Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1880-10-13
More About the Price Of Fertilizers.

More About the Price Of Fertilizers.
Mr.. Ward of Massachusetts,, referring TO
our remarks Introductory of his previous
letter, writes again as follows In regard
to the remark you make that even at that
rate (the valuation Of the analysts which al
lows the manufacturer one hundred per cent
profit on nitrogen in fertilizers) few of the
standard fertilizers come up in value to the
market price, it is so, aud in Georgia, where
probably more fertilizers are used than in
any other state, the following appears in Cir
cular No. 80, of the state commissioner of
agriculture:
ANALYSIS OF FERTILIZERS.
OF various fertilizers 1924 tons of 1876
brands, were sold in Georgia in 1877.
Their average commercial value was.....per ton sails
The average time price was
The average cotton option price was
"The commissioner Tin estimating the COM
mercial value as above) reckons potash at
eight cents a pound against valuation of
four cents by the Connecticut experiment
atoms are triAng. The average cash price
on these 1924 tons was 1852 per ton more
than the commercial value" upon the lib
eral basis which allows at least one hundred
per cent profit on the heterogeneous materials
and more than that on the potash This
extra profit amounted to S720,344, drawn in
one year from the farmers of a single state.
In view of these facts is it not time rem
islative protection, laws should be passed
that will effect the object As it now is they
are defrauded under color of law They
suppose that the law lin states having fer
tilizer laws) protects them, instead of which
they are misled by those 0he state chemists)
in whom they have put their trust, and who
have been the originators of the laws that
have been passed"
We are by no means disposed to quarrel
with the chemists on this matter. We
believe they have worked in the inter-
est of the farmers, and certainly the chem
ist of Connecticut Station has frankly stated
through him that we have come to know of
the generalization of organic nitrogen in fig
uring the so-called commercial value" of
manufactured fertilizers. And he carefully
explains that he uses that term only because
such is the average price which farmers have
been obliged to pay for organic nitrogen in
nearly every manure they buy except Peru
Wan Guano. The trouble is not with the
agricultural press which, fearing to offend
advertisers, will not reproduce these facts
and urge them upon their readers attention.
Very few of the farmers, even of Connecti-
if any newspaper besides ours has ever d.
rected the notice of its readers to this mat
ter, we have failed to observe it.
But while farmers continue to waste such
vast values in the organic nitrogen, potash
and phosphoric acid of their liquid manure
by allowing it to run off or to soak into the
earth beneath their stables, how can we ex-
pect them, as a class to be shrewd or close
They know too little about these matters,
and pay too little attention to them for their
own interest. If the liquid elements of
their manure were closely economised by
the farmers of Vermont, very few of them
would feel any pressing need to buy COM
mercial fertilizers. But if they did wish to
extend their tillage, or to improve their
meadows and pastures beyond what might
be done when all home resources are made
available to the utmost, they would, by the
experience they had gained in saving and
applying their own fertilizing material, soon
become good judges of the value of anything
they might buy for the purpose. In these
times farmers cannot afford to permit such
wastes with the idea of replacing them with
purchased manures upon which the makers
calculate to charge one hundred per cent
profits. But If we should inform ourselves
of the real value of the wasted portions of
our stable manure we might soon learn that
at the price we are paying for phosphates
the urine of every COW is, chemically speak
ing, worth at least ten dollars year. Then,
when we had saved this waste material and
applied it to our crops, we should be able to
satisfy ourselves of its actual agricultural
value. If we found that to fall short of ten
dollars to the COW, we might be sure that
every bag or barrel of boughten fertilizers
would fall short at least as much in return
ing dollar for dollar to the purchaser. The
more we study this question of manures the
more we shall know about it. Farmers can
not afford to be ignorant on so vital matter