Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-16
NEW FARMING METHOD
Mr.. Campbell Tells How to
Do Without Irrigation.
STIRRING UP THE SOIL
MOISTURE KEPT DOWN NEAR THE
ROOTS.
Some Remarkable Instances Of His Sue
cess-Crops Several Times as Large
as Those of Other Men,
STIRRING UP THE SOIL

BY WILLIAM F. CURTIS
Special Correspondence of The Star and Chicago
Record Herald.
HILL CITY. July !. 1908.
! What is known the Campbell meth od
| of dry farming" is being practced on the
| semi-arid plains OF western Kansas and
! eastern Colorado with remarkable success.
, The results accomplished on several model
| farms. under the direction of the inventor.
| discoverer or promoter. whichever you
| may prefer TO call him. are remarkable. and
| are entitled to the respect of everybody
| who is interested in the development of the
| high. dry plains between the Rocky Noun
| tains and the Missouri river. Its advocates
! declare that they have received no en-
| coura cement from the Agricultural Depart
| ment at Washington.
We all believe in ton. of course. 1t
| Is the safest. the most satisfactory and the
most profitable method of farming, but
vast in the centra-western states
cannot be reached by water and the rain
that falls upon them Is not sufficient to
produce crops by ordinary methods. 1t Is
that class of lands which Mr. Campbell is
trying to redeem.
Developing a Model Farm.
Mr. Campbell is at present engaged in
the development of a model farm near the
thriving little town of Hill City. belonging
to Mr. j. F.. PomerOy of Colorado Springs.
| The latter. who came into this country
seventeen or eighteen years ago. has been
| railroad and TOWNSHIP promoter. He has
| between twenty and thirty thousand acres
| of dry land in Graham county which cam
not be reached by irrig ition. and founded
| the town of Hill City at about the center OF
| it. in a beautiful location. He advertised
all nvark
brought home-Seekers and spectators from
every direction on free railroad trains. sofa
| his town lots at auction and gave an over
coat to every purchaser. The town has Deen
quite successful. 1t now has about $40
| inha bitants, an excellent hotel. several me
business blocks filled with stocks of goods'
| two enterprising newspapers ana an the
other essentials of a hrst-ciass 1rontler
| town Just outside the limits Mr.. Pome-
roy fenced off 2lO acres of land about siX
years ago and brought H. W. Campoe.l
! from Holridge. Nebraska, 10 lay on. d
model farm on his system OF SOIL culture.
| Any one who has any doubts of the prac-
ticabilty of the Campbell system shouIo
come here before harvest and compare tne
crops on the Pomeroy farm WIN those
upon the farms that surround IT: LOT ths
WELD of wheat, oats, corn. potatoes ana
everything else that Is growing VIII DE
| four or five times as great as VIII De nai-
vasted on the other side OF the fences
Mr. Campbell has been working IN North
Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Kan
sas for twenty years or more Trying "
| induce farmers to adopt his plan or SOL
cuItura as he calls 1t; and everywhere
| he has been, from the James river III tne
north to the Arkansas. he has peen eauiily
successful In producing without frr1gatioi,
| the same results that are usually eXpecteu
with Irrigation with comparatively little
more expense. but a good deal more care
| and labor There Is no secret about II:
| The whole thing Is simply the exercise VI
care and patience. and any man OF oroi-
| nary Intelligence can work 1t as well as a
college professor could
| Mr.. Campbells principles. as he explain
| ed them to me. are:
Mr.. Campbell's Rules.
7 Catch the rainfall and store 1t where
| the roots Of the plant can reach It,
III. Keep the soil always fine and loose.
III. Have a firm, solid foundation under
| the sofia bottom to hold the water.
| What will this accomplish" l asked.
The careful. regular application OF THESE
| principles in farming Will produce at ieasl
| three times the results of ordinary farm
| ing and often four and five times the re-
suits said Mr.. Campbell.
| What is the additional expense?
in Iowa or eastern Kansas not more
| than % per cent more labor is necessary
| than is usually expended upon crop by
| a good farmer On the prairies, as rule.
| the labor Is necessary. But this is offset
| to a certain extent by saving or two
| thirds of the seed An ordinary farmer
| sows forty quarts of wheat to the acre and
| gets from nothing to twenty bushels. thir-
| teen bushels to the acre being the average
| crop of the state and fifteen bushels the
| highest state average that has been reached
! in Kansas for ten years.
| Under my system any painstaking farmer
| by sowing twelve quarts of wheat to the
| acre and cultivating his soil carefully. Will
| harvest anywhere from forty to f1fty-six
| bushels without fail. We get forty
| bushels to the acre in the foothills of the
| Rocky mountains or anywhere else with
! fourteen inches of rain. You can get the
| same difference in every other plant or
| crop that grows; in grass or fruit or
| flowers.
! This particular farm where l am work.
| ing was cultivated on the old plan four
teen years and never yielded but good
| crop l came here in February. 1890, and
| very soon will harvest my sixth crop.
| have never had less than forty bushels to
| the acre and the crop this year will be
| better than that: while the farmers all
| around me will be glad to get thirteen
| bushels to the acre.
Neighbors Prejudiced and Stubborn.
| why don't they take up your method?
| because they stubborn and preju-
| diced; there is a popular dislike to new
| tangled notions Before / came here it was
| advertised for six weeks that l would ex-
meeting. / did so. and out of court
| house full Of farmers. only two men-John
l. Osman and s. S. Iisey-adopted my rec
mmendatio and they have been almost
| as successful as myself. They have had fine
crops ever since, but the rest of the farm
Crs would not even ask questions Most OF
bow,