Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1876-07-26

ploycu III ltS ltldIidStlHtiit. ~ 10 iiol
chance; ii is not guesswork; it is SIM
ply the possession by the farmer of the
knowledge required and its application
in conducting his farming operations /;
it is sbrainsas applied to agriculture;
the light which scientific inquiry and
practical knowledge have shed upon
the cultivation of land.
The importance of some informa-
ton upon the formations which con-
stitute various kinds of soil is, at oncJ
apparent. This is geology; and while
it is not practicable or necessary for
every farmer to become an expert in
this science, an acquaintance with a
few primary principles which attach
to the nature and requirements of va
rious soils, is Indispensable to their
intelligent cultivation or manage
ment.
The composition and characteristics
of plants and grains Of different kinds
form another subject which is of very
great Importance to him who makes
their growth a part of his business.
Certain things are necessary i'll the
production of all farm products, but
some require one kind of soil and
treatment, and some another. Each
one demands its own methods in order
to yield the best of its kind in quantity
and quality. Now it is as plain as a
ray of sunshine that he who is in pos
session of such knowledge as this, pos
sesses an advantage over him to whom
it is a sealed book. And thus is seen
4 oe - l,t
vegetable physiology and chemistry.
The conditions which attach to the
soil are almost numberleSs, and many
of them are intricate and occult; but
we know that they are regulated and
governed by laws, us certainly as are
the motions of the planets. The diff
Guilty consists in the discovery of those
laws, and their application under
many and varying circumstances. But
vast strides have been made in this
field during the past century, and agri-
culture, which has hitherto been pur-
sued empirically, has, by the aid of
scientific inquiry and the advancement
of knowledge resulting from it, reached
a point which is not only one of the
wonders Of the age, but is prophetic of
still greater triumphs in the future.
1t was as late as 1910 that Liebig
first began to investigate the secrets of
vegetable and animal life. He had at
that time attained great fame as a
scientific author and teacher, and was
eXcelled by none except the illustrious
Berzelius. The chemical laboratory
founded by him attracted to it students
from every part OF the globe. He was
the first to discover the intrinsic con-
nection between the plants and the
mineral ingredients of the soil, and to
work out the discovery into a system.
These remarks might be extended
almost indefinitely, but it is not our
purpose to enter into an elaborate dis
cussion of the subject. The object in
view is to impress upon our readers,
without being tedious, the value of
knowledge both practical and scientific,
in the prosecution of the diversified
labor required in agriculture, which is
the foundation Of our National pros
perity, and indeed the noblest of all in
dustrial occupations. AS has been
APPLY said by another, whatever adj
vances agriculture, either by mans
hands or his brains, renders him CO.
worker in the fulfillment of the laws
of his Creator Whatever value we
may attach to mere physical force, we
must concede a far higher value to the
mental operation which gives that force
its right direction Western Rural.