The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1904-12-08
WAYS OF THE
EARTHWOlNI

Earthworms. says the st. Louis Globe
Democrat. have "A reason for being ever
80 much more important than TO serve
as bait Tor fishermen For an their lowly
estate, Few creatures have done more for
mankind. Earthworms are not merely
the original plowmeu-~they haNe brought
about the condition OF the earths surface
that makes other plowing possible and
Field crops. for the most part. grow and
feed upon vegetable hlouiu-the layer OF
warm. light. Drackish earth resting upon
the subsoi. Save by grace OF the earth
worm. vegetable mould would exist only
in those places where dead leaves and de-
cdylng grOWths generally resolve them
cartnWurm. which may be described as
an embodied appetite. eats everything
animal matter, green IeaYes and dead
ones, twigs. leaf stalks. small stones and
cartn. lne residlum OF all he casts up on
the surface az the rate throughout pas
tures and garden ground Of. per acre.
some ten tons a year. Continue the pro-
cess hundred years. or even fifty. and
many inches Of fine friable productive
soil result.
Beyond that, their burrows let down
light and air from the subsoil. Some
times the burrows run six feet deep. In
winter the worms hibernate in roundish
chambers at the bottom. The chambers
are lined with very small stones or hard.
rounded secd a dozen worms sleep to-
gether knotted into n squirming BAH. Ii
Is only in the winter sleep that they are
thus Eregarious. At other times they 20
IN pairs. Though they do not in cap
tivity appear very sensible Of either cold
or heat. IN hot. dry weather thew 20 al
most as far down as they DO IN ss.lter
Eyeless, they have yet certain per-
cepton Of light. Ietreating before II 70
their burrows. Vibration also affects
them-hence, say the country folk. the
woodcocks habit Of drumming 10 call
them out Of the ground. Their sense OF
smell is acute. and hy the help on IL they
ind their food, either buried or lying
upon the surface. AS soon as Il Is found
the worms drag IL TO the blrrow. They
ringcd bodies and hy literally eating out
the eartr ahead. The digestive apparatus
includes a crop and gizzard. like those OF
birds After the manner Of birds. the
ri1zards are kept supplied with small
stones 60 serve as millstones IN grinding
Gown the food.
The burrows are plastered AN round
with the finely cheWed earth and keen
shape often long after they are unten-
anted From the dead leaves which make
so large a part OF their food the worms
secrcte humus acids which attack and
help 90 dissolve tht rocks buried in the
sol Thus the earthwurms not merely
transform the soil chemically and me-
chanically but add TO the bulk Of it--Sincc
soil IA every kind comes from the disinfn-
grafton OF rocks. Further many leaves
drlrged down iutn the burrows are only
partly eaten. and. decaying, furnish gases
which permcate the soil and react upon
its mineral clement
Earthworms are the best allies Of those
gentlemen the antiquaries. coin. an
arrow head. "A speaf point. an inscribed
slab a tesselated pavement, they bury.
surely. safely. TO await the day Of resur-
rection The hurying is done in two
ways-hy castings spread above tho thing
to be buried. and by undermining the soil
beneath. Earth honeycombed with bur
rows sinks In times of heavy rain or
frost Thus IN course Of thousand
years an object may be many feet under
the surface yet remain exactly as Il fell
Indeed the wise men declare the earth
worms. IN the mass serve to keep the
whole face Of the planet in a state OF
gradual evolution.