The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1878-06-20
Miscellaneous.
r,p THE FARMER AND MECHANIC.
A D r S
r.. Willis Lewis Before the
Godwyn Agricultural Club
Of Granville County.
OE

,r+ad 10 select Il subject Tor dis
l.on 1T the present meeting.
~ .nhiect selected Is one of much
.i.,obt and perhaps of more i'm
.,.uce ut the present time han
l, might have chosen. 1t is
"" rntat!on of crops, with an eve,
h improvement of the soil.
F.. The discussion Of this subject,
49,. first question that meets us is,
,.hsri #. soil: 2nd what is earth and
f. what is it formed Now sir
these are subjects which have
ruzzled scientists from the begin
n.na Of time. biologists | believe
lave all united in one opinion that
the earth which we now live upon,
WAS originally, solid rock, and was
formed by the gradual disintegra-
ron Of the rock by the action of the
mir. moisture &c. Can this be so !?
hit is, what becomes of the posi-
I'VE assertion to the contrary found
in the first chapter and 9th and
ruth verses of Genesis. "And
Gud said let the waters under the
Heavens be gathered together unto
one place and let the dry land APP
pear, and it was So" "And God
called the dry land earth" In
the llth verse of the same chapter,
v,u find hat God said, ''let the
earth bring forth grass, the herb
Welding fruit after his kind whose
seed is in itself upon the earth and
IL was So" Il verse "And the
earth brought forth grass and herb
uc.iing seed after his kind and
the tree Yielding fruit, whose seed
was in itself after his kind Now
all this was accomplished IN the
short space of three days and
nights. If this be SO what becomes
Of the theory of disintegration of
rock, taking perhaps a million of
years to make bushel of earth?
Yet 1t may be SO. For no man can
tell what length of ime was con
tanned in an evening and morning
which was a day. | am disposed
to think Mr.. President, that Geol-
ogy has over reached itself. But
enough of this. He is called a ben
efactor who can make two blades
Of grass grvw where only one grew
before. We are here placed &C
cording TO geology on a dissolved
rock possessing all the elements OF
inorganic food for plants, or we
are here placed upon a globe &C
cording to sacred history endowed
with all the principles both organic
and inorganic matter; which sup
ply plant food except that which
they receive from the atmosphere.
| mean sir, we are here on the earths
surface where our lands have IN a
great degree become exhausted OF
all of those essential principles
which was so abundant in our VIZ
Gin soils. Look round us on every
side, wherever we go we see the
same sterile broom sedge hen-Eest
grass. stareing us in the face, like
It sick man lmrloriny his physician
to come to his relief. Now we are
all doctors and all have more p'-
TENTS. than we can attend to, IN
other words we are land sick. If
We could make up minds to
turn all of our lands into money
save $50 or 200 acres and spend a
portion of the surplus IN the i'm
provement of the balance, by get
ting such implements to prepare
the land for improvement. 1t is
worse than folly to expect to m
prove land which has had its sur
face cropped and scratched to the
depth of ; II t inches for perhaps
an hundred years without manure,
unless we plough deeper. There
are but few farms that have not
lands that will not bear from II to
is inches deep. Are you afraid of
the clay: YOU will be much sur
prised when | tell you that there
are but little unwashed lands IN
this country that has not from 4 to
Il" rs of soil, but the first half
found to be nearly exhausted
N, } deeper and find a farm bet
ter perhaps than yc"r virgin soils.
Why should you fear clay; or what
farmers call clay? 1t is only the sub
'' icher in all of the ingredients
Il lich the surface soil was com
ill., and sometimes more. Clay
i The acts as a fine manure, espec-
S when it is applied in the
Il, when it will become dlsln
lie ted by the frost. Then | say
eve st step is deep ploughing,
SOW peas first of May, turn
the last of July. Sow again
"> soon as possible, turn under the
second crop the last of September
Or before frost. Your lands will