The Springfield herald., 1897-02-19


profitable trains; the farmers left the
country in great numbers, and those
who remained maintained n losing
fight against the odds of scanty rain
fall and hot winds. IL seemed that the
country was doomed to revert again to
the state of n sparsely settled region,
exclusively devoted to stock raising
But now come these Western rail
way lines with the great grain com
panies of Minneapolis as their allies,
and joining hands with the drouth-
stricken settler, enter under the leader
ship of n philosopher named III. w.
Campbell, n resident of Sioux City,
Iowa. For year or so past the papers
have contained references to the
Campbell method" of farming in the
dry belt. and the model farms operated
under it. Recently popular interest
has been revived from the announce
ment through the newspapers of the
fact that the enlightened management
of the Burlington n Missouri River
Railway in Nebraska had established
n chain of model farms extending from
Hastings, Nebraska, to Oberlin, Kan
sas, to be operated under the Campbell
method next year. A sketch of the
Campbell method cannot fail to inter
est the general reader, and especially
have made investments in the sub
humid belt.
Hardy w. Campbell settled near Alb
erdeen, South Dakota, during the
"boom' times of the early sos. He
was by turns n land agent. hotel keeper
and farmer. and in all these occupa-
tions suffered from the drouths. as did
every resident of the territory. Others
said: when the country gets older we
shall get more rain" or 1T is always
so in new country; just look at the
history of the states further east"
But, though possessed of his full share
of Western optimism, Mr.. Campbell
mixed with it good share of saving
common sense. He studied climatic
conditions and became convinced that
the country he had settled in always
has been, is now and ever will be n
region of scanty precipitation, and that
climatic conditions in the main do not
change. In short, he acknowledged the
fact that the conditions We're such as to
make ordinary farming n failure.
But he went further He calculated
that, with an annual precipitation of
not far from twenty inches of water,
crops ought to be successfully grown
every year unless the water is used up
some way aside from the growth of
plants. An inch of water weighs in
excess of 100 tons an acre. and twenty
inches more than 1000 tons. A grow
ing plant does not need more than 300
times its dry weight. 1t is very good
crop, indeed. which, dried, weighs more
than thirty tons an acre. Therefore
300 tons ought to be enough for the
actual use of any crop. The reader
sees, as Mr.. Campbell saw. that even
after growing n good crop LOO tons
of water ought to be left over. unless
somehow the water had slipped away
and played truant.
1t took him very short time indeed
to discover the paramour with which
the odd / 100 tons of water eloped. i'm
PEELED by the ardours of the Dakota
summer. 1t is that prairie breeze, 80
fresh, so free" which poets have so
highly praised. In the spring the
''semi-arid belt" blossoms as the rose,
under the influence of the vernal rains
But June, July and August bring hot
winds which lick up the moisture, sap
the vitals of the growing plant, and
cause the evil effects of drought How
to carry crops over this period was the
problem to which he addressed him
self.
For ten years he observed, studied
and experimental. At last, after en-
during all the trials which usually fall
to the lot of the reformer, he evolved
the Campbell method" and is now
teaching it to the West, assisted by
many men of prominence, all confident
that by it that range of sub-humid
states stretching from North Dakota To
Texas will be made as reliable agri-
culturally speaking. as Iowa and Hi
nois,
The Campbell method is Il reform in
tillage. 1t rests on three foundation
stones deep plowing, Sub-Surface
packing, frequent shallow surface cul.
tlvation. The objects of these opera
tions are to form an ample reservoir In
the root-bed for moisture. to promote
capillary attra action, to draw up moist
ure from beneath and to prevent the
escape of moisture by evaporation
from the surface.
The prairie soils have lain for cen
turtles in the same position, and arc
filed with channels washed out by the
downward movement of moisture by
capillarity. This old structure is brok
en- up in deep plowing-not subsoiling
but ordinary blowing from seven tc
nine inches deep. But any sort of
blowing leaves cavities in the ground
The furrow-slice is loosened up as II
turns, and some treatment il necessary
to give the soil that homogeneous firm
ness necessary to the retention of q
large quantity of moisture. Mr.. Camp
bell tried the roller. 1t would not do
1t packed the surface enormously
heavy, it left the bottom cavities m
affected. SO he invented sub-surfacc
packing, the one new thing he has Civ
en- to agriculture. He invented a too
which firmly packs the sub-surfaces
and leaves the upper four inches loose
He gives his audiences directions for
doing this work with the ordinary
tools of the farm. but. no doubt. spc
cial tools will always be used where
large fields are TO be economically
packed This packing is done only once
II year and costs only 20 cents per acre
or'labor.
The ground is subjected TO frequcni
shallow cultivation to prevent M
cyapoTitiun Of moisture Every farm