The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1880-08-04
Does TiIlnge Promote Rainfau?

Does Tillnge Promote Rainfal?
Mr.. j. Heron Foster, well.known as a
former resident Of Allegheny county, Penn
sylvania, and as an active observer and
publicist, remarks on Mr.. Copely's theory of
"the plough the true rain-persuad r." that
the experience of the last two and half
years in the region of the American Desert
taken Alone would prove the reverse. Mr..
Foster says he
"Lived in the centre of the "desert" for
three and a half years as a pioneer farmer,
and spent year previously in investigating
its capabilities for agricultural use. There
was great promise then. The wheat crop
rpened in 1877 was good, although the pre-
ceding fall was complained of as dry. The
wheat crop of 1878 was cut short fully one
fourth by months of dry weather preceding
the harvest-spring wheat, of course, suffer-
ing most. Of the wheat grown in 1879 very
little was harvested. Some narrowed It
down, hoping to seed the ground again in
that way, but mostly failed; ana this wear
not one bushel will be resped where twenty
were used for seed. This applies, in
main, Mr. Foster believes, to all the west, O.,
half Of Kansas. During the past twenty
months thre has been but fifteen inches
of rain at his home, in Livingstone; and,
during the past ten months, only five inch
es. Yet vast area has been turned
over by the plough which had never be-
fore been worked; and so it would seem that
civilization has but little immediate influence
on the waite --tal. This disastrous state of
things does not vanqush the irrepressible
American spirit. This vast region--the CEN
trail third of Kansas, going from east to west
has now, we fondly hope, seen its worst
days, and with favorable season from this
time forward in 1880, things will be booming
in 1880. But, nevertheless, there are at least
1000 families (?) who will need aid to carry
them through. and enable them to get seed
for few acres Of winter wheat. Ever since
last fall many of the far western counties
Lave had soliciting agents in the eastern end
OF the state, AMI hundreds of tons of con-
trl6utions have been poured westward"
10 which demurrer is entered to the asser-
tain that civilization has no influence upon
rain. The whole history of farming in Texas
from 1924 to this time stands in fiat contra.
diction to Foster 1t is well known that when
the first settlers came here drouths were the
rule and rains the exception. The reverse Is
the case now, and so nicely and consistently
does the law work that while
we find drouths occurring three years
in every five in western Texas where the
lands are scarcely cultivated at all, drouth
does not more frequently happen in the east
ern or thickly settled divisions where farming
and railroading are actively prosecuted than
1t does in Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee.
bays county farmer tells US: ~ came
here IN lo4i, and with four others we were the
hrst white men to get a foothold and main.
tain it against the Comanches. We could
raise nothing except along river bottoms.
for the reason 1t never rained. | have seen il
go tor four straight years at tim without
a drop falling. But now We usually have
plenty, though we make miss occasionally"
He could give no inteli emit reason for this.
saying no "reckoned it Just happened So
But there is no just happened so" bust
ness in the laws of nature. There is a fixed.
immutable, irrepealable law made at the
foundation of the world to govern every
atom and every element on the
earth, in the air, and in the waters beneath
the earth, and the Creator has told you
Enough heaven and earth may pass away
not one lot or title of My law shall be
changed The law of vain is that it falls
under given conditions--and these conditions
are in a measure Supplied by the industry,
ana ingenuity Of man. 1t is known that
rain falls almost invariably after battle and
ii few hours cannonading will bring one
up, 10 1t strange that the smoke, the hustle
and confusion OF towns and
cities, the smoke Of locomotives and rush of
trains, the breaking up OF SOIL and commo.
ton generally ola populated country, will
bring rains almost regularly. And too.
there is something, and great deal. In Prov.
idenee supplying man when and where he
needs IT. And although Providence NAV be
lavish in its gifts to those deserving, it does
not follow that it would waste water upon
the "desert " of Mr.. Foster, no more than
u does upon the sands of Sahara, where all
the waters of the world would not make seed
germinate.
AND that which las been and is now the
experience OF the pioneer farmers of Texas,
was inc experience of the first settlers of every
state N the American union. 1t was
oven the case in California Until that
eouatry ana oregon were turned into agri.
cultural states they had what was termed the
rainy season." term gone out of use
ior " rains there now Nk il does i; Illinois
and Missouri, generally about the time the
crops need 1t. ''''' 'A'
Our deduction Is, when all the unso,t,s
counties west ofus are traversed by RAILWAYS
cut up into farms, and towns and eit;es srr
punt through them, the rains will fall IA th.y
now do in north Texas, and as these nrorros'
rom the start the rainfall will incr ase a,
'hey 90 aud something in exact proportion