
also ten times as rich as that of the
Netherlands. Nevertheless, Holland is
now feeding almost six million people,
and at the same ratio our swamps could
feed 60 millions, or 10 millions more
than half of all the people In the
country today.
A great part of these swamps lie in
the South, and vast drainage projects
are, under way to reclaim them. I know
of one little tract in North Carolina.
A few years ago it was celebrated as
the largest lake of that state. Its name
was Lake Mattamuekeet. It covered
50,000 acres, and almost every part of
it had water deep enough to have
drowned the Cardiff Giant if stood up
right within it. Today a colony on
that land has the title of New Holland.
The tract has been divided up into
farms, and one of the biggest pumping
stations of the world keeps it as dry
as is needed for cotton, tobacco and
corn. The surplus water is carried off
into the Atlantic Ocean tbfough Pam
lico Sound.
Other big drainage projects are go
ing on in North Carolina, South Caro
lina and Florida. The lower part of
Florida, which ie 300 miles long and
almost as big as Indiana, is made up
of lowlands, covered with water. These
are being drained by private parties
and by the state. The Everglades, con
taining something like 4.000,000 acres,
are a drowned prairie of wonderful
fertility. They are being drained by
the state, and they will eventually be
turned into a semi-tropical garden
patch for feeding the North.
More important than all. however,
are the swamp lands of the Mississippi
Valley, which contain altogether some
thing like 20,000,000 acres of the rich
est soil upon earth. I am told there are
nearly 10,000,000 acres in Southern
Lousiana alone, and that vast tracts,
easily reclalmable. lie in Mississippi
and the other, etates farther north.
Under these swamps is the cream of
the soil of the United States. The Mis-
8issippi-Mlssouri. the longest river of
the world, is one of the greatest rob
bers on earth. For countless ages,
year after year, It has been tearing
down and carrying away ttie soil of the
vast Mississippi Basin and dropping it
down here on the ancient bed of the
sea. The geologists say that the Gulf
of Mexico once extended northward to
the mouth of the Ohio, and that all
the land between there and New Or
leans has been built up by the earth
washings brought down by the river.
Even now the stream carries on the
average something like 400,000,000 tons
every year. From the Missouri alone
prevalence of diarrhea in chicks than
any other factor, and if these condi
tions are corrected it only requires In
telligent treatment to get rid of the
"white plague" of chlckdom.
Chicks affected with white diarrhea
exhibit several characteristic symp
toms, but no one individual need neces
sarily exhibit all of them. The group
of symptoms are manifest in a flock
and each may be recognized in differ
ent individuals during- the course of
the disease.
Early Symptoms Useribvd.
The first deaths may occur before the
hen is taken from her nest, the chicks
removed from the incubator or very
shortly thereafter. At this time there
are no manifestations of the disease
or its symptoms, and death is usually
attributed to lack of vitality. The first
symptoms to be observed is a condi
tion of weajcness, the affected chicks
WHITE
OF ALL the varieties of chickens
introduced to the poultry raisers
in the last half century, none has
been presented so nearly perfect as the
White Houdan.
The originator worked on these fowls
for seven or eight years "before any
were offered for exhibition or for sale,
consequently the first exhibit was
striking. White Houdans are equally
as good as the dark variety.
The greatest drawback to the dark
variety as a table fowl has been its
dark pinfeathers. which is entirely
eliminated in the new variety. This
feature alone is sufficient to commend
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TITE SUNDAY
New Bread Basket
ii j r- - fP--w !
Cocrt
comes 120 tons every second, or more
than 10,000,000 cubic yards every day.
Four hundred million tons every
year! The amount is so great that we
cannot comprehend It In figures. If it
were loaded on cars at 50 tons to the
car, it would take 8,000,000 cars to
carry the load, and the train would be
long enough to reach twice around the
earth and almost twice through the
center. If a flume three feet wide and
three feet deep could be built from
the earth to the moon, that trainload
of dirt would be almost enough to fill
the great box to the top, and it might
all come from the silt brought down
by the Mississippi within the space of
12 months.
As I have said, this soil is the
cream of our country. It comes from
80 different states, and from an area
equal to one-third of the Union. The
deposits range in depth up to 2000 or
3000 feet, and on the top of it vegeta
tion has grown and decayed until it is
covered with a layer of humus a foot
or so deep, which contains a maximum
of nitrogen, one of the most costly
kinds of plant food. According to Her
man E. Baer, a soil chemist of the
Illinois University, the soil of Southern
Louisiana has enough plant food to
produce 1000 crops of corn at 50 bushels
to the acre without artificial fertiliza
tion. I have recently traveled over a great
part of this country. In coming from
Memphis to New Orleans on the Illi
nois Central I passed many plantations
of rich black loam which are close to
the swamps, and the soil makes the
best crops of cotton and corn. The
Queen & Crescent Hallway from Bir
mingham to New Orleans goes through
a large area of swamps, and there are
other extensive regions that will have
river and rail transportation when the
land is reclaimed.
I have also come up the Mississippi
from the Gulf of Mexico through the
flood of silt flowing out into the ocean.
The water is as thick as pea soup. The
ocean is muddy for miles before you
reach the mouth of the Mississippi
River, and a little farther up the banks
of the river are covered with gardens
and orange groves. The highlands of
the delta about New Orleans are said
to be more thickly populated than
Holland or Belgium, and the swamps
become listless and huddle together.
They seem to be chilly and do not come
from beneath the hen or the hover. The
hover may be heated above normal
temperature, but still the poor, listless
chicks crowd in an apparent effort to
keep warm. They make little or no
attempt to eat. the wings droop and
the feathers are ruffled.
As the disease progresses the eyes
are closed the greater part of the time
and the little sufferers soon reach a
point where they become indifferent
to everything that goes on about them.
They emit' a planttlve peep, a chirp
or shrill "twitter. As the condition
further progresses the peep becomes
weaker until it Is a mere gasp. There
may - be labored breathing ana
trembling before collapse. Death may
occur at any time during the course
of the disease, depending considerably
upon the cause, but the greatest mor-
HOUDANS.
this new breed to producers of table
poultry for particular markets.
The Houdan is of an old French
breed; it has been well known for cen
turies, and always held in high es
teem a a wonderful layer and table
fowl of superior excellence. It re
mained for an Ingenious fancier to
change its plumage from black and
white -to white, and thus make the
Houdan even more valuable.
White Houdans give good results
either on free range or in limited quar
ters. When full grown the females
weigh 5H to 6H pounds, and males 6V4
to 7hi pounds. They are docile and
easily confined.
WM
OREGONIAN, PORTLAND,
TO BE RECLAIMED FROM SWAMPS
1 yg.y ' ' '1
& 70, OOO 3 77 e.
when reclaimed will undoubtedly sup
port a vast number of people.
The geographers of the geological
survey have already made topographic
maps of a large part of this territory.
They have gone over it section by sec
tion, exploring the swamps on foot, on
horseback and in boats, making their
charts. The charts are peppered with
figures, each of which shows the height
of land or depth of water under the
spot which it marks. They glv every
hill and hollow, and every stream. The
bayous are drawn to a scale, and the
whole district is so shown that the
civil engineers can easily make work
ing plans for its drainage.
This is being done by the National
Government. In addition, the states are
enacting drainage laws to enable their
people to drain the swamps for them
selves. Here In Louisiana the land own
ert of any drainage district can form
an organization and issue bonds to
raise funds for leveling, digging ditches
and building a pumping plant. The
plans must be approved by the state
engineer, and the interest on the bonds
is paid by an annual drainage tax,
which ranges from $2 to S3 per acre.
After the work is completed, the cost of
keeping the land drained is, it is said,
between 50 and 75 cents an acre per
annum. The drainage pumps have to
be operated something like 25 days of
the year, and the land produces so
many crops that the tax Is said to be
nominal.
There are now something like 25
companies at work draining the swamps
not' far from New Orleans. The proj
ects are of various sizes, and they
cover upwards of 500.000 acres. Some
of the tracts are devoted to small
farms, others to orchards and others to
grain, corn and cotton. They are now
wonting on one tract of 16.000 acres,
which is to be given over to ranching
and stockratsing. I am told that many
thousands of acres are involved in the
plans of the companies at work, and
that a large part of the money invested
is that of the bankers and other capi
talists here at New Orleans.
In connection with this subject I
have had a talk with Walter Parker,
the general manager of the New Or
leans Association of Commerce. He
tells me that 6000 acres form the most
economic unit for drainage, and he es-
tallty usually occurs between the fifth
and twentieth days. Practically all of
the deaths occur while the chicks are
under one month of age.
The general appearance of the chick
is one of shrinking of the carcass. The
body Is humped, the legs become
shrunken, the claws long, the beak
long and narrow and the head appears
smaller in size. Within a few hours
there is a whitish discharge, somewhat
resembling plaster of parts. though
often It is streaked with green. The
discharge is usually profuse and there
occurs a condition known as pasting.
Disease Retards Growth.
As a rule chicks which have had a
severe attack of the disease and get
Lice, mites and other pests are
the poultryman's most trouble
some enemies. Vermin and germs
must be consistently fought, es
pecially during warm weather.
Every farm, large or small,
should have its sanitary sched
ule. In next week's article
whitewashes, sprays and disin
fectants are made the subject
matter.
well seldom develop into fully matured
birds, and under no circumstances
should they be kept for breeding stock.
They are sometimes misshapen and
have poor feather development, crow
like heads and are strikingly lacking
in vitality.
In view of recent research made by
experts in poultry husbandry and as a
result of many years of practical ex
perience it seems safe to offer some
suggestions relating to the practical
methods of combating this so-called
"white plagne."
It naturally follows that an hens
suspected of being Infected with the
disease should be reserved for the
butcher and not allowed to become
members of the breeding flock. Only
hens with strong constitutions, excess
of vigor and vitality should be consid
ered. In this connection it is strongly
emphasized that the successful hatch
ing and rearing of chicks depend. In
a large measure, upon the vitality and
vigor of the breeding stock.
Since the development of the chick
during the first six to 10 weeks of its
life is a fair index of its strength and
vigor the watchful poultryman will be
rewarded if these strong chicks are
marked to become candidates for the
breeding flock. All that have any tarnt
of disease should be sent to the butch
er as soon as the laying season is
passed. By this simple means there is
an opportunity of eliminating the dis
eased stock and incidentally build up
a flock founded upon a strong
parentage.
Fifth Eaeonrafca Disease.
Incubators, brooders and all other
appliances used in hatching and rear
ing chicks should be cleaned and dis
infected frequently. . Always bear In
mind that filth Is the hotbed for prop
agating disease.
Remedial measures have practically
narrowed down to preventive treatment
and using every effort to keep the dis
ease from becoming an epidemic. A
favorite practice and one that is meet
ing with universal favor Is that of
feeding Uaa ajaicka sour milk for their
JUNE 3; tfttr.
tlmates that it costs about $35 an acre
to put in levees, canals and pumping
plants. This cannot Include the clear
ing of the land of trees and stumps,
which is no small matter.
Said Mr. Parker: "This region Is de
veloping rapidly through the object lea
son shown by the success of the drain
age worka established in the city of
New Orleans. We find that if we have
levees of proper height and strength
around any district we can put In
pumping plants and lower the water to
six feet or more below the surface of
the earth by pumping it Into lakes and
streams that have their outlet in the
Mexican Gulf. After that, such tracts
are in the same position that New Or
leans is now. Before we Installed our
present drainage system, water was
found within a few inches of the sur
face anywhere in the city. Now the
earth is dry to an excavation of six or
more feet, and we are beginning to
build cellars and basements.
"Moreover, the swampy tracts thus
reclaimed will have wonderful trans
portation facilities. South Louisiana
drains into the gulf through a network
of navigable bayous, rivers and lakes
and we have made navigation canals to
connect this network with the harbor
at New Orleans. In this way every bit
of the new farms has easy access to the
city by boat, and from here by river
and railroad to all parts of the world."
I asked Mr. Parker as to the prices
of land. He replied:
"Swamp land is worth from S5 to $25
per acre, and drained lands can be
bought for from $100 to $300 an acre.
It depends very much on the location
and the surroundings. . This is low. in
comparison with the lands of Egypt
and Holland. In the valley of the Nile
farms bring as much as $750 an acre,
and in Holland from $600 to $1000 Is
paid for good land.
"In Holland the cost of reclamation
Is much greater than here. The dikes
there have to hold back the sea, with
its dally tide of 31 feet. I understand
that 38 per cent of the cultivated lands
of the Dutch kingdom are below the
level of the sea at high tide. On the
basis of the population of the re
claimed lands of Europe, the territory
about New Orleans, if it were drained.
would support a population of 10.000,-
000 to 15,000.000 of people, and on the
first 48 hours after hatching, as much
as they will consume. Along with
the sour milk they are given a feed of
fine oyster shell meal to act as grit.
Where chicks show a disinclination
for feeding on this first meal of sour
milk. It is often given by forcible meth
RECITALS FOR VARIOUS WAR RELIEFS ARE
ATTRACTING ATTENTION IN MUSICAL CIRCLES
(Continued, From First Page.)
kowsky violin concerto was played by
Wassily Besekirsky. the Russian vio
linist. The orchestral numbers were
given with the extraordinary brilliancy
which has marked all Gabrllowitsch's
offerings and included by request a
repetition of the overture to Glinka's
"Russian and Ludmllla," an intermezzo
and the theme and variations from
Tschaikowsky's Suite No. 3 and Rlmsky
Korsakoff's wonderfully colored "Ca
price Espagnol."
John McCormack, whose activities in
the musical world are always of the ut
most Interest, gave a huge benefit con
cert at the Hippodrome for'a relief fund
for the French tuberculous soldiers
and for the fund of relief for Athlone,
Ireland, his birthplace. This concert
was under the patronage of Cardinal
Gibbons. Cardinal Farley and the Due
de Richelieu, and $15,000 was netted
for the two charities. It was a gala
night In every sense, many assisting
to make the evei.t memorable. Among
those Belling programmes and badges
were Cyril and Gwendoline McCormack,
his own little folk, costumed to repre
sent Ireland; Frederick Chllds and
Genevieve Fox. representing America,
while the young Duo de Chaulnes,
whose mother was Theodora Shonts,
and little Paula Prevot well represented
France.
Needless to dwell either on the beau
ties of McCormick's singing or upon
the wild enthusiasm which he aroused.
He took this occasion to introduce a
new martial song which created a veri
table sensation and which by words
and musio seemed a clarion call at the
present moment in the history of the
worldi The song is entitled "The Trum
pet Call." words by P. J. O'Reilly and
music by Wilfrid Sanderson, the Eng
lish composer, and although the work
is of that country and for that coun
try it Is as much related to America as
to England. With the permission of the
publisher the words are herewith given.
Trumpet, silver-throated, speak!
Let the nations hwr your call.
Wake the souls that shame would seek.
Rouse to duty one and all!
Trumpet, silver-throated, apeak!
You're not fashioned to be dumb.
RalM th coume of the weak
Uiva the dead a requiem!
Trumpet, silver-throated, eallt
You who woke our callant sires.
Speak, for country and for mil
Wake asain forgotten ores!
It is interesting to note at this time
that John McCormack has signed for
five performances at the Metropolitan
Opera House next season, this being all
the time he is willing to take from his
concert engagements which promise to
be more engrossing than ever.
McCormack has not been heard In
opera In New York since he was first
presented In this country as a member
r
V - v..
basls of Holland alone it would furnish
homes and farms for more than 7,000,
000 souls."
I do not know how much it baa cost
to redeem the big plantation I visited
today. The guide who took ma over
the property told me that the taking
out of the cypress stumps and burning
them cost from $75 to $100 per acre,
and that the most of the 72 miles of
shell road, which runs here and there
through the plantation, cost $10,000 per
mile to build. A great deal of these
swamps contain cypress trees, and
these trees have the peculiar property
of not rotting as long as they are cov
ered with water. I It is only when the
land has been drained that the stumps
will rot. and even then they last a
long time.
In this property the land was thrown
up so as to form a levee between it
and Lake Pontchartraln, and pumping
stations were installed. The water was
then pumped off and great ditches were
dug. The engineering is such that the
water all flows into these ditches,
which are kept clear by the pumps.
The pumps will raise 500,000,000 gal
lons of water a day. and they lift this
water from the canals over the wall
into Lake Ponchartraln, from whence
it runs off into the Mexican Gulf. The
drainage is such that, after a big rain,
the pumps begin to draw the water
from the farthest part of the property
within four minutes after the engines
are started. They keep the land dry
and take away any surplus water not
neded for the crops and the trees.
To give you an idea of the capacity
of these pumps, the new Catskill
aqueduct, which New York has about
completed for its future water supply,
will have a capacity of Just 500,000.000
gallons a day. and these plantation
pumps could supply more water than
New York is now using, with millions
of gallons to spare.
These pumps are now kept busy for
a great part of the time. They will
"v" " " ana lass ai ma ncaaa
of plant life reduce the volume of
water, and the cost of pumping will
steadily decrease. The average an
nual precipitation of Louisiana is less
than 53 Inches, and it is well distrib
uted throughout the year. The ad
vantage of the pumping arrangements
ods. A medicine dropper is used for
this purpose and a generous meal is
given at the time the chicks are being
transferred from the Incubator to the
brooder. It Is not enough merely to
place the fountain containing sour milk
before the chicks, but they must be in
of the Manhattan Grand Opera Com
pany under Oscar Hammerstein. who
In his time has certainly "picked win
ners," except for one performance of
"Natoma," by Victor Herbert when he
appeared as a member of the Chicago
Opera Company under Andreas DlppeL
at that time associated with Campanlni.
Although there never was any ques
tion in the minds of those who knew
what Cleofante Campanlni had done
for the great opera star. Amenta Galll
Curel. when over night he made her a
reputation that has never been sur
passed by anyone in the operatic world,
it has been definitely announced by
her concert manager, Charles Wagner,
that she will be a member of the Chi
cago Opera Association Herever it
will appear during tne next five sea
sons. -
The Galll-Curci success Is a story of
one of the great triumphs enjoyed by
a practically unknown artist in whom
Campanlni saw enough talent, personal
ity and vocal equipment to give her the
chance to be properly presented. It Is
said that the Metropolitan had had an
option and that she actually came to
this country to' Join one of the smaller
traveling companies, but that she hap
pened upon Campanlni even at a time
when he was not in search of singers,
when his roster was completely filled.
He is one of the broad-minded men
who has never failed in his aim to "give
the seeker a chance," as he expressed
it himself.
At the end of Mme. Galll-Curci-s first
act he knew her possibilities even bet
ter than she did and he presented him
self behind the scenes to say to her that
instead of the two or three guest per
formances which he had promised her,
he was willing to sign her for as long
a period as she saw fit to give him.
and in that one moment her career was
made. Her next act was sung with all
the beauty and freedom that can only
be found in one who is Joyously happy
and free from care, with the result that
the audience simply went mad. collo
quially speaking, and the name of Galll
Curci was a household word thencefor
ward. It is also a fact that other con
cert managers had a chance tp obtain
her services even before she left for
Chicago, but many of them were al
ready overloaded with the precious car
go, some of which were designated as
"gold bricks." consequently it fell to
Charles L. Wagner's lot to have Des
tlnn suddenly fail him after he had her
well booked and he has Just the sort of
luck which made him consider Galll
Curci even before she had had her Chi
cago triumph. It was due to the singer
and the manager to say that out of
the tremendous number of concert en
gagements which she has filled this
season there were but a very few that
came to her instead of to Mme. Dsstlnn.
As the matter now stands. Campanlni
has the exclusive right to all her New
York appearances, and she will be a
nvw i
3
--4
Is that they can leave just as mucn op
as little water as is required for the
various crops.
This whole tract that I have de
scribed had been planted to oranges.
It has been divided up into small or
chards, which have been sold to pur
chasers in different parts of the Union.
The trees are of various ages, from
little sprouts recently planted to lusty
trees 2 or J years old. They seem
to grow well, and the prospect la that
they will eventually form one great
orange grove of 7000 acres right here
within five miles of the center or Mw
Orleans.
As I Went over the farm X expressed,
my doubts as to the success of orange
groves so far north, and my guide took
me to an adjoining estate, which be
longs to a New Orleans merchant, upon
which there is a grove of several hun
dred orange trees now in bearing.
These trees are still loaded with fruit.
notwithstanding the frost of last
Spring ruined the vegetable garden
and sent the thermomater to six de
grees below freezing " point. The
oranges were of the Creole variety and
were delicious.
The reason of their withstanding the
frost is the fact that the trees are
budded on the citrus trifoliata. which,
is not affected by frost. This variety
of tree will grow in the north, but it
is a native of the country about New
Orleans. It Is deciduous: that is. it
sheds its leaves and remains dormant
during the Winter. The sap goes down
to the roots and takes a rest during
the cold months, coming up again in,
the Spring. It has been found that
certain other species of oranges can
be budded on to this citrus variety
and that the new tree will resist the
frost.
This seems to prove that oranges can
be grown here. Indeed, I am told that
some were planted by the Jesuit fathers
as far back as 1727, and that for a
time seedling oranges were plentiful in
the Southern part of the state. There
was a grove set out In 1860. the traces
of which still remain, and seven years
after that an orange grove of 125.000
seedlings was planted 60 miles below
New Orleans. This was operated for
some years on a large scale, although
rr, n ri tr n hnrtirultural method. vera
J unknown. I believe eome of the treea
aro still In existence. The people here
are enthusiastio as to the citrus fruit
prospecta They expect to form a fralt
organization something like that of
Southern California, and to handle the
Louisiana fruit after the same methods
that have succeeded so well on the
Pacific slope.
duced to drink It, and the .larger the
quantity they consume, within reason
able limits, the better will be the re
sults. Sour milk should form the bulk
of the diet for several weeks, especial
ly until all danger of the disease has
passed.
strong feature In the season of opera
which he will give at the Lexington
Opera House beginning January 21.
1818.
...
The rumor which was circulated some
weeks ago seems to take on color by
the statement that Giorgio Pnlacco. who
offered his services last Summer to
Italy has been called this year and will
answer the need to serve his country.
He will be missed at the Metropolitan,
where he has been a great favorite in
a quiet, artistic and unobtrusive man
ner. Whether he will return at th
end of the war has not been stated.
Robert Moranzoni, whose success
with the Boston National Opera Com
pany under Max Robinofr was very
pronounced, has bee engaged for tha
Italian repertory with G. Papl, who
has been retained, and Pierre Mon
teux. the French conductor, who has
been taken on. This probably means
that more attention will be paid to
French repertory than within the past
few seasons.
Other engagements for the Metro
politan Include the services of Josef
Urban, well known as stage manager
of tne former Boston Opera Company
under Henry Russell in Boston. Richard
Ordynski, who came to this country
to represent the interests of and to
stage the "Sumurun" of Max Relnhardt.
the staging of which was superb and
served to cover up. If such disgusting
shows can be covered up, the indecen
cies of the renowned German producer,
Relnhardt.
Publisher Leaves 9200,000.
NEW YORK. June 2. The will of
William Berrl, Brooklyn newspaper
publisher, who died last week at his
home. No. 465 Clinton avenue, Brook
lyn, has been filed for probate. The
document contains bequests totaling
more than $200,000, in addition to real
estate. The largest gifts to members
of the family are: To Herbert Berrl.
a son, $50,000; Ethel Powell Berrl.
daughter-in-law, $25,000; to each
grandchild surviving, $25,000.
the only bab chick food vttk '
buttermilk lo It. Makes
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chick diseases and assures your j
at a cost of le each for three N
weeks ftcdinji. Buy a Bag $1.00. Pkg 25c. 50c. S
Si At Your Dealer. S
New Shipment Just Received.
(Second St., Beta Alder and Morrison.