The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1914-02-16

Washington. Feb tG.-The ocean
depths are the latest regions to be
explored by the bureau of soils Of
the department Of agriculture In its
cortincnt-wide invoice Of the ma
TONS assets In fertilizer materials
Just now II Is engaged In "a huni
tor heterogeneous products. which
with phosphorus and potassium form
thu triumviratc Il desirable f%ertiiiz-
crs. ANA IL IS estimated that literally
billions 81 fish might bo caught and
converted into the richest fcrtilizing
material without n|pprociably dc
croasiup tho apply
Even the American Indians knew
something OF the value of fish aa Ter
Itlizers and were wont Ia put one pi
1.-TWO iu each Hill uf corn az the time
lot Planting. The first factory fur
Icooking fish hy steam FOR fcrtillziue
purposes was erected near Ports
mouth In ISti and from hat time
until 1854 the Industry grew.
Since then. however. IL has suf-
fcred something ~ a decline n the
bureau Of soils hopes To inaugurate
% revival of this Industry 60 avert
Threatened depletion OF the soil
No region or section has been W
crIooked by this bureau In its hunt
for the three elements named, for
ithelr presence n deemed OF more
value To the nation az large than all
the geld veins Of California or the
unlimited silver OF Nevada.
The deserts Of the great southwest
have been secured Tor potassium
salts the keip groves Of the Pacific
coast as far north as Alaska have
been experimental with to the same
end, great peat bed In Florida ara
now being examined and phosphate
fields have been discovered In South
| Carolina. Tennessee. Kentucky, Ar
kansas. Utah me Idaho.
None OF these. however. give
more promise Of development than
do the ~innumerahle fish hat may be
secured hy the bontload IN the At
lantic EVERY summer.
Acting under the direction OF Mil
ton whitney. chief of the bureau OF
soils. J. W. Turreutine has Just com
pleted an Investigation of the posi-
hlltles of fish fertilizer, the most
common fish used Tor this purpose
being the menhadon. %variouslS
known ss the porsy" hard head
"bug fish and other c%olioquial
names. % b. seldom used for food.
Although as many as o0o, o00. 0oo
menhnden have been caught and
converted into fertilizer IN ono yeaI
1.-THE number becomes almost insight
ficnnt when compared with the mum
her 81 these fish destroyed hy their
natural enemies. principally the dos
fish ana the blue fish. One author
ity estimates this number at three
Thousand millionsi
perhaps the most probable ex.
tension ~ the N~sh-scrnp industry
through which the employment of
fish either than the menhaden fof
that purpose will prove o. he the
utilization Of the doefish said AIR
Turrcntine In his report.
"This supp1sitlon la hased on the
general hatred. for the dngfish en-.
~tertaincd by The fishermen and tho
.concensus 81 opinion that their Dc.
sttuction Is imperative Il Is esti-
frated hat the annual ross IRON do
siruction D. dogflsh 81 food fish and
fishing gea In the state 81 Massa-
lchusetts alone amounts to flO0. 600 Of
The Canadian government has al.
ready sought 20 combine a war on
tine dogfish with an Increase In fer.
l%tiizer material by establishing three
lplants In Nova Scotin and New
prunswick for the purpose Of con.
serting the dog fish into fish-scTapa