Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1913-12-26


Nevertheless, so important did it
consider this work that money was
scraped together so that it might be
continued and it was continued to
the great advantage of the dry farm,
ing possibilities.
1t is fair to suppose that MIR. Rog-
ers is not familiar with the entire
history of the development of dry
farming in this state. even though
Els article shows an animus of one
not seeking after knowledge.
With limited means and over
"crKed men the work began Is or
10 years ago in the dry belt and has
continued every year without inter
mission and with great profit to the
agriculture of the dry belt. 1t has
included stations in the Rattlesnake
mis- IN Yakima county, near Quincy.
in lthen) Douglas county, at Connrll
and at RitzyiIle, and much COOPER
atiye work with farmers throughout
the entire dry belt
1t began when as yet there were
vast areas OF land that were thought
wholly unfit for farming, which have
since that time been broken up-part
successfully, part unsuccessfully. The
wheat area has practically doubled in
that time and the extension has for
the most part been into the dryer re-
gions.
The work began under Professor
| w. }. Spillman, now of the United
States Department Of Agriculture.
and was continued by him until his
entrance upon his present position in
1902. Away back in the y0s he was
introducing the principles of the
| Campbell system (for it was a set
Of principles, not the invention of
| one NAM into Adams county. where
the Campbell subsurface packer was
then first used. Under his direction
experiments were conducted showing
the increased storage of moisture
under cultivation.
l rem ember one in which on sage
| brush soil the moisture in March was
down less than IL inches on land
plowed two years, it was down Is
inches; on land in cultivation for
| five years. the moisture was down
over three feet. Men on lands that
Lad been cultivated said that the eli
mate had changed. But he and his
st2tf demonstrated that it had not,
! Tut that there was a more permanent
r.liance in the catching OF the moist
ure.
1t was Professor Spillman who
pointed out the adaptability of the
biuestem and similar varieties to the
drier lands and the club varieties to
the moister highlands and led the
way to a wise use of varieties in the
drier belt Hundreds of farmers,
coming later, and hundreds who were
| then farming, made use of the
knowledge obtained from other farm
ers without being aware whence and
how the methods came.
New problems We're constantly
arising with which Professor Spill
mans successors had to cope
No sooner were the methods of
catching a maximum amount of snow
and rain through a titled surface
drifting of the light soil by the wind
! began to appear. The use of a rough
surface and the avoidance of too
great pulyerizing of the soil, the use
Of stubble and of growing grain were
subjects of study and practice. 1t
was foregone conclusion that as
the little roOtlets in the native soil
would decay and pulverization would
continue that dust blowing would be
a greater menace. Experiments to
check this were in progress and in
the wheat convention, on the demon
| stratiOn train, in private correspond
! once, in the farmers Institutes, and
Ariyate conferences, this matter was
Sept to the fore as much as the facts
D. the case would permit The fur
lowing, whether by lister or other
tROl, was recommended as far as the
facts would justify.
( There were other problems, too,
more fundam entail, which were pur-
sued.
What is the moisture requirement
OF the crop? What are the laws of
evaporation and how may they be
controlled? What variations in crop
ping may be wisely practiced? What
are the meteorological conditions of
/ the region? and many other vital
and fundamental questions.
For the study of these problems we
have asked farmers to come to the
college and we have taken the col
Ilege to them. Men like Senator D. A.