The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1914-01-07
BESTOWED AWARD OF HONOR
Prof. r. II. Kings Book of Farmers
Recognized for Its Merits.


late Prof. +. II. King, the author of
volume entitled Farmers of Forty
Centuries" by the National Geograph-
ic Society OF Washington. d. c. Prof.
Kings book, completed but shortly
before his death. represents what the
society believes Is an ideal study of
foreign places. The author describes
the methods by which the Chinese
support nearly 100000, 900 people on
an area smaller than the improved
farm lands Of the United States, which
they have titled for four thousand
yearsc. and from this draws an inter.
esting parallel for the farmers of the
United States to consider.
If the United States is to endure;
II We shall protect our history even
through 1000 or 5000 years. as the
Mongolian nations have done, and if
that history shall be written in con-
tinuous peace. free from periods Of
widespread famine or pestilence, this
nation must orient itself; must square
its prictices with a conservation of
resources which can make endurance
possible" he says.
He goes on to point out that the
Mississippi river is annually bearing
to the sea nearly 225.000 acre-feet Of
the most fertile sediment and be.
tween levees along raised bed
through 200 miles of country subject
to inundation, and that the people Of
the United States and Europe are
pouring into the sea, lakes, or rivers
and into the underground waters from
6.7s4.3oo to 100000 pounds of nj
trogen; 1,SSl,s00 to A.161,00O pounds
OF potassium, and 777,200 to s.057,S 500
pounds OF phosphorus per million Of
adult population annually. "And this
waste we esteem one of tho greet
achievements Of cur civilization" he
adds I'm the Far East, for more
than 30 centuries. these enormous
wastes have been religiously saved
and today the 00,000,000 Of adult
population send back to their fields
annually 10000 tons Of phosphor.
us; $4,000 tons Of potassium, and
l,l6S.00o tons OF nitrogen comprised
in gross weight exceeding $4,000
600 tons. gathered from every home,
from the country villages. and from
the great cities. Man IL the most ex-
travagant accelerator Of waste the
world has ever endured. His Bosom
OF destruction in the uncontrolled
hands Of generation has swept into
the sea soil fertility which only CEN
turtles Of life could accumulate.
The rivers OF North America are
estimated to carry to the sea more
than 500 tons OF phosphorus with each
cubic mile OF water. To such loss
modern civilization l. adding that of
hydraulic sewage disposal. through
which the waste Of oO,ooo.0 900 of peo-
pie might be moro than 1896 tons
OF phosphorus annually. which could
not be replaced by 1.2s5,0O0 tons of
rock phosphate 76 per cent pure.
Forty canals across the United
States from east to west and 60 from
north to south would not equal in num-
ber OF miles those Of China. Korea and
Japan. 1t Is probable that this esti-
mate Is not too large for China alone
A conservative estimate would place
the miles OF canals and leveed rivers
in the three countries at more than
100000 miles. In addition to the can
al and le"ee construction work there
are numerous impounding reservoirs
which control overflow waters from
the great streams, and another large
and small lakes in the coastal plain,
giving an aggregate reservoir area en-
ceeding $4,000 square miles, all of
which are brought into service In con-
trolling flood wa' ers. all Of which are
| steadily filling with the sediments
brought from the far-away, unculti-
ultimately destined to become rich al
luvial plains.
There Is still another phase of
these vast works-the wrestling from
the flood waters Of the enormous vol
umes of silt which they carry deposit
ing 1t over the flood areas. in the
canals. and along the shores in such
manner as to add to the habitable and
cultivated land. The city OF Shanghai
stood originally on the seashore,
which has now grown 20 miles to the
northward and to the eastward. In
22o b. c.. the town Of Putai stood
one-third OF mile from the sea. but
In 1880 1t was ~ miles inland and
is 48 miles from the ahore todav