Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1873 [PAGE 222]

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218 milk) region of Southern Illinois, the production sinks to a very low point. Of hay, Illinois produced 2,747,339 tons, more than Ohio, a little less than Pennsylvania, and not half as much as New York produces. Its relative position is not far different from that of 1860, but the absolute increase in the hay product is nearly 60 per cent. Of our counties, Cook leads in hay production with 129,210 tons, and is succeeded by the adjoining county of Will with 106,196 tons. The counties producing less than 10,000 tons are nearly all south of Springfield, and mostly in the south-east. Those producing 50,000 tons and over are all north of Springfield, and most Of them quite in the north end of the State. Of seeds Illinois produced 10,486 bushels of clover, and 153,484 of grass seed, far below its product of 1860, but leading other States in grass seed though ninth in clover seed production. Wabash county furnished the most clover seed, Schuyler came next, and Lawrence, adjoining Wabash county, came third ; so that clover seed seems to have been made a specialty in that region. LaSalle raised 22,087 bushels of grass seed and DeKalb 13,367. Hops are produced to the extent of 104,032 pounds, our State being only eighth in that product, and far behind New York, which runs up to 17,000,000 of pounds. What little we have is mainly the product of a few counties in the north-east corner. McHenry 19,391, Boone 18,710, DeKalb 15,580. 66 counties produce it. Hemp has nearly disappeared, only 174 tons having been grown against nearly 3,000 in 1860, and the whole product of the country is not more than one-tenth what it was ten years ago. I t was grown in 10 Illinois counties—Douglas, Hamilton and Pope being the principal. In the production of flax we were exceeded by New York, and especially by Ohio, but increased on our production of 1860 largely ; we have 2,204,606 pounds. Kane, Ogle, DeKalb and Lee produced a very large part of this. I t was grown in 46 counties. Flax seed is reported from 58 counties to the amount of 280,043 bushels, showing that the plant is grown more for seed than for lint. Iroquois, Lee and LaSalle grew the most. Maple sugar is made in sixty counties, to the amount of 136,873 pounds, only a slight increase over 1860. Fifteen States do better, many of them largely so. Our sugar is mostly made in Clark, Edgar, Hancock, Menard, Schuyler and Yermilion. Over on the Indiana line and up the Illinois is the best sugar ground. Maple molasses was made to the amount of 10,378 gallons in thirtysix counties. This is less by half than in 1860. ©f sorghum molasses we had, however, 1,960,473 gallons, which is a little less than Ohio or Indiana produced. Every county but one returns