The Mena weekly star., 1910-08-18

must be learned by actual experience. In other words, a complete farmer can only be turned out by combination of science and practice
 True Prosperity. The speaker said that the only true prosperity is mass prosperity. or av- craze prosperity That community might have half dozen or more mil lionaires. men with unlimited wealth. but that would not indicate a prosper ous community. But when every man in community was prosperous. was able to have common conven- fences, educate his children and live well. that community was really pros- porous.
 In Arkansas. he said. more than SO per cent of the people were farmers. Agriculture lies at the foundation of all prosperity, and. therefore, to teach why one piece of land produces q good crop and another don't. and to teach the way to find out the proper ties of the soil and how to make it productive. is important
 Up to the present time the tendency has been to deplete the soil of farms, a practice that must be reversed. In the past 100 years the popula- tion of this country has doubled four times. and already the production and coasumption of foods and of clothing almost meet. There is no reason to doubt but the ratio of increase in population will keep up. and statistics show that within fifteen years at the present rate, production and con sumption will meet-there will be no surplus. Then the question will be. how to feed the millions if the farms are to get poorer and poorer
 Wearing Out Lands.
 Mir. Evans said that it is wholly un- necessary to wear out lands Such a thing should not be- He said that land is not wholly ours, but belongs to our children and our children's chil- dren, on into the future, and that it is an unworthy man who robs himself and steals from his children by de- pleting the fertility of the soil.
 It is the purpose of the government. said the speaker. to teach how to avoid this waste. The four constitu- ents of fertile soil are humus, nitro gen. phosphorus and potash. without anyone of which in proper amount any land will cease to yield.
 The first in importance is humus, which is formed by the decomposition of vegetable matter, such as leaves, grass, etc. This is lost by cultivation. when something is not provided to blow under and take the place of that taken out by the crops.
 Next in importance is the nitrogen. upon which all life in every form must feed no sprout can ever start without it.
 It is easy to tell if land is deficient in nitrogen. If stalks. leaves and foliage put forth a rank. strong growth, it is plentiful; if spindling pale and small, it is deficient
 Commercial Fertilizers.
 In the Southern states alone, $50 ,O00 900 yearly are paid for com mercial fertilizers, one-half of which is for nitrogen alone, which is valued at 20 cents per pound. And, MT. Evans stated, 1t is not necessary to buy a single pound. He said that it is estimated that in the air over every acre of land, at 20 cents pound, there existed SS ,0O0. 900 worth of this preci ouselement, or $l20, ,00O, ,000 over every 40 acre field
 And the all-wise creator. the speaker said. seemed to have known that we would waste the soil, and had provided family of plants with an especial power to draw down and put in the soil the nitrogen in the air These plants are called legumes or pod-beareFs. such as peas. beans. |