The chronicle=news., 1912-11-21
AIR BEING HARNESSED
TO ENRICH FARM LANDS
Extraction Of lic-dving Element Plants Acsp
by Electricity Promises Abundant Supply az Feril!
Ex.ort caF>r1. Nitrogen. Says ryrcr;.


NrN I'oRE. November li-Thr mex,
'grc3i advance in the field OF agriculture.
according to no les au authority tiilr
Sir William Ramsay. the noted English
chemist. will be the llruyssing OF The
air. or rather OF it. cU1r'i.uput part.
10 work for the bcnr.i .Hc farmer
Tha; this : not mcry.f . dream or "a
scientific hobby is shown Iy the fact
that the extraction OF ilc mos; impnr-
ant OF all fcr;ilizimE elements from tlie
atmosphere is already III success iui upcr-
alton BY this method Norway is now
producirn' annually about 2tDOJO tons OF
commercial n!.Uuta valued ~ over
Ss.SpUU The industry IS being RAPIDLY
extended and much oi the product is
exported to the tniicd State.
Nitrogen. in the form OF commercial
HitraicS. Is the clcrncn. which most farm
crops take from the soil in large quanti-
ties and which must he restored in order
10 maintain its fertility. The successful
extraction OF this great fertilizer from
the ai-. therefore. is considered OF the
utmost,- importance since il effectively
answer the question as TO what shall
Be done when the nitrate beds of Chile
and other countries are exhausted, as
Eventually they must be The manu-
facfurc oil nitrltcS IRON the air is ac-
compltshcd by blowing the air into
sheet of electric flame produced from
furEncs deriving their power from
waterfalls. The nitrogen is conccn,-
1a,ed in gray dust which is Shoveicd
INTO sacks and is then ready for ship
Hlcnf.
This question OF the supply of nitro
gen is so important" saws T. C., Palmer
who has Just prepared a report for the
United States Senate dealing with this
subject. that the agricultural progress
or dccadcncc OF country may be nca-
surcd with close accuracy by dctcrmin-
ing whether IT is exporting or importing
this essential commodity. For half a
century and more the United State, has
been great exporter OF nitrogen i'll the
wheat and other food crops which it has
shipped TO other countries in raw state.
This tendency is a decreasing one as
more and more OF American food pro-
ducts are consumed at home while manu-
facturcd goods are shipped abroad, but
in the aggregate American soils have
been robbed OF billions OF dollars worth
,Of fertility in past explorations. In con-
trast with this ruinou. policy is the
example of various European nations,
notably Germany, which consume at
home their nitrogcn-bcaring products and
fexport those crops which take little or
nothing from the soil.
O'1n 1902. for example, the United
Skatcs exported wheat, cotton seed meal
md 1insecd meal TO the value of So32O3,-l
26 solely in exchange for foreign sugar.
fGne value Of fcrtilzing elements drawn
|feom American soil and sent out of the |
|op<mtry with these exports amounted to
95193-342 The value of the raw sugar
6ppored during the same year wasI
83D02o while the value of the fcrtil- |
ting element contained in it was abso-
1qte1yn,othing- From Germany sugarl
rs Exported to the value of $49.33o, ,542t
I'D the fcrti1iing value drawn by it'll
fsnm German soils was ssothing, while
Ganm imports valued at $4S,S52,o ,os2l
drew from the United States soil ferA
k6mg values amounting to s28,TO, ,564.
Gerurany exports sugar. which comes
slaoi1y from the atmosphere and carries
10 tertilizing elements, in order to pay
foc products from the United States.
iefertihzing elements of which are worth
fnom one-third to onc-half their total
selling price. GAS result of these