The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-11-11

only 6 to 10 bushels; Law of Pike, with 300 pounds mixed fertilizer and oO pounds of nitrate of soda was making ASA bushels on eleven acres, when for years he had been trying, without sue cess, to grow sufficient corn for home consumption; Judge Smith. of Bald win. was doubling his yield; former, of Pike. according to Judge Edmonson' gathering and measuring from 10 acres of as poor land as in the State Tz bushels per acre; Collier, Of Montgom- cry. learning that with four acres to the blow. he was able to grow all the corn necessary for home consumption; Dawson, of Elmore, with 300 pounds Of mixed fertilizer and 76 pounds of ni- trate of soda, was making on plot Of six acres an average of 95 bushels to the acre; Douglas. of Washington, re- ceiving results so favorable as to as- tound him; and many other farmers over the State. testing the method and getting similar results.
 Lots not refer to the 1908 test, ox- cept to draw the mantle of charity over the spirit that prompted the gath ering and placing on exhibition at the State Fair a basket of nubbins, and the labelling of it 'Cron grown after Williamson method whilo on either side was placed really good corn. but which after all was only corn grown after the twelve and a half bushel per acre Alabama a-average-yield method.
 Now, as to the Clemson plan. No details of cultivation are at hand; all that is known is that mixed fertilizer at the rate of 1,425 pounds, and nitrate of soda to the amount of 125 pounds per acre were applied to nineteen plots for the purpose of testing the meGSod; 1 that six plots were cultivated by or dinary methods with variations; three, by the straight Williamson plan with, out the dotting of an T. or the cross ing of 't;' and the remaining eight | by the Williamson plan with variations | a la Clemson; and that in every in stance where the straight Williamson | plan without the dotting or an T. or | the crossing of a t. was followed. the | yields were less than those obtained not only from the ordinary plan with | variations but from the, Williamson plan, with variations a la Clemson; the average yield of plots being 21.4S 1 bushels for the ordinary plan with variations; 1913 bushels for the Will Hanson plan, with variations a Ia Clemson; and 13.9 bushels for the straight Williamson plan without the dotting of an i.' or the crossing or a t."
 It is only, proper to state that the Director of the Clemson station stated that the 1907 results could in no way 
 weather conditions were so bad that the yield was not more than one-third or one fourth what it should have been with. favorable conditions for either the Williamson or ordinary plan.
 And with regard to the tests al the Auburn station. 1t should be said, the director. explicitly makes note of the sfact that unfortunately we were not able to plant this experiment
 (19O6) early. as Is recommended and also that sorghum stubble" was turn ed under for the preparation or the land for the 1907 test. instead of pea vines" as recommended. 'sThe above are the tests that are mostly, if not entirely cited by the op, position as evidence of the failure ol the Williamson method, and by whicH they would discourage farmers from
 getting it. 4 There is one other experiment. by an experiment station, of the William
 son method that has been cited, nol 1 for the purpose, however, or shoWIhe
 the inferior yield of the method aS
 compared with the ordinary put ol 1 the purpose of corroborating some theory of a scientific agriculturist l, is ah experiment made by the Coasl Land Station near Charleston CS C.I Ii made 695 bushels per acre after tht Williamson method. against forty anI
 one-h half bushels after the old the 1 amount of fertilizer being presuhI'
 ably the same. The following con, ment Ia made upon this test by leao
 tng Southern farm journal But there were four and one-half times as many
 stalks on the plot treated pS the williamson method. and II ! showed by the usual method of cuI,, s tivation 6I.25 stalks mace oushei U. corn. while by the Williamson neLnoo
 1t took 1885 stalks per nuShel. @ us 8 seems to me to show. as nave oIteH ! in sisted. that corn is planted too thlh' iv in the South. To make heavy cron there must be stalks enough te carry it. It is evident that had th' q nlot under ordinary cultivation beer as thick as the Williamson plot theI'
 would have been much heaNler cioi E than the Williamson method slade "It is very evident from the hSure' # above given that if the rows were sl' 4 feet apart in the above test the corr & nIanted after the Williamson metho' 4 was left eight inches in the drill' an' after the ordinary method thlfty-sh & inches and as the Williamson thetho II nrovides that for fifty bushels tn & Siorta he left sixteen inches apart T for sevcnty-fve bushels twelve incne T apart; and for 100 bushels, eight incne % anart the. experiment was planting TO
 100 bushels. Judging from me size 2
 the ears on the Williamson plot, m
 corn was planted too thick. and If fror
 tbo old method he would have gotte
 better results by leaving his cor
 thicker in the drill feel sure n
 would have gotten better results troi
 the Williamson method, if he had nc
 left 1t SO thick. ...
 Tn conclusion. desire to say tha
 what the farmers of Alabama want
 corn. They don't care how they g'
 1t. whether by the Williamson metho
 though 1t be contrary to the laws (
 nature or by the most scientiflc mett
 cd approved by the most scienuI
 agricuIturists. so long as they ca
 make 1t. After considerable invest
 gatton of the results obtained by II
 Williamson method. I believe 1t to
 the best. and have therefore sougi
 to bring it to the attention or u
 farmers of this State. It may be the
 are other methods as good 1t may
 there some that are better, and 1T the
 are and they are brought to my attei
 tion demonstrated that they are De | -han uFo sn