Cotton is planted in rows, near four feet apart, the end of April or the beginning of May. It soon comes up, and at first looks much like buck-wheat, except that the {207} leaves are larger, and it continues to grow much like it, only it has a larger blossom. Some round pods are afterwards formed, as large as a fine walnut in its husk. When ripe, the pods burst open, and the cotton then appears like white wool. When they gather it, the cotton contains many seeds, about the size of a large pea, either blue or green. The seeds are so light, it is very troublesome to separate them from the cotton by hand. Where it is cultivated on a large scale, they have machines to clear it from the seeds, which, I believe, are of no value only to plant again. I planted a little this year, but rather too late, and, as the weather was dry at the time, but little of it came up. It now looks pretty well, and is in full blossom. Here it seldom exceeds two feet in height, but in the southern states, it grows much higher. A dry soil is said to suit much better than richer land. I have heard, from those who came from South Carolina and Georgia, that it is there common to see several hundred {208} acres of it in one field; and from one to six hundred negroes working together, in the planting and gathering season. One thousand pounds of cotton, in the seed, is a good average crop. I suppose it will lose half of its weight in getting out the seeds; therefore, about 500 lbs. of cleaned cotton is thus raised per acre. I think half that quantity is as much as we can raise, as we are not warm enough for cotton.
Some few Americans, near us, raise tobacco in small quantities, for home consumption. It is thought the land round us is as good for tobacco as in any part of the United States. I have a little of it in my garden; but, as the first I sowed failed, it is rather backward. The seed is sown in February or March, and transplanted in June, in rows like cabbages; it requires to be kept very clean. I know but little of the manner of curing it, but understand it is attended with some difficulty, at least to strangers.
{209} Hemp is cultivated in this country, but I have not seen any in this neighbourhood, with the exception of a few rods of my own; I brought the seed from the Big Prairie, as I thought a small quantity would be useful for lines, &c.
I now come to the most important article of this country's growth, I mean Indian corn, which, with the Americans, is cultivated on a far more extensive scale than any thing else; and, I believe, it is rising much in the estimation of the Europeans, except as a bread corn. The corn I took of Mr. Collins was on new Prairie-land, thin on the ground, had been badly cultured, and much injured by cattle and pigs getting into it; yet I had very near 50 bushels per acre. I have heard of 132 bushels per acre, but from 60 to 80 is considered a good crop. The husks that cover the corn-ears, and the flags or leaves, are all good for fodder. Horses, cattle, and sheep, all seem as fond of it as of the best {210} hay. Horses and cattle will eat part of the stalk after the corn is ripe; but in a green state, they, and pigs, will eat it all up. Horses and pigs will eat the corn, and leave the cob or inside of the ear; but cattle will eat inside and all. The time of planting is from April to the middle of June; the middle of May is considered the most proper season. It is planted in rows, of about four feet in each direction; and after it is up they plough between the rows, first one way, and in a week or two in the other direction; a third ploughing is sometimes given to it. An extremely light plough, drawn by one horse, is used. Between the corn they hoe up the weeds left near the corners that escape the plough; so that the land is made very clean. Generally two or three plants are left at each angle. Pompions are often planted at the angles with the corn, but only in every fifth or sixth row, and at some distance apart in the rows. They also plant a small {211} kind of French-bean with part of their corn, the stalks serving instead of sticks for the beans to run on.
There are several sorts of Indian corn, and of different colours; namely, white, red, yellow, mixt, &c. A small sort of yellow corn is ripe much sooner than most of the other sorts, but yields a smaller produce. White and yellow are the most common sorts, but there are several kinds of these. A good ear of corn contains from 14 to 20 rows, and from 40 to 50 grains of corn in each row. A hundred middling ears of corn will yield a bushel of clear corn. The Americans live mostly on corn-bread; the English eat but little of it. I have now growing 12 acres of it; it is in general very stout, but, from the dryness of the season, I do not expect it will yield well. I planted some of it six feet between the rows, and the plants near three feet apart, as I wished to keep it particularly clean and in good order for wheat; and so ploughed it all one way, and ran a harrow {212} between the rows. I do not see but it comes on as well as that I planted on the square. I have not seen any corn near us so large as mine; much of it is upwards of twelve feet high. It was planted between the 10th and 20th of May, but the weather being dry, it did not come up very soon.
The green ears are eaten boiled or roasted, the latter mostly by the Americans, who call all green ears roasting ears. The price of corn last fall was mostly 50 cents a bushel delivered, and now 50 cents in the place. But near us there is very little to be procured at any price. On the Wabash, where the country has been longer settled, it is lower and plentiful. It is gathered in October and November, when they only take off the ears; but as the ears are covered with a large husk, they carry them as they are to the corn-crib, and then all the neighbours collect together to help to husk it, and put it into the corn-crib. This is a high day with the Americans, and is called a Husking Frolic; plenty of whiskey {213} is generally to be found at one of these frolics. I never was present but at one; I suppose there were near forty people present; I did not stop, but I understood it concluded with a dance. We did not make any frolic in husking our corn, but did it ourselves; but the Americans seldom do any thing without having one. Thus, they have husking, reaping, rolling frolics, &c. &c. Among the females, they have picking, sewing, and quilting frolics. Reaping frolics, are parties to reap the whole growth of wheat, &c. in one day. Rolling frolics, are clearing wood-land, when many trees are cut down, and into lengths, to roll them up together, so as to burn them, and to pile up the brushwood and roots on the trees. I think this one is useful, as one man or his family can do but little in moving a large quantity of heavy timber. Picking cotton, sewing, and quilting frolics, are meetings to pick cotton from the seeds, make clothes, or quilt quilts; in the latter, the American women pride {214} themselves. Whiskey is here too in request, and they generally conclude with a dance.
Raisings, are a number of men getting together to raise a piece of building, that is, to lift the logs on each other; this is practised by the English as well as the Americans; nor is whiskey here omitted.
Pompions, or pumpkins, is another highly prized production of this country; they often grow to an immense size, and weigh from 40 to 60 lbs. I have heard of a single vine that, in 1818, grew a load of pumpkins. It grew in the Big Prairie, about 30 miles to the south of us, on some rotten chaff, where some wheat had been trodden out the year before. I find they do best where the ground is moved or very mellow to run on, as they strike root at every joint as they run. A load is forty bushels; I have never seen them measured, but I judge from the waggons I have seen them in. I last year sold three waggon loads, in the place, at four dollars {215} a-load. Cattle of all descriptions, pigs, and poultry, are fond of them; but all prefer the inside and seeds to the outside. They make good sauce and excellent pies, and are much eaten here; they are sliced and dried for winter use, for pies and sauce. They will keep till the frosts come, but will soon rot when frozen. At Major Phillips's, I once tasted some molasses made from them, and liked them very much, not being so sweet as the real molasses, but very pleasant flavoured.
Swede turnips but little known here; a person who resides at Birk's Prairie, sowed an acre in May, on a piece of land that had been in cultivation for two or three years; they are thin on the ground, but seem likely to be of a good size, notwithstanding the dryness of the season. They have been twice hoed, but were sown on one ploughing only.
Common turnips are sometimes sown after a crop of flax; the time of sowing the beginning of August, but many of the {216} Americans are very particular as to the age of the moon, in this and many other things; and if they should be put by in doing it, they will not do it that year, as many of them are very superstitious, having great faith with regard to the moon's age, &c. Hoeing turnips is not practised by them.