The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1912-02-17
OUR TRtES--WHAT THEY LIVE ON
If a wolf feed on a sheep, in the

II a wolf feed on a sheep, in the
course of a few hours, the sheep is no
longer sheep but becomes wolf. there
fore, since the sheep becomes wolf so
easily and quickly. it must be organic
matter and since ii sustains and con-
tinues the wold's life. it must be food.
The sheep feeds on grass. which in a
few hours ceases to be grass and be-
comes sheep. but since the grass, so
easily and quickly becomes sheep it
must be organic, but it sustains and
continues the Sleeps life and there
fore is food. and, as far as Is known.
the food of every animal is organic
material and so far as We know. it al
ways has been.
In another article. 1t was point ed out
that trees are living beings and that
the living matter in a plant cell is in
no way different from that in an ami
NAL cell. Neither the microscope nor
chemical analysis can show and differ
ence. Now if the living matter or that
which gets the food. is the same and
the food of animals is organic. then
the food of plants must be organic al
SO, no matter what opinions We may
have or have had to the contrary. and
plants do not live on inorganic mater
ial any more than We do.
Their are some truths in botany that
are as self-evident as some truths in
mathematics. If two and two are ever
four they must always be four or no
dependence can be placed in arithme-
tic; so if living matter varies as the
forms of life vary. or if it Is not the
same in all forms of life. then the study
of biology is in vain. If the laws of
heridity do not hold. not some of the
time, but all OF the time, farming
would be poor business, for a man
might plant corn and get black ber-
ries or burdocks for his crop. For of
thorns men do not gather figs, nor
of a brambel bush gather they grapes.
Why? Because the laws that govern
living things are certain.
Now if plants live on organic mat.
ter or if the food of plants is organic
where do they get it.
AS long ago as 1862, John Evelyn
writing of English forests says: From
a number of experiments accurately
conducted am led to believe that all
vegetables, from the hyssop upon the
wall, to the cedar of Lebanon. receive
their principal nourishment from oily
particles incorporated with water.
This shrewd observer and scholar, two
hundred and fifty years ago, saw that
plant food and animal food are the
same, but he guessed at the source
and missed it.
OF course plants get all their water
from the soil, but water isn't food. 1t
will prolong life while but will not
continue it. So it must be clear that
soil is inorganic matter and has no
food in it. To be sure we know that
fertile soil has some decaying organic
matter in it, but compared with what
a forest or a field crop needs, this
amount is quite insignificant
There is an organic matter in the
air. John Evelyn thought there was
and that the rains washed it into the
ground so that the roots could get it.
Sunshine isn't matter at all SO that
there appears to be no food at all in a
plants surroundings, every thing is
inorganic matter.
1t would seem, therefore. that there
is but one thing left for plant to do,
to supply itself with food