The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1882-1884, 1883-03-01
and 400 bushels of corn.

and 400 bushels of corn.
Isn't that a better record than he
could have made in Congress
Hasn't he done the State more gOoi
by this demonstration than he could
have done by ten years of political
speeches
WHAT MIR. FURMAN SAYS ABOUT 1T.
l had a talk with Furman to-day.
He is the very icture of. health. pros
nerity and intelligent enthu siasm.
With a perfectly independent income,
and the secret of a better one in his
hand. he is truly happy man. He
said to me:
When l determined to go to far
ming. five years ago. | saw that it
would not do to farm in the ol way.
| saw farmers around me getting
poorer every day. though they work
ed like slaves. | saw them starving
their land so that each year their
yield was scantier, and their farms
less valuable. saw that it was still
the plow following the AK. and that
as fast as a farmer starved one piece
of land he cleared out new piece.
" it'll 100000 immigrants pouring in.
to this country annually. and the
public domain virtually pre-empted.
realized that this wasteful sl stem
must stop somewhere and soon.
Worse than all. | saw that nv own
land rented to small farmers
WAS Z5 PER CENT. POORER AND LESS
VALUABLE
than it was few years ayO, and that
it would soon cease to pay 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-fve acres
of the poorest land | had and went
to work. 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 fool than the
crops took from it. aud above all to
give it the proper food. knew that
certain pho -phatic manures stimnlat-
ed the soil SO that it produced heavy
crops for Il while and then fell off.
| wanted none Of this. did no. he
lieve in soil ANALYSIS. That was not
exact enough.
TESTING THE APPETITE OF TT E
EARTH
What | wanted was to know eX-
actlv what u perfect cotton plant
took form the soil. That asce rtalned,
then to restore to the soil exactly
those elements in larger quantity
than the crop had abstracted them.
This is the basis Of intensive farming.
and it will always give land tnat is
richer year after year. | nad a cot
ton plant aual vsis. and found that
i need al eight elements in my ma
nnre, OF which commercial fertilizers
furnish only three and the soil only
one. 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. l did SO,
and at last produced a pc. feet com
post for cotton. | then aScertalne
that my crop Of eight bales had tax
en- out of each acre Of my land as
much of the constituents Of cotton
as was held in 25O pounds of my
compost. | therefore put 800 pounds
! of compost on each acre, restoring
double what the crop OF the year be-
fore had taken out. he result was
that [ made four bales extra. | then
restored double what tile twelve bales
had taken out and made twenty-three
nales. | doubled the restorislo the
next year and got forty seven bales
| doubled again, ami this year have
at least eighty bales"
but does this extra manurln2
pay -
.Immensely. Here are my fignres
-2.OUO poun Is of nv compost cost
1925 or So 90 thousand pounds
The first year put 500 pounds te
the acre-cost 81 80 an acre. or 81
for sixty five acres. But my crol
rose from ght to twelve bal,s. the
extra four bales giving me S2OO sur
plus. or $S3 net on my manure. NeX'
year my manure 1900 pounds tt
acre) cos, $3.50; but my crop increas
ed to twenty three bales from eight
on unmanmed land. 1l.ese extr;
bales gave M $3.50 or net profit on
manure of $5l6 The next year nseo
1000 pounds per acre at cost OF SIZE
an acre. or SAL for total. But my
crop went from eig.t to forty -se>ei
bales, giving increased income OF ST.
$50, or net over cost OF manure al
about 81 500. This year | u,ed 4.OOt
pounds to the acre costing Si4.oO. OF
$942 for total manure But my crol
is at least eighty bales with this ma
nure. where it was eight without
This increase Of seventy.two bales Is
worth $500. Deduct cost OF manure
$942 and we have $3.50 as the prom
on use of manure.
"And then The land is SO muci
richer
Certainly. II is worth 500 al
acre, where it was form riy worth 50
You must credit the manure witt
this