Metropolis weekly gazette. (Metropolis, Ill.) 1???-19??, 1915-10-01
EAT AIR AND RAIN
Interesting Statement Made by
a Prominent Scientist.
Three-Fourths Of All Food We Ear ls
Derived Originally From Rain; 30
Per Cent OF Remainder
Comes From Air.

Tnree-fourtne or all the 1000 We eat
is derived originally from rain. OF the
remainder. so per cent comes from the
air, the balance-one-twentf part Of
the whole--is obtained from the soil.
This interesting statement is made
by DIR. A. T. Stuart OF the Canadian
department of agriculture. who de-
scribes the farmer as the great man.
ufacturer. He makes the things
which other people merely put to-
gether In different ways.
The farmer takes rs pounds of wa
ter. 20 pounds OF air and 5 pounds OF
soil. These are his raw materials,
and from them. in the quantities and
proportions above mentioned. he
turns out 100 pounds of products.
The mixture of gases which we call
air Ia fluid by no means so thin and
imponderable as We are accustomed
to imagine. An ordinary packing box
three feet cube viii contain about two
and one-haif pounds of II. The twenty
pounds OF air that contribute so I'm.
portant percentage Of our food sup.
ply would occupy. at normal seaIeyel
pressure, cubical space Is feet on an
edge.
The rs pounds of water would make
about nine and one-half gallons. Five
pounds of soil VIII represent the con.
tents of clay flower pot of moderate
size; and thus one forms an idea cas-
ily grasp-d OF the quantities OF the
three original raw materials required
by the farmer for the manufacture Of
100 pounds OF products.
These products are food and cloth.
ing. or all the clothes people wear.
per cent is made OF animal or vege.
table materials that are the yield OF
agriculture. Even the leather OF which
our shoes are made Is. OF course. q
farm product SILK Ia spun by caterpil.
lars. but IN reality IA Is nothing but
mulberry leaves. converted by their
agency into fiber that can be woven.
We know what air is. and water In
familiar enough. That soil In merely
powdered rock. containing a small
percentage OF decayed vegetable mat,
ter. has long been understood. But
many facts in regard to this last IN
dispensable raw material Of the farmer
have only recently been learned.
Consider, for one thing. the size Of
the rock particles. In some soils they
are 80 tiny. according TO Doctor Stuart.
that one hundred millions OF millions
OF them may be held on the point OF
penknife.
That seems remarkable, does II mott
But take single pound OF this kind
of soil. and measure the total surface
area represented by It's component
particles. II Is a not very difficult
problem In mathematics. The total
surface area OF the particles that 30
to make up one pound il about three
acres.
This II In itself matter OF much
importance. from the viewpoint OF the
farmermanufacturer for each particle
OF soil il enveloped by a thin film OF
water And II Ii from this water that
the plants be grows derive their sus-
tenance.
At Iata aA11tt6bf A0Wtftts -
not merely water. II II q kind Of
soup. in which plant food. both or.
ganic-from the decayed vegetable
matter-and mineral. is dissolved.
What we call the fruitful land" is
merely bed for the plants TO stand
up In while they feed upon this soup.
Under the microscope all plants are
found to be made up Of little cells or
pouches flledl with fluid. In an
orange or lemon they are so big as to
be easily seen when the fruit IL cut.
Each OF these cells-which multiply
at wonderful rate TO make what We
call growth--is little chemical fac
tory. and II ia they which. under the
general management OF the manufac-
turing farmer, produce protein fat,
starch, sugar. fiber. etc. with inciden.
tai colors and fiavors. 10 supply In q
multitude of forms the demands of
the market.