The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-05-04
Investigations by the
U. S. Agricultural Department.
Needs of the Soil Can be Determined
Without a Few Wee&-Several
Charters Granted by the state.
Great Council Of North Carolina L.
o. II. VI. to Assemble In Raleigh
Next Week.
Messenger Bureau,
Raleigh. n c. Aurii % 1906

l1AS Mai 4 0lC Nd&o VILLA Live
stock Mutual Insurance Company at
lLouisburg, for the conduct OF a BUSH
mess Of this type and without capital
stock, on a purely mutual plan. lncor-
porators are J.. B. Thomas. S. B. Burt,
IS. P. Boddie, and others OF L~ouisburg
and Franklin county. The Forest Hill
buggy and General Repair Co. Con-
Icord, with c. A. Forest and others, of
Concord, has $4,000 pa.d in pat o. a
total authorized capital stock of $50. 900.
The Durham Chamber OF Commerce,
without capital stock and 20 promote
the interests of that city. names as in
Icorporators General j. S. Carr, E. ].
Parish, ". H. McCabe, J. S. Hill, Jones
Fuller and others. The Southern Pines
Country Club, at Southern Pines. au-
Ithorized capital stock s., 900. and 81
200 paid in. lncorporatOrs are B. Won
lHerff, New York; w. P. SWEET and Il
number of others of Southern Pines.
The Peoples Bank of Brevard, n. c.,
will conduct i savings and commercial
business, and has s14,G 0 subscribed In
ia total capitalization of 500, 900. r. <.
Clarke, w. z. Whitmire, and others, of
Brevard, are inoorporators.
The Southern Wheel Co, Oxford. be-
Igins with 100000 of an authorized cap
lital stock Of 800, 900. J. G. Hall, Z. T.
white, Oxford, and other parties from
New York are the incOrporators.
A meeting of state wide interest will
lbe held in Raleigh next Wednesday,
when the Great Council of North Caro-
lima |. o. r. NJ, will assemble in the
local wigwam. A large attendance is
Expected A special team from Nor
folk, Va, will exemplify the work.
OcOneechee Tribe No. l, of the Red
Men, last night voted $3.50 to the
iCalifOrnia earthquake sufferers.
The bureau Of soils of U. S. agricui-
ltural department is conducting some
Extremely curious and interesting in
designations Of soils at Raleigh, the
work being done in conjunction with
the State Experiment Station. It is
very difficult to describe the work, but
this in an effort to put it plainly be-
fore the people: The investigation
CONSISTS of a research into the ferti-
lliZer requirements OF soils and the
method is a new one recently devel-
Ioped by the Bureau of Soils. About
200 pounds of soil is used for the COM
Iplete test. The sample is taken from
1.-THE field in a natural condition, the
depth not exceeding that OF the roots
pf The plant, usually mixed and used
without allowing it to dry out, this
preventing any chemical or bacteria
logical changes which might take.
|place. An u%ntreated portion of this
soil is used with each experiment. 1t
is weighed out, the fertilizer added and
it is then made up to what is known
as its proper water content" 1t is
now ready to be placed in pots, the
latter consisting simply Of a wire
frame which is repeatedly dipped into
melted araffne, until the latter forms a
perfect coat. This virtually forms the
lpOts. the walls of which are composed
of soil cemented with paraffine, which
allOws no shrinking away of the sol,
from the side of the pots. This causes
a uniform distribution Of oot in the
|soil and shows the effects Of the var
rious treatments much more clearly
than do cultures in ordinary pots,
where most Of the roots come to
lie between the soil surface and that
~ NAO PoN- Ian 40 SuOAA o1Oo 60
AN indicator of the productivity of soils.
but any of the grains or cotton. are
ledually suitable. Seeds already
!sprouted are planted in a row across
the center of each pot, and a thin
layer of sand placed upon them, 70
Iprevent excessive evaporation. When
the plants are several inches high tie
surface. except that Immediately ad-
,~.-,-w 49, . e H. -
covered with a thin coat Of parafine,
(which preserves all evaporation from
the soil, no moisture passing out ex-
Icept hat which the plants themselves
ltranspire. The pots are round, those
fused in the preliminary tests being
three inches high and of about the
same diameter, each holding about a
pound Of soil. Five pots are used
for each special treatment, six wheat
Iplants being in each pot. While the
lpiants are in their pots their condition
lis carefully watched and the moisture
IconLent kept constant, by weighing al
Intervals for four days. The expert
lmenJs continue from four TO five weeks
the small pots not holding sufficient
Isoil to D the plants longer. Al
THE end of the period the plants are
weighed and the increase noted. Tbs
results secured from the months
growth in the small pots are checked
by comparison with larger sompieS oil
lsoils, the pots for the latter holding
from 81 to IS pounds, and eficienl 10
grow a crop of maturity, this Oe'ne
Isimilar 10 outdoor pot work as con.
Iducted by the experiment station, but
tic mas the advantage over hat method
that the weather conditions are con
Itrolled, the experiments being made
under glass. The pot method is above
described for testing the fertilizer
deficiency Of the soil will be very
beneficial I the experiment station
lin checking up the field results. A
Especial advantage IS that the need:
sof the soil can be determined within
from four TO six weeks instead of with.
lin a period Of several years. All the
work done by this pot method IA:
Ia rrcpd vary closely with rhe field w1r.