The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1882-11-09
A GREAT FARMER,
what May he Dono on n Poor ~. -,
II. ". Grady in atlanta G.,,;,,,;,

,o!i ne was bright and brainy senator ;r
1915, and-led the capitol camna;o,
3gainst Atlanta-was mentioned e.,
Congress and always esteemed him "' q.
1ne one OF the best equipped and most cana. "
Die of cur young politicians. a pn fe'r
years ago he quit politics and won, m "
farming. heard that he bad se,,Ind ~. ~
arI INN piece OF land with poor prospects,
,hon,ah. Iuu, .h common with many Of his friends
'hought he had dropped out Of affairs.
AZ the last agricultural convention he
o,ei.llhea .;, the old farmers of the State
! sitn tue details Of the uie-t ss.o.Di;ns
i've years farming ever done in a south.
erh state, and isto.day more talked about
IN u, The State than if he had served in
congress twenty years.
nave heard the record of his wonder.
lul work several times within the mat
ieW months, and the comment with which
IL Is usually greeted is, "I don't believe
IL. lslmply say that have the authori.
y OF at least three excellent gentleman
points: "s n'"'n
furman started work with sixtv. five
.'sies OF the very poorest land in middle
ueorgia hve years ago. The first wear he
iiaoe q eight bales Of cotton on the sixtv-
nSe acres: or less than ene bale 10 eick.
ac[es. Ihls shows that it was the poorest
of scrub land. ~ foo' e''
Ihe second year he put 500 pounds of
compost to the acre, and made twelve
oales OF cotton where he made eight be.
fore. .'s"' w.
The third year he used 900 pounds NJ
compost 20 the acre, increased the Weld
bales. ' I'll 60
The fourth year he used 1000 pounds
OF compost 10 the acre, and increased his
crop to forty y.sever bales on sixty. five
acres.
The fifth year he used 1000 younds of
compost. to the acre, and his crop ia Ger.
'a'nly above eighty bales to the sixty. five
acres, and may reach 100 bales.
de has done all this work with two
plows and eighteen days extra plcwipg.
His official and detailed statement shows
that the total expenses were $4,000. and
his net profit 2,725, fine record on a
two horse farm. In addition the land
that was worth S5 I'll acre five years ago.
Is now worth 800 an acre. So with two
mules this year he has raised at least
eighty bales of cotton, 1000 bushels of
oats and 400 bushels of corn.
lsn't that better record than he could
have made in Congress? Hasn't he done
the State more G. I'd by this demonstration
than ne could by ten years of political
speeches
WHAT MR.. FURMAN SAYS ABOUT 1T.
l. had talk with Furman to day. He
is the very picture of health, prosperity
and Intelligent enthusiasm. With a
perfectly independent income, and the
secret of better one in his hand, hs is
truly happy man. He aaiti 10 mo:
when determined to so ~ :arrisss.
five years ago, saw .hst ii would noi do
to farm in thc sd wgy. ] cav farmers
getting pncfsr 9yeTy day, though they
worked like slaves. saw them starving
their lands So that each year their yield
:'as scantier, aud their farms less vslua.
bic. saw that it was still the Ilow fol.
lowing the Ak, and that as fnst as q far.
mer starved one piece OF land he cleared out
q new piece. With 100000 immigrants
pouring into This country annually, and
the public domsin virtually pre.emptied,
realized that this wasteful system must
stop somewhere and soon. Worse than
oil, saw that my own land rented TO
small farmers was IS per cent. poorer and
less valuable, than it was few years ago,
and that it would soon cease to paw me
rent. knew that Georgia was blessed
with the best conditions of season and
soil, and that if properly treated it would
yield large results.
~ therefore selected sixty Eve acres of
tha 10 hnl 4
The first thing, of course, was to enrich
the soil. To do this there was but one
way to feed it, and to give it more food
than the crops took from it, and above all
to give it the proper food. I knew that
certain phosphate manures stimulated
the soil 80 that it produced heavy crops
for while and then fell off. I wanted
none of this. l did not believe in soil
analysis. That was not exact enough.
TESTING THE APPETITE OF THE EARTH.
"What wanted was to know exactly
what perfect cotton plant took from. the
soil. That ascertained, then to restore
to the soil exactly those elements in lar
ger quantity than the crop had abstract
ed them. This is the basis of intensive
farming, and it will always give land that
is richer year after year. had cotton
plant analyzed, and found that needed
eight elements in my manure, of which
commercial fertilizers furnished only
three and the soil only one. I therefore
determined to buy chemicals and mix
them with humus, muck, decayed leaves,
stable manure and cotton seed till had
secured exactly what was needed. I did
so, and at last produced perfect compost
for cotton. then ascertained that my
crop of eight bales had taken out of each
acre Of my land as much of the constit-
Ients of cotton as was held in $50 pounds
of my compost. I therefore put 500
pounds of compost on each acre, restor-
ing double what the crop of the year be-
fore had taken out. The result was that
l made four bales extra. then restored
double what the twelve bales had taken
out and made twenty three bales. I
doubled the restoration next year and
got forty-seven bales. l doubled again,
and this year have at least eighty bales"
"But does this extra maEuring pay?"
"Immensely. Here are my figures
1000 pounds of my compost cost $7.25 or
Is. go a thousand pounds. The first year
put 500 pounds to the acre-cost $l.S0
an acre, or Sill for sixty. FIVE acres. But
my crop rose from eight to twelve bales,
the extra four bales giving me $500 sur
plus, or $83 net on my manure. Next
year my manure 1000 pounds to acrc)
cost S235; but my crop increased TO TWEEN.
ty.three bales from eight on unmanured
land. These extra bales gave me $3.50 or
net profit on manure of $5.l6. The next
year used 1000 pounds per acre at
cost of $7.25 an acre, or $47l for total.
But my crop went fran eight to forty.
seven bales, giving increased income OF