Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-02-19
Closing Session Was the Largest
of the Day Meetings---Packard
on Reciprocity
GREENE AND THOMAS SPEAK
Young Men Graduates Of Iowa State
College Deliver Interesting Talks on
Stock Judging and Soil Fertility
Miss GiIchrist and Male Quartet En-
tertain the Audience.

The best of the Farmers Institute
day meetings, both for attendance and
interest and entertainment, was the
closing one of Saturday afternoon.
Every seat in the east court room was
filled, and many had to stand The
principal address of the afternoon was
by S. b. Packard, on Reciprocity and
prepared paper on the subject which was
listened to with much attention. Two
of Marshall county's young men grad
yates of Iowa State College, Merritt
Greene, Jr., of this city, and Ebert
Thomas of Green Mountain, spoke on
"Soil Fertility" and Stock Judging"
respectively. The entertaining feat
ures, which other meetings have lack
ed, were furnished by Miss Mary Gil
christ, who read, and by male quar-
tet.
Packard and Reciprocity.
Mr.. Packard only touched on his
subject in a general way, and did not
attempt to go into detail except in a
few particulars, during the short time
which was given him to speak His
paper followed the development of our
trade treaties with foreign countries,
especially European nations, and dwelt
at some length on the Dingley law, by
the provisions of which reciprocity
could have been developed as it never
had been before.
He referred at some length to the
German-American trade crisis, which
is due to come about unless a recip-
rocal treaty is made with that country,
our second best customer of soil prod
ucts, before March 1. He said the
west was almost unanimously for
reciprocity, but the east was against
it. The reason, he explained, was due
to the fact that the eastern manufac-
turers were content TO rest easy with
a foreign market developed by the
farmers product as long as they were
allowed to grow fat under prohibitive
tariff on foreign manufactured articles.
AS a result he showed that our ex-
portations of soil products are falling
off because we refuse to allow to en-
ter this country foreign manufactured
articles except at very high rate OF
import duty. The farmer is brought
face to face with the possibility OF
having no market for his surplus pro-
duction, which will have a tendency,
the competition of the foreign market
removed, to lower prices in this coun-
try. He showed the per cent of in
crease Germany proposes to put in
force March /, unless reciprocity is
granted, and this agreement with Ger
many is held up by manufacturing
corporations, he said, which control
the senate.
The farmer has been told, Mr..
Packard said, that there is nothing the
matter with the tariff, the let we'll
enough alone, but Investigation
shows that the prosperity OF a
foreign market is with the trust, and
that the increase in our expectations
has been in steel, iron and manufac-
tl,red goods and not in farm products.
Even with the market of Cuba opened
of cattle last year showed a decrease.
Greene on the Soil.
Mr.. Greene said the two chief soil
essentials necessary for the produce
ton of plant life We're nitrogen and
phosphorus. These were being con-
tinually taken from the soil by the
crops, and unless they were returned
to it by some other means the soil
would soon produce poor crops. On
an average every bushel of grain grown
takes from the soil one pound Of nitro
gen. This can be replaced by mixing
into the soil dried blood at Is cents a
pound, but the cheapest way is in
growing on the land every two or
three years some crop such as alfalfa
soy beans or COW peas, which would
restore to the soil the nitrogen which
corn, and other crops had taken from
it. This rotation Of crops could be
carried out and the nitrogen restored
at a cost of from 2 to 8 cents per pound
for the nitrogen put back. This rota-
ton of crops, he explained, had ten
dency to destroy root worms and other
grain grown repeatedly on the same
soil If the crops of the field We're
fed to animals rs per cent of the phos-
phorus taken from the soil could be
returned to it by the manure from the
animals. In summing up he said fer
tility of soil depended upon rotation Of
crops, the physical condition of the
soil, whether it was warm soft and
mellow, and the feeding of live stock.
Thomas on Stock Judging.
Mr.. Thomas said the judging of
live stock was based on the general
appearance of the animal, general con-
formity to the type standard of the
breed, constitution, natural flesh, quail
ity, and in horses. on action. In judg-
ing cattle, he said, the first thing was