The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-12-15
FARMER WILSON TALKS
Walter Wellman Interviews the
Secretary of Agriculture.
CONDITIONS IN THE SOUTH.

Observations ON = Recent Trip Through
Alabama and Georgia-The One Crop
Idea-roo Much Corn and Too Much Cot.
ton-Progress In Agricultural Education
WASHINGTON, Dec. lS.-fSpecial. SEQ.
rotary Wilson of the agricultural depart
ment is most interesting talker. When
ever he goes away on u trip, he keeps his
eyes and ears open, and on his return usu-
ally embodies his observations i'm an inter
view or an article. His hobby is doing
something for the farmer. He believes
there is great work TO be done in lifting
up the agricultural interests of this coun-
try, and certainly no man ever worked
harder or moro effectively i'm that cause
than he. Mr.. Wilson has recently returned
from a journC.J to Alabama and Georgia,
the first visit he ever paid to those states,
and he kindly consented to give me tho
| result of his observations and inquiries
THE first thing by which L was inn
| pressed in that region, he said, "was the
| number and the size of the rivers. This
means heavy rainfall. The rainfall there
| is nearly double that of the northwest. The
south is abundantly watered. Want of
moisture is not likely to annoy the people
there. They have plenty of heat too, and
heat and moisture together cause a rapid
decomposition of organic matter For this
reason the surface of the soil in the south
looks rs if it were barren, but, as mat
ter of fact, it is a warm, quick and re-
sponsiye soil. 1t is well known, of course,
that in all tropical or subtropical coun-
tries the soils have their plant foods car
ried downward by a mechanical action.
giving the surface sterile appearance. All
these things suggest that the soil of the
south requires more careful, delicate treat
ment than The colder and less frequently
moistened soil Of the north.
Running on Cine Crop.
sit is quite common in all of our states
where producers have limited means"
continued the secretary, "to see much
more attention paid TO one crop than
should be. For years past the wheat
raisers OF the United States have raised
too much wheat At the present time tho
corn growers are producing too much
corn. They have to compete with the corn
growers of all the world, the market is
glutted and prices are brought below the
remunerative point. The southern states
have this difficulty. One thing that has
retarded the prosperity of the south is they
are 10 such a great extent a one crop people
They have grown cotton, and they con-
tinue to grow cotton, till the price is be-
low cents pound, and at that rate there
is no money in it.
81 found on inquiry that Georgia grows
every year about 300, 600 bales of cotton
and something like 100000 tons of cotton
seed. Alabama produces about 1 ,000,00
bales Of cotton and 425, 900 tons of seed.
Now, less than 20 per cent of this seed is
in lah nd pot
more in Georgia. Cottonsced meal is the
most heterogeneous byproduct in the world
unless it be dried blood. 1t has greater
per cent of heterogeneous matter than oil
cake from the oil mills, gluten meal from
the glucose factories, bran from she flour
mill or any other product from any mill.
Wasted Nitrogen.
"To illustrate the value of the nitroge-
nous matter found In cotton let mo say
that during the last fiscal year this coun-
try shipped abroad nearly 500, 900 head of
cattle. Now, the cottonseed of Georgia and
Alabama alone would furnish heterogeneous
matter to the feed of all these cattle. The
best thing the people of the south could do
with the byproduct of their cotton is to
feed it to cattle for market, mixing it, of
course, with proper carbonaceous matter
in the shape of corn fodder, johnson grass,
Bermuda grass, cottonseed hulls, oat,
wheat and rye straw and other such foods. !
But instead of doing this the southern
people ship their byproduct and sell it at
low prices to more enterprising people In
other sections. The New Highlander re-
cuperates his weary soil with cotton meal
from the south. The northwestern farm
er buys it for fattening his stock. The
English farmer, who has for centuries
been searching the world for just such q
fertilizer, imports it and feeds it to
bunch of cattle, not because there is profit
in the cattle, but for the sake of enriching
his soil. OF course it takes time to do all
things, and the people of the south will
have to learn. / remember story of a
traveller from America who greatly ad-
mired a thick, rich lawn which he saw in
England.
How do you grow such llne grass?'
he asked the caretaker.
'It is wedding and wedding and ma
nuring and manuring for 800 years that
has made this ere lawn, replied the man.
Progress In Alabama.
"But the people of the south are begin
ming at the right end and are keenly alive
to the situation which confronts them.
They know they must take better care Of
their soils and have more effective farm
ing. The state of Alabama surprised and
delighted me with the progress they are
making in agricultural and industrial
education. At Montgomery and at Hunts
Vile they have two colleges for colored
young people where just these very things
are taught At TusEeece they have an in
stitution in " hich oolored boys and girls
are taught the trades ns well as agricul-
ture. In addition the state Is providing for
a school of agriculture in cach congress
sional district. / do not believe any other
state in the Union is doing as much to-
ward the education Of It's PEOPLE along
useful agricultural lines as Alabama. The
educated white men there are enthusiastic
i'm the work OF eduCaiihg the colored young
men and women. They recognize the fact
that these are their people, their iaboring
class. They will always be there, as emil
grafton OH any large scale IL out of tho
question. The people of Alabama arc
carrying on this work in n manner very
creditable to them.
cat Tuskc2ce, for instance, 700 students
are being taught TO make wagons, to shoe
a