The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1911-08-03
DR.. HUME TESTS
SOILS OF STATE
WILL DETERMINE WHY CERTAIN
SECTIONS DO NOT GROW
GOOD CROPS.
COMMERCE DEPARTMENT IMPROVES
Several Additions to Course for the
Coming Year-Farm Paper Makes
a Liberal Offer to Students

An interesting experiment is being
tried out by Professor A. II. Hume,
college. The initial work is being
carried on in Hanson county, near
Fulton, and is an effort to determine
the cause of partial failure Of crops,
and to suggest operations that will
have a tendency to prevent such fail
ures.
A scope of country six miles wide
and nine miles long was travelled by
Mr.. Hume and his party, sketches Of
the contour of the land We're taken,
and deep borings were made in the
soil to get good samples which were
brought to Brookings for analization.
From these it will be determined why,
under certain conditions, the land does
not produce the crops.
The work is the beginning of a soil
examination in South Dakota with a
view Of finding out what it contains
and what it needs in order to raise 1t to
its maximum of production. When
he had gathered the samples from
eight or ten farms DR.. Hume. who
has done much OF this work in Ger
many and in several states, made this
statement: 81 have never turned a
coil &, hntto. coil chan 7 RnJ
right here in South Dakota"
The experimental work will be car
ried into several counties, for the re.
quirements Of the soil varies in differ
ent localities.
Several important changes will be
made in the department of Commerce
in the State college this fall. including
the installation OF new furniture. Each
student will be provided with a bust
ness desk and voucher rack and a desk
chair. The Office of the business de-
partment is rapidly being filled with
the commercial There are
now on hand about thirty industrial
exhibits from as many prominent
manufacturing ncern in the oun
try, and a score of others are on the
way. Many commercial clubs Of the
larges cities have taken an interest
and are inducing their members to
send on illustrative materials.
About sixty trade magazines will
come regularly to the reading tables
of the museum SO that the student
may obtain first hand information on
any topic at a moments notice. Among
the trades or industries represented
by these magazines are the following:
Automobiles, farm machinery, gro
ceries, clothing, textiles, sugar, to-
bacco, glass, lumber, farm, shipping,
and many others.
1t is planned to give illustrated
courses in commerce instead of the
old time ~cut-and-dried book recita-
ton. Commercial statistics change
so often that a book is out Of date
before it is off the press,-hence the
necessity of keeping up to date by
constant reference to current publica-
tons and government journals. A
few western commercial clubs have
promised to send films for moving
picture illustrated lectures on com
merce, with special reference Of course
to the industries Of certain localities,
Several new courses are planned
for next year, with a possibility OF
including journalism and advertising
in the list, electives for Junior and
Senior college students. The new
secretaries course will be a combi-
nation OF the regular commercial
branches and certain subjects OF the
Freshman year, SO that If a CONNER
cial student wishes to continue col
lege work the following year, his time
will not have been wasted. IT is pro-
posed ultimately to establish a regu-
lar college course In commerce lead
ing to a degree.
A prominent farm paper (not a
Myrick publication offers prospec-
tive, needy students who wish to at
tend the State College the entire pro-
At for the first 500 worth OF sub
scriptions turned in. The student Will
be required to take the subscription,
send the money to the company ana
receive credit for 1t. The company
proposes to send this money to the
State College to be held for him to
pay for college expenses. There Is
No ,im,, N the number of prospective