Mexico Missouri message., 1915-12-09
INTERESTING TALK ABOUT SOILS.

Prof H. G. Bell agronomist of the Middle West Soil
Improvement Committee of the National Fertilizer Asso
cation made two very interesting talks at the Mexico
High School Building Saturday.
Points discussed were: How the Soil Was Made Kinds
of Soil, How Water Rises in Soil Lime and Sour Soil
The Life of the Soil Holding the Plant Food Plant Food
Management, and Plant Elements.
Some of the interesting things he said found III the
following:
great changes of climate since it cooled into solid
form Clouds of moisture settled of the Skies and the
shown upon the earth The heat of the sun was une
venly spread the earth surface and consequence
the rocky surface cracked just cold preserve jar will
crack when you pour boiling water into it. This the
first step toward the formation of soil The moisture
which settled out of the air. filling the hoows in the earth
formed the rivers lakes and which dashed their shores
causing particles of rocks to break down and collect into
sandy beaches AS the water washed down the sides OF
the hills into the rivers thence to the seas particles OF the
rocks dissolved other particles broken off and
carried onward until they fell to the bottom of the old v
er beds.
"The moisture which settled on mountain peaks formed
great of ice and which in time began to slide
toward lower levels. The very Slow but
the weight remendousso great, indeed that gla-
ciers which thus formed ground off the tops OF hills
and pulverized the rocks Some of this groundo mate
rial fell upon the glaciers themselves and carried along
and deposited when the ice melted.
Everyone has doubt where the roots of trees
have penetrated cracks nrocks and the tree grew the
have broken off small large pieces OF rocks In
sections of the world where frostS during the winter
months frequently settled in rocks and in freezing
it expanded Everyone knows the enormous power OF
water in freezing how it breaks bottles and bursts pipes
Expanding it did in the rocks broke off large and
small particles, which again made additions to the soil
GAS time plant growth became very rank, eS-
peciay during the period when scientists tell that the
temperature of the earth much warmer than now
AS these plants grew in abundance they fell and
cred up with soil which deposited them until they
became compact, when they formed what call
coal In recent times plants have been growing
shedding their leaves stalks and dying These have
formed what we commonly call muck or humus soils
THE air we breathe contains about per oxygen
a very active gas which attacks wood and similar sub
stances, breaks them down causes what commonly
call burning The thing if piece of wood is
left weather for few months years The oxygen of
the attacks it and breaks it down This chemical
action the rocks is going continually Tiny burrow
ing animals the smallest of which is probably the fish
worm digging their homes in the EARTH continually
forming surface coating of the earth which call
thesoi
we speak of the kinds of soil sand muck, loan or
clay These four general types have distinct differences
At first you each has characteristic color which
is light dark in shade Just in the clothes that you
wear in summer the color of the soil influences the heat
Of the different soils The light coored soils colder
than the dark ones The point of difference is the
ration the size of the soil grains Sands very
in grains. Clay is extremely fine. Now the important