Glasgow weekly times. (Glasgow, Mo.) 1848-1861, 1853-10-20

Of any achievement of the mind calculated
TO increase the fertility of the earth ?-or
when did they fail TO give to Science, on her
pathway of toll, cheering word? They
J were philosophers as well as statesmen, and
, in the quietude and repose of their fields
, in that ''solitude" which is ''the school Of
genius" in the contemplation of Nature
working out her mighty labratory, the pro-
cess Of vegetable and animal lile.-their
+ minds expanded TO the measure of true
greatness.
; Some of them were surrounded by phil
osophical apparatus, and worked in their
home laboratories. Mr.. jefferson, while
minister at the French court, found time
amidst the engrossing cares of diplomacy
not only to watch the throes of revolution
but to make himself master of every new
discovery in science. The interest Of agri-
culture engaged his special attention; every
new implement Of husbandry---every new
mode of culture-every plant useful TO man
not grown in our land, became the object Of
his regard. His well known tourney
through the interior and south of France,
and over the ranges of the lesser Alps, had
for its motive the pursuit of scientific agri-
culture. If in that day an agricultural
school or college could have been found in
France or Switzerland, who can doubt that
he would have been drawn to it by an ire
sistable attraction. Mr.. Madison on his
skillfully conducted farm, up 10 late period
of his life, kept pace with every advance of
chemistry. His letters - the letters of
Washington and Webster-form beautiful
and instructive portion of our agricultural
literature
But turn from these bright names to
call you back TO your own farms, and to
your own operations in husbandry.
You put gypsum on your land. In one
district Of country its effects are lauded, in
another its efficacy is doubted, while in a
third it is decried. How is that? and WHY
is it? Is it the freak or iickelness of the
mineral? Is the result in each case chance
medley? or does il spring from cause? Just
so sure as that the earth we inhabit moves in
its orbit round the sun by lar, so sure is it
that the result in each case is the effect Of
principle, and that principle science can
discover.
Again, you put upon your soil animal ma
nure-you find its action powerful and its
effect permanent. Other animal manures
act only for time land their effect is speedily
exhausted. Do you know the cause? Chem
istry can answer. -.
"Does mixture of animal and vegeta-
BILE man,ires prepare your land best for GER
tain kinds of grain? Do you employ com
mon salt, or nitrate of soda, lime. the ash OF
wood, bone dust, or any other substance
with advantage? In all these cases YOU OBJ
serve chemical results, which you would be
able to control and modify did you possess
the requisite chemical knowledge
Some barren soils are capable of recla-
maticn-others not proftably under the
present state of science. Is it not mat
ter of importance to be able to distinguish
between them? But what is more particu.
larly applicable to us--some soils that to
the eye seem good will not produce. Now,
by what rule will the common farmer work
to give fertility to snch land? Has he any
rule? Ignorant of the disease, how shall he
apply the remedy? Shall he experiment in
the dark and work on as the sangune Mi
cawber lived-'in the hope that something
will shortly turn up?"
BY beautiful economy in nature, MANI
OF the inorganic elements necessary TO the
| growth Of plants exist in the soil in uuanti-
Ties so small as to become appreciate only
by a refined analysis. How Shall the prac-
tical farmer detect their absence by the best
use Of his powers of observation? Irepeat
the question-how shall he work? Bindly
in the dark? or growing tired of unprofita-
bic toll, shall he shift the responsibility by
selling out? or shall he call upon science to
tell him the exact chemical constitution Of
the earthly part of his soil? Perhaps the
reply of the chemist may be-"Your soil
Is excellent and wants only small portion
OF what is known 10 science as phosphoric
acid, which you can supply at little more
than nominal cost" Or perhaps lie may
suggest the presence in the soil OF some one
OF the salts OF iron, or other noxious princi.
pie easily and cheaply deprived of its hurt
full influence by the application of well
known chemical agents. In reference TO
such soils Sir Humphrey Davy more than
half century ago, when agricultural chem
lstry was comparatively unknown, said
1.-The application of chemical tests to such
soil is obvious-it must contain some noxi-
Gus principle Cor be defciant in some nee
essary element, adds Johnson thirty years
later, which may be easily discovered and
probably easily destroyed. Are any Of the
salts of iron present. they may be decom-
posed by lime. Is there an excess of sill
cious sand? the system of improvement must
depend on the application Of clay and cal
carlous matter, Is there defect of caca-
rious matter?--the remedy is obvious. Is
there an excess of vegetable matter indi-
catcd?-it may be removed by lining, par
ing and burning. Is there deficiency Of
vegetable matter?-it is to be maaured.;'-
Since his day soils are better understood, and
in many cases chemistry can now accurate
! " determine what a soil must contain before
il will produce a given crop.
In our own country the value of chemical
tests applied to the soil is abundantly estab-
liShed. cite afew examples out Of many
furnished me by your present organization.
In the Agricultural Transactions of the
Slate OF Massachusetts for the year 1851,
Ga book which would commend 10 those
engaged in diifusing agricultural literature
among our people, find recorded some