AGRICULTURE. The predominant industry in the State is agrieniture and it is highly favored both by the nature of the climate and the soil. There is a variety of soil. including the brown loam of the central tableland. the rich, black, calcareous soil of the prairie region, the extreme ly fertile alluvium of the bottom lands, the sandy loam with a clayey or sandy subsoil. south of the central ridge, and the yellow loam of the north east. They are all. except the last two, unusual ly rich. The most desirable region is ineluded.
between the Yazoo and the rivers. \ try extensive areas are still covered with for ests. but it is nearly all susceptible of cultiva tion. 1900 there were 18,2,40,736 acres. or 61.5 po r c•cnt. of the total area, included in farms. Of this 11.6 per cent. improved. the improved area having increased about 1,5(10,000 acres since 1860. while the unimproved area remain: about the same. The change in the system of agricul ture incident upon the cessation of slavery has decreased the average size of farms from 369.7 acres in 1860 to $2.6 in 1900. The number of colored farmer: in Alississippi 1128,679 in 19001. amounting to 58.3 twr cent. of the total number in the State (tilling about 32.4 per cent. of the farm acreage), is much greater than in any other State. How ever. only 14.3 per cent. of these own their farms, as against 62.5 per cent. fur the white farmers. The cash rent system is rapidly in creasing. the farms rented according to this system already exceeding the number rented on the share system. Nearly two-fifths of the farms of the State are between 20 and 50 acres in area, this size of holding b ing very common among the Eegro cotton fa rulers. In no other State is cotton so dominant as in .Mississippi. In 1899 the acreage of cotton was over half of the total crop acreage and emitributed 63.6 per cent, of the value of farm crops. The State ranks third in the production of cotton. It was not until the last decade of the nineteenth century, however, that its cultivation regained the importance it held prior to the Civil War. The greatest pro
duction was reached in 1897.9c, when the output amounted to 1.600.000 and only onee in that decade did the production fall below 1,000.000 bales. Aside from cotton the agricultural inter est of the State is almost wholly centred in corn. The acreage of this crop in 1899 constituted 95.9 per cent. of the total area devoted to cereals. The acreage increased 3:1.4 per cent. in the last census decade. The of oats decreased de cidedly during the same period. Wheat had ac quired .111tie importance before the war, but its cultivation ha: aIme t wholly ceased. There are extensive alluvial areas that could he easily ir rigated and devoted to rice culture. but little at tention has been given to it. Compared with its sister State across the Mississippi River. re markably little attention is paid to the growing of sugar cane, and the crop of late years is almost who Hy converted into syrup and Small fruits and (reliant fruits are not exten:ively raised. In the decade 1890 1900, however, the number of trees a Into-t doubled. In the latter year the peach tree: numbered 1.851t.718. which was 33 per vent. of the total number. The fol lowing table shows the acreage of the leading crops for the census years indicated: STot 11'.% s I NI.. .\s in other States where cotton is predominant, stock•rai-ing does not re ef ive nou•lh attention. The total number of Iln nie-tie animals has greatly increased over 1850, and the gain since 1870 is very marked. As compared with the latter year the horses and mules have increased in number about times, and swine, dairy Vows, and other neat cattle have also gained. The decade 1890-1900 is characterized by a marked falling off in the num ber of sheep, and by an increase in the number of horses and Dillies. The following table gives the number of domestic animals on farms for the years' indicated: