Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 7, No. 43, May, 1861 by Various
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Various >> Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 7, No. 43, May, 1861
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The waters of Illinois abound with fish, of which class we enumerate,--
Species Species
Percidae, 3 Pomotis, 2
Labrax, 3 Cottus, 2
Lucioperca, 2 Corvina, 1
Huro, 1 Pimelodus, 5
Centrarchus, 3 Leuciscus, 6
Hydrargea, 2 Corregomus, 3
Esox, 3 Amia, 1
Hyodon, 1 Lepidosteus, 3
Lota, 2 Accipenser, 3
Of these, the Perch, White, Black, and Rock Bass, the Pike-Perch, the
Catfish, the Pike and Muskalonge, the Whitefish, the Lake Trout, and the
Sturgeon are valuable fishes for the table.
Of the class of Reptiles, we have among the Lizards the Mud-Devil,
(_Menopoma Alleghaniensis_,) which grows in the sluggish streams to
the length of two feet; also _Triton dorsalis_, _Necturus lateralis_,
_Ambystoma punctata_.
Of the Snakes, we find three venomous species, the Rattlesnake, the
Massasauga, and the Copper-Head. The largest serpents are the Black
Snake, five feet long, and the Milk Snake, from five to six feet in
length.
Among the Turtles is _Emys picta_, _Chelonura serpentina_, and _Cistuda
clausa_.
Of the Frogs, we have _Rana sylvatica_, _Rana palustris_, and _Rana
pipiens_, nearly two feet long, and loud-voiced in proportion,--a
Bull-Frog, indeed!
Various theories and speculations have been formed as to the origin of
the prairies. One of them, is, that the forests which formerly occupied
these plains were swept away at some remote period by fire; and that the
annual fires set by the Indians have continued this state of things.
Another theory is, that the violent winds which sweep over them have
prevented the growth of trees; a third, that want of rain forbids their
growth; a fourth, that the agency of water has produced the effect;
and lastly, a learned professor at the last meeting of the Scientific
Convention put forth his theory, which was, that the real cause of the
absence of trees from the prairies is the mechanical condition of the
soil, which is, he thinks, too fine,--a coarse, rocky soil being, in his
estimation, a necessary condition of the growth of trees.
Most of these theories seem to be inconsistent with the plain facts of
the case. First, we know that these prairies existed in their present
condition when the first white man visited them, two hundred years ago;
and also that similar treeless plains exist in South America and Central
Africa, and have so existed ever since those countries were known. We
are told by travellers in those regions, that the natives have the same
custom of annually burning the dry grass and herbage for the same reason
that our Indians did it, and that the early white settlers kept up the
custom,--namely, to promote the growth of young and tender feed for the
wild animals which the former hunted and the cattle which the latter
live by grazing.
Another fact, well known to all settlers in the prairie, is, that it is
only necessary to keep out the fires by fences or ditches, and a thick
growth of trees will spring up on the prairies. Many fine groves now
exist all over Illinois, where nothing grew twenty years ago but the
wild grasses and weeds; and we have it on record, that locust-seed, sown
on the prairie near Quincy, in four years produced trees with a diameter
of trunk of four to six inches, and in seven years had become large
enough for posts and rails. So with fruit-trees, which nowhere flourish
with more strength and vigor than in this soil,--too much so, indeed,
since they are apt to run to wood rather than fruit. Moreover, the soil
in the groves and on the river bottoms, where trees naturally grow, is
the same, chemically and mechanically, as that of the open prairie; the
same winds sweep over both, and the same rain falls upon both; so that
it would seem that the absence of trees cannot be attributed wholly to
fire, water, wind, or soil, but is owing to a combination of two or more
of those agencies.
But from whatever cause the prairies originated, they have no doubt been
perpetuated by the fires which annually sweep over their surface. Where
the soil is too wet to sustain a heavy growth of grass, there is no
prairie. Timber is found along the streams, almost invariably,--and,
where the banks are high and dry, will usually be found on the east bank
of those streams whose course is north and south. This is caused by the
fact that the prevailing winds are from the west, and bring the fire
with them till it reaches the stream, which forms a barrier and protects
the vegetation on the other side.
If any State in the Union is adapted to agriculture, and the various
branches of rural economy, such as stock-raising, wool-growing, or
fruit-culture, it must surely be Illinois, where the fertile natural
meadows invite the plough, without the tedious process of clearing off
timber, which, in many parts of the country, makes it the labor of a
lifetime to bring a farm under good cultivation. Here, the farmer who is
satisfied with such crops as fifty bushels of corn to the acre, eighteen
of wheat, or one hundred of potatoes, has nothing to do but to plough,
sow, and reap; no manure, and but little attention, being necessary
to secure a yield like this. Hence a man of very small means can soon
become independent on the prairies. If, however, one is ambitious of
raising good crops, and doing the best he can with his land, let him
manure liberally and cultivate diligently; nowhere will land pay for
good treatment better than here.
Mr. J. Ambrose Wight, of Chicago, the able editor of the "Prairie
Farmer," writes as follows:--
"From an acquaintance with Illinois lands and Illinois farmers, of
eighteen years, during thirteen of which I have been editor of the
'Prairie Farmer,' I am prepared to give the following as the rates of
produce which may be had per acre, with ordinary culture:--
Winter Wheat, 15 to 25 Bushels.
Spring " 10 to 20 "
Corn, 40 to 70 "
Oats, 40 to 60 "
Potatoes, 100 to 200 "
Grass, Timothy and Clover, 1-1/2 to 3 Tons.
"_Ordinary culture_, on prairie lands, is not what is meant by the term
in the Eastern or Middle States. It means here, no manure, and commonly
but once, or at most twice, ploughing, on perfectly smooth land, with
long furrows, and no stones or obstructions; where two acres per day
is no hard job for one team. It is often but very poor culture, with
shallow ploughing, and without attention to weeds. I have known crops,
not unfrequently, far greater than these, with but little variation in
their treatment: say, 40 to 50 bushels of winter wheat, 60 to 80 of
oats, and 100 of Indian corn, or 300 of potatoes. _Good culture_, which
means rotation, deep ploughing, farms well stocked, and some manure
applied at intervals of from three to five years, would, in good
seasons, very often approach these latter figures."
We will now give the results of a very detailed account of the
management of a farm of 240 acres, in Kane County, Illinois, an average
farm as to soil and situation, but probably much above the average in
cultivation,--at least, we should judge so from the intelligent and
business-like manner in which the account is kept; every crop having a
separate account kept with it in Dr. and Cr., to show the net profit or
loss of each.
23 acres of Wheat, 30 bushels per acre, net profit $453.00
17-1/2 " " on Corn ground, 22-1/2 " " " 278.50
9-1/2 " Spring Wheat, 24 " " " 159.70
2-1/2 " Winter Rye, 22-7/12 " " " 10.25
5-1/2 " Barley, 33-1/4 " " " 32.55
12 " Oats, 87-1/2 " " " 174.50
28-1/2 " Corn, 60 " " " 638.73
1 " Potatoes, 150 " " " 27.50
103 Sheep, average weight of fleece, 3-1/2 lbs., " 177.83
15 head of Cattle and one Colt " 103.00
1500 lbs. Pork " 35.00
Fruit, Honey, Bees, and Poultry " 73.75
21 acres Timothy Seed, 4 bushels per acre, " 123.00
--------
$2287.31
A farm of this size, so situated, with the proper buildings and stock,
may, at the present price of land, be supposed to represent a capital of
$15,000--on which sum the above account gives an interest of over 15 per
cent. Is there any other part of the country where the same interest can
be realized on farming capital?
But this farm of 240 acres is a mere retail affair to many farms in the
State. We will give some examples on a larger scale.
"Winstead Davis came to Jonesboro', Illinois, from Tennessee, thirty
years ago, without means of any kind; now owns many thousand acres of
land, and has under cultivation, this year, from 2500 to 3000 acres."
"W. Willard, native of Vermont, commenced penniless; now owns more than
10,000 acres of land, and cultivates 2000."
"Jesse Funk, near Bloomington, Illinois, began the world thirty years
ago, at rail-splitting, at twenty-five cents the hundred. He bought
land, and raised cattle; kept increasing his lands and herds, till he
now owns 7000 acres of land, and sells over 840,000 worth of cattle and
hogs annually.
"Isaac Funk, brother of the above, began in the same way, at the same
time. He has gone ahead of Jesse; for _he_ owns 27,000 acres of land,
has 4000 in cultivation, and his last year's sales of cattle amounted to
$65,000."
It is evident that the brothers Funk are men of administrative talent;
they would have made a figure in Wall Street, could have filled cabinet
office at Washington, or, perhaps, could even have "kept a hotel."
These are but specimens of the large-acred men of Illinois. Hundreds of
others there are, who farm on nearly the same scale.
The great difficulty in carrying on farming operations on a large scale
in Illinois has always been the scarcity of labor. Land is cheap and
plenty, but labor scarce and dear: exactly the reverse of what obtains
in England, where land is dear and labor cheap. It must be evident that
a different kind of farming would be found here from that in use in
older countries. There, the best policy is to cultivate a few acres
well; here, it has been found more profitable to skim over a large
surface. But within a few years the introduction of labor-saving
machines has changed the conditions of farming, and has rendered it
possible to give good cultivation to large tracts of land with few men.
Many of the crops are now put in by machines, cultivated by machines,
and harvested by machine. If, as seems probable, the steam-plough
of Fawkes shall become a success, the revolution in farming will be
complete. Already some of the large farmers employ wind or steam power
in various ways to do the heavy work, such as cutting and grinding food
for cattle and hogs, pumping water, etc.
Although the soil and climate of Illinois are well adapted to
fruit-culture, yet, from various causes, it has not, till lately, been
much attended to. The early settlers of Southern and Middle Illinois
were mostly of the Virginia race, Hoosiers,--who are a people of few
wants. If they have hog-meat and hominy, whiskey and tobacco, they are
content; they will not trouble themselves to plant fruit-trees. The
early settlers in the North were, generally, very poor men; they could
not afford to buy fruit-trees, for the produce of which they must wait
several years. Wheat, corn, and hogs were the articles which could be
soonest converted into money, and those they raised. Then the early
attempts at raising fruit were not very successful. The trees were
brought from the East, and were either spoiled by the way, or were
unsuited to this region. But the great difficulty has been the want of
drainage. Fruit-trees cannot be healthy with wet feet for several months
of the year, and this they are exposed to on these level lands. With
proper tile-draining, so that the soil shall be dry and mellow early in
the spring, we think that the apple, the pear, the plum, and the cherry
will succeed on the prairies anywhere in Illinois. The peach and the
grape flourish in the southern part of the State, already, with very
little care; in St. Clair County, the culture of the latter has been
carried on by the Germans for many years, and the average yield of
Catawba wine has been two hundred gallons per acre. The strawberry grows
wild all over the State, both in the timber and the prairie; and the
cultivated varieties give very fine crops. All the smaller fruits do
well here, and the melon family find in this soil their true home; they
are raised by the acre, and sold by the wagon-load, in the neighborhood
of Chicago.
Stock-raising is undoubtedly the most profitable kind of farming on
the prairies, which are so admirably adapted to this species of rural
economy, and Illinois is already at the head of the cattle-breeding
States. There were shipped from Chicago in 1860, 104,122 head of live
cattle, and 114,007 barrels of beef.
The Durham breed seems to be preferred by the best stock-farmers, and
they pay great attention to the purity of the race. A herd of one
hundred head of cattle raised near Urbanna, and averaging 1965 pounds
each, took the premium at the World's Fair in New York. Although the
Durhams are remarkable for their large size and early maturity, yet
other breeds are favorites with many farmers,--such as the Devons, the
Herefords, and the Holsteins, the first particularly,--for working
cattle, and for the quality of their beef. There is a sweetness about
the beef fattened upon these prairies which is not found elsewhere, and
is noticed by all travellers who have eaten of that meat at the best
Chicago hotels.
In fact, Illinois is the paradise of cattle, and there is no sight more
beautiful, in its way, than one of those vast natural meadows in June,
dotted with the red and white cattle, standing belly-deep in rich grass
and gay-colored flowers, and almost too fat and lazy to whisk away
the flies. Even in winter they look comfortable, in their sheltered
barn-yard, surrounded by huge stacks of hay or long ranges of
corn-cribs, chewing the cud of contentment, and untroubled with any
thought of the inevitable journey to Brighton.
Where corn is so plenty as it is in Illinois, of course hogs will be
plenty also. During the year 1860, two hundred and seventy-five thousand
porkers rode into Chicago by railroad, eighty-five thousand of which
pursued their journey, still living, to Eastern cities,--the balance
remaining behind to be converted into lard, bacon, and salt pork.
The wholesale way of making beef and pork is this. All summer the cattle
are allowed to run on the prairie, and the hogs in the timber on the
river bottoms. In the autumn, when the corn is ripe, the cattle are
turned into one of those great fields, several hundred acres in extent,
to gather the crop; and after they have done, the hogs come in to pick
up what the cattle have left.
Sheep do well on the prairies, particularly in the southern part of the
State, where the flocks require little or no shelter in winter. The
prairie wolves formerly destroyed many sheep; but since the introduction
of strychnine for poisoning those voracious animals, the sheep have been
very little troubled.
Horses and mules are raised extensively, and in the northern counties,
where the Morgans and other good breeds have been introduced, the horses
are as good as in any State of the Union. Theory would predict this
result, since the horse is found always to come to his greatest
perfection in level countries,--as, for instance, the deserts of Arabia,
and the _llanos_ of South America.
There are two articles in daily and indispensable use, for which the
Northern States have hitherto been dependent on the Southern: Sugar
and Cotton. With regard to the first, the introduction of the Chinese
Sugar-Cane has demonstrated that every farmer in the State can raise
his own sweetening. The experience of several years has proved that the
_Sorghum_ is a hardier plant than corn, and that it will be a sure crop
as far North as latitude 42 deg. or 43 deg..
An acre of good prairie will produce 18 tons of the cane, and each ton
gives 60 gallons of juice, which is reduced, by boiling, to 10 gallons
of syrup. This gives 180 gallons of syrup to the acre, worth from 40 to
50 cents a gallon,--say 40 cents, which will give 72 dollars for the
product of an acre of land; from which the expenses of cultivation being
deducted, with rent of land, etc., say 36 dollars, there will remain a
net profit of 36 dollars to the acre, besides the seed, and the fodder
which comes from a third part of the stalk, which is cut off before
sending the remainder to the mill. This is found to be the most
nutritious food that can be used for cattle and horses, and very
valuable for milch cows. These results Lave been obtained from Mr. Luce,
of Plainfield, Will County, who has lately built a steam-mill for making
the syrup from the cane which is raised by the farmers in that vicinity.
In this first year, he manufactured 12,500 gallons of syrup, which sells
readily at fifty cents a gallon. A quantity of it was refined at the
Chicago Sugar-Refinery, and the result was a very agreeable syrup, free
from the peculiar flavor which the home-made Sorghum-syrup usually
has. As yet, no experiments on a large scale have been made to obtain
crystallized sugar from the juice of this cane, it having been, so far,
used more economically in the shape of syrup. That it can be done,
however, is proved by the success of several persons who have tried it
in a small way. In the County of Vermilion, it is estimated that three
hundred thousand gallons of syrup were made in 1860.
As to Cotton, since the building of the Illinois Central Railroad has
opened the southern part of the State to the world, and let in the
light upon that darkened Egypt, it is found that those people have
been raising their own cotton for many years, from the seed which they
brought with them into the State from Virginia and North Carolina. The
plant has become acclimated, and now ripens its seed in latitude 39 deg. and
40 deg.. Perhaps the culture may be carried still farther, so that cotton
may be raised all over the State. The heat of our summers is tropical,
but they are too short. If, however, the cotton-plant, like Indian corn
and the tomato, can be gradually induced to mature itself in four or
five months, the consequences of such a change can hardly be estimated.
But whether or not it be possible to raise cotton and sugar profitably
in Illinois, that she is the great bread- and meat-producing State no
one can doubt; and in 1861 it happens that Cotton is King no longer, but
must yield his sceptre to Corn.
The breadstuffs exported from the Northwest to Europe and to the Cotton
States will this year probably amount to more money than the whole
foreign export of cotton,--the crop which to some persons represents all
that the world contains of value.
Probable export of Cotton in 1861, three-fourths
of the crop of 4,000,000 bales, 3,000,000 bales,
at $45 . . . . . . . . . $135,000,000
Estimated export of Breadstuffs
to Europe . . . . . . . . $100,000,000
Estimated export of Breadstuffs
to Southern States . . . . . . $45,000,000
------------
$145,000,000
We are feeding Europe and the Cotton States, who pay us in gold; we
feed the Northern States, who pay us in goods; we are feeding our
starving brothers in Kansas, who have paid us beforehand, by their
heroic devotion to the cause of freedom. Let us hope that their troubles
are nearly over, and that, having passed through more hardships than
have fallen to the lot of any American community, they may soon enter
upon a career of prosperity as signal as have been their misfortunes, so
that the prairies of Kansas may, in their turn, assist in feeding the
world.
Nothing has done so much for the rapid growth of Illinois as her canal
and railroads.
As early as 1833 several railroad charters were granted by the
legislature; but the stock was not taken, and nothing was done until the
year 1836, when a vast system of internal improvements was projected,
intended "to be commensurate with the wants of the people,"--that is,
there was to be a railroad to run by every man's door. About thirteen
hundred miles of railroads were planned, a canal was to be built from
Chicago to the Illinois River at Peru, and several rivers were to be
made navigable. The cost of all this it was supposed would be about
eight millions of dollars, and the money was to be raised by loan. In
order that all might have the benefit of this system, it was provided
that two hundred thousand dollars should be distributed among those
counties where none of these improvements were made. To cap the climax
of folly, it was provided that the work should commence on all these
roads simultaneously, at each end, and from the crossings of all the
rivers.
As no previous survey or estimate had been made, either of the routes,
the cost of the works, or the amount of business to be done on them, it
is not surprising that the State of Illinois soon found herself with a
heavy debt, and nothing to show for it, except a few detached pieces
of railroad embankments and excavations, a half-finished canal, and a
railroad from the Illinois River to Springfield, which cost one million
of dollars, and when finished would not pay for operating it.
The State staggered on for some ten years under this load of debt,
which, as she could not pay the interest upon it, had increased in 1845
to some fourteen millions. The project of repudiating the debt was
frequently brought forward by unscrupulous politicians; but to the honor
of the people of Illinois be it remembered, that even in the darkest
times this dishonest scheme found but few friends.
In 1845, the holders of the canal bonds advanced the sum of $1,700,000
for the purpose of finishing the canal; and subsequently, William B.
Ogden and a few other citizens of Chicago, having obtained possession of
an old railroad-charter for a road from that city to Galena, got a few
thousand dollars of stock subscribed in those cities, and commenced the
work. The difficulties were very great, from the scarcity of money and
the want of confidence in the success of the enterprise. In most of the
villages along the proposed line there was a strong opposition to having
a railroad built at all, as the people thought it would be the ruin of
their towns. Even in Chicago, croakers were not wanting to predict that
the railroad would monopolize all the trade of the place.
In the face of all these obstacles, the road was built to the Des
Plaines River, twelve miles,--in a very cheap way, to be sure; as a
second-hand strap-rail was used, and half-worn cars were picked up from
Eastern roads.
These twelve miles of road between the Des Plaines and Chicago had
always been the terror of travellers. It was a low, wet prairie, without
drainage, and in the spring and autumn almost impassable. At such
seasons one might trace the road by the broken wagons and dead horses
that lay strewn along it.
To be able to have their loads of grain carried over this dreadful place
for three or four cents a bushel was to the farmers of the Rock River
and Fox River valleys--who, having hauled their wheat from forty to
eighty miles to this Slough of Despond, frequently could get it no
farther--a privilege which they soon began to appreciate. The road had
all it could do, at once. It was a success. There was now no difficulty
in getting the stock taken up, and before long it was finished to Fox
River. It paid from fifteen to twenty per cent to the stockholders,
and the people along the line soon became its warmest friends,--and no
wonder, since it doubled the value of every man's farm on the line. The
next year the road was extended to Rock River, and then to Galena, one
hundred and eighty-five miles.
This road was the pioneer of the twenty-eight hundred and fifty miles of
railroads which now cross the State in every direction, and which have
hastened the settlement of the prairies at least fifty years.
Among these lines of railway, the most important, and one of the longest
in America, is the Illinois Central, which is seven hundred and four
miles in length, and traverses the State from South to North, namely:--
1. The main line, from Cairo to La Salla 308 miles
2. The Galena Branch, from La Salle to Dunleith 146 "
3. The Chicago Branch, from Chicago to Centralia 250 "
This great work was accomplished in the short space of four years and
nine months, by the help of a grant of two and a half millions of acres
of land lying along the line. The company have adopted the policy of
selling these lands on long credit to actual settlers; and since the
completion of the road, in 1856, they have sold over a million of acres,
for fifteen millions of dollars, in secured notes, bearing interest. The
remaining lands will probably realize as much more, so that the seven
hundred and four miles of railroad will actually cost the corporators
nothing.
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