Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1900-02-17

u.
ing so bushels per acre. The entire
growth of this crop. up to June IL,
was from moisture stored and held in
the soil by our methods of cultivation
from the rains which fell in 1897 and
1898. Crops by the common method
were ii total loss by drouth in that
country i'm '99.
The method of culture is the result
of many years of study and expert
menting on my own farm in Brown
county, South Dakota, where / locat-
ed in 1879, where the soil formation
is practically the same as in Kansas.
My crops in 1880, 1881, and 1882 were
very remarkable. From 300 acres OF
wheat in 1882 | harvested over 1900
bushels, the result OF an exceptional
/ ly favorable season, but in 1888 the
crop was very light, some not worth
cutting. Other like results followed.
! Then began the battle. Could | con-
quer these results, or must | leave
J that magnificent soil, as Others were
doing. and say it WAS no good? For
fully five years / made little or no
I progress in my experiments What
seemed right one year WIS wrong the
next year. But then seemed to have
hit upon an idea that was correct
every year, that OF packing the
4 lower portion of deep furrow slice.
/ ihen followed the frequent cultiva-
ton of the surface which prevented
I the evaporation OF the soil moisture
or rainfall. and in 1892 | began to tell
TIE t;ifrners That drouth could lie con
troilcd aud crop failure prevented
4 In 1894, the record breaker for crop
failure by drouth from the Canadian
! line to the Gulf of Mexico. l came out
( with good corn, wheat, barley and po-
tatoes, having that year b acres of
pu!atoes that yielded i42 bushels per
acre, wluie ncighboring fields were
not dug at all, being worthless.
Up to this time l had no idea of
going before the people. but this crop
result reached the ears of the North
ern Pacific railway management and
L was persuaded to direct experiment
tai work at five points on their line in
North Dakota. Two of the five were
very satisfactory III results; one at
GlenuIlen. 40 miles west of the Mis-
souri, river; the ether at Lisbon, I20
miles east of the Missouri. The fol-
lowing year my+ime was divided be-
tween five points on the Northern Pa
citic in North Dakota and four on the
Burlington railway in Nebraska,
Northwest Kansas tat point above
mentioned), and Eastern Colorado.
The next year | directed 43 expert
mental fields on four different rail
roads in five different states, mainly
in Nebraska and North Dakota Try
irg to do this work by proxy through
other men by occasional visits to the
different farms was a failure rs rule.
1 then saw that the interest of the
public was on the decline, except
where the work was successful.
In the fall of 1895 l decided to con-
duct no more work to be known pub
lIcly as experiments or demonstra-
tious until L could interest capital in
IL plan of sufficient magnitude to pay
me to personally to devote my entire
time to thorough work for IL series of
years. The season of '99 was largely
spent in bringing tins about. In No
NctnDeI l. Csll1lc IOICtl Will MI 81
p. Pomeroy with large land interests
in Graham county, and we were not
long IN coming together, and though
work is already under way. L wish to
call attention to one important point
that il is impossible to- get the best
results the first year. Each years cul-
tivation and conservation of moisture
improves the condition of the soil
and increases the soil moisture so
that the second and third crops will
be better and more certain even with
the same effort and care. as was
shown by the continuous work at
Lisbon, n D.. where the first crop of
corn was ~ bushels, the second 50,
and the third 80 bushels. The work
is simple, but must not be neglected
and must be thoroughly done at the
right time and in proper manner
1t is not only necessary that the