Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-07-25
THE new RURAL SCHOOL.
IVA Study of Corn.
BY Frederic j. Haskin.

Conservative. full-grown farmers who
nave sneered at book-farmers have been
taught by the boys corn clubs that IL
pays TO mix a little knowledge in with
The Dirt when growing corn-that II In
creascs the yield for one acre from say
twenty bushels To two hundred and
twenty. Now even the most conservative
farmer, even one whose conservatism Is
50 grounded III kindred ignorance that he
is unable to read ond write, does know
how 10 add and substract. He does know
the difference between twenty bushels
and forty bushels and eighty bushels OF
corn to the acre. II has long been held
10 be desirable 10 teach farmers children
how to read and write and cipher; why
rot also teach them how to grow corn?
And why not do 1t at the same time they
are learning these other things:
IN the three preceding articles on the
experimental rural school at Rock Hill,
>. C., IL has been shown how reading ana
writing and numbers are taught as ali
Incident to practical everyday affairs,
Dlayiag and gardening and cooking. To
SHOW how well done Is the main work.
the gardening. the teaching OF the science
OF agriculture, IL Is better to take a single
pla1t-corn-and see what the new rural
school did with It, For this study of corn
Ne VIII take the school in its second year
when its pupil We're more In number,
when they were actually farm children
brought in every day by a wagon from
their homes. and taken back In the same
way at night. There win be more of this
second years work in later articles For
TIE present, to the study of corn:
y
Ii began in the winter, began with a
study Of the birthplace and the home of
the corn-the soil
Study of Corn We children felt
Begins in Winter. the teacher asked
us about it, We said IL was moist. Then
she asked US how much water there was
I'm IL That was a puzzler for moment,
but one of us had the wit to suggest
Weighing it wet and then drying IL out
and weighing IL again. We took three
rounds. and when we had thoroughly
dried IL. il weighed but two and three
fourths OF a pound. And the very smallest
and youngest of us knew that n quarter
OF a pound of water had been driven out.
The teacher told us it had evaporated.
and that was good, new word
Then she showed us something else.
She put the same dried dirt In an iron
vessel and set It on the stove and let il
get red-hot. When it was cold again We
weighed II. and We saw 1t had lost some
more weight. Was that water. too? No,
the water had all gone before. SO the
teacher told us about hurnus: that IL was
..orkanic matter in the soil, tiny bits OF
leaves and sticks and so on. We guessed
that Il was the humus that had been
burned out OF the soil. and we now knew
that the soil In our garden had water in
II and organic matter In 1t. But there
was more.
The teacher asked US to look closely
and xs saw sand. How like little rocks
the s-uius OF sand are! How were the
little rocks made? We rub two rocks to-
gether over a piece Of white paper and
we see-sand is made by rubbing rocks.
Do we think this could happen naturally
I:ocks rolling down hill, rocks rolling on
tine bottom OF "A stream. would be rubbed
We put some stones into a pickle Jar, and
pour In water. II was almost clear III
the Jar. And then we shook the bottle
Lard, and let II settle. Which falls irst?
silt sand or gravel: Then We went ia
fii.. mouth OF a little stream Just after a
rain and there we found silt. then sand.
then gravel, then tho stones, just as IN