The Laurens Advertiser

WHAT A WOMAN
DID IN FARMING.

Work of Miss Lucas in
Early Days.

CULTURE OF INDIGO.
How it was Introduced in
Carolina.

The Beginning of Silk Growing in this
State-Relatives of Remarkable
Woman Living Here.

The ADVERTISER
has received the
following:

EDITOR, THE ADVERTISER, SIR:-
Knowing the prominent position he
occupies, and the active part Capt. Lu-
cas and other members of that family
are now taking in the manufacturing
interests of our County and State, I
send you a clipping from the Sunny
South, showing that nearly two cen-
turies ago, an energetic and public
spirited lady, who may be an ancestor
theirs, by that name, was bat-
ling alone and single handed to de-
velop both the agricultural and manu-
facturing interests of our State. I
found it interesting reading and
thought your readers would also. I
send it to you and you can use your
pleasure concerning it. I say all honor
to the noble lady, who took such an ac-
tive part in agriculture, my humble
profession.

Yours Respectfully,
L. S. B.
Gray Court, April, 30.

INDIGO CULTURE.

"Towards the close of the Seven-
teenth century Mr. Lucas, a wealthy
English planter, residing at the time
on Bermuda island, sent to his niece,
Miss Eliza Lucas, of Georgetown, in
the colony of South Carolina, a small
quantity of indigo seed, accompanying
his gift with full instructions as to the
cultivation of the plant and the pre-
paration of the seed for use as a dye
and for export. Shortly after Mr.
Lucas sent a servant who was regarded
as an expert in the matter to supervise
the planting of this small indigo farm.
For some reason this person turned re-
creant to the task confided to him,
Miss Lucas, becoming aware of his in-
difference and assured that he was not
following the instruction of her uncle,
as contained in his letter to her, dis-
missed the expert and undertook her-
self the management. She was a wo-
man of remarkable energy and sound
judgment, noted even in that day for
her fondness for agriculture and domes-
tic virtues. Under her skillful super-
vision the first crop of indigo cultivated
in the colonies of America was grown
and prepared for market, much to the
satisfaction of her lordly uncle, who
shortly afterwards left the Bermudas
and established the Lucas family of
South Carolina, a representative peo-
ple who to this day maintain the fond-
ness of their ancestors for agricultural
pursuits.

"It was this spirited young Carolina
lady who introduced the growing of
silk into the colony. She imported the
white mulberry (morus multicaulis)
from India, obtained the eggs of the
silk worm from France, and in process
of time had spun a quality of silk from
her home grown cocoons. This
was woven by Miss Lucas into three
handsome gowns. One of black was
sent to the king of England, another
presented to Lord Chesterfield, and the
third kept as a souvenir of her success-
ful experiment. The last one is still
in the possession of the descendants of
the Lucas family, and at this writing I
am informed, is in the possession of the
Pinckney family of Charleston, S. C."

Note. The Lucas family of this state,
of which Mr. W. E. Lucas and Dr.
T. C. Lucas of this city are mem-
bers came to Carolina from the Ber-
mudas and the lady to whom the arti-
cle refers was doubtless a member of
this same family.-Editor ADVER-
TISER.