The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1920-05-14
LACK OF bitches
CAUSING SOIL OF
MAURY TO WASH
H. B. BLISS, RURAL ENGINEER,
IMPRESSED WITH IMPERATIVE
NEED OF BITCHES HERE.
INSpECTs FARMS OF COUNTY
Practical Demonstrations Given This
Week in Three Sections-Great In
terest Is, Being Manifested in Work
BY Farmers.

H. b. Bliss, rural engineer of the
department of extension left Thursday
for Knoxville after having conducted
ditching and terracing demonstrations
upon the farms of l.. Morrel in the
Sawdust Valley section, James RILEY
on the Mt Pleasant pike, and Ernest
Murphy. These demonstrations were
largely attended by enthusiastic farm
ers, great interest being manifested
in more scientific drainage.
On the farm OF Ernest Murphy, En-
gineer Bliss threw up terrace sever.
al hundred feet long and twenty feet
wide, which will prevent the washing
of land. County Agricultural sAgent
Mclean said this morning Contra
ry to the belief of many farmers, this
terracing does not prevent cultivation
over 1t. The farmer may put his crop
right in over the terrace. There is
another great advantage in terracng,
and that is that 1t conserves the hill.
side water, the terrace being of loose
dirt. being thrown up with ditcher,
catches and retains the water coming
from higher up the hill. In the event
second terrace is run twenty or thir-
ty feet further down the hill the moist
ure caught in the first terrace will al
most supply the space between the
two terraces with sufficient moisture.
Engineer Bliss after looking over
the county, said that he, was greatly
impressed with the imperative needs
OF better ditching in this county, On
several farms he found that where
bitches had been laid off by the eye,
that the line was some five or ten
feet out of its rightful place Only a
level can be depended upon in the lay
ing out of bitches. :.
There is an enormous amount of
ditching and terracing that shohld be
done in this county Immediately. Dur
ing the present spring, Maury county
farms have been badly washed by tor
rental rains. Farm land that has
never before suffered from this cause
in the past, has been deeply quilted by
recent downpours, and unless some
thing to prevent further washing is
done, thousands of tons of Maury's
most fertile soil will be washed away,
and scores of fine fields absolutely
ruined.
Realizing the imperative need of
this county, Mr. Bliss is planning to
return to Maury county at least once
each month until some relief is OBJ
tanned by the farmers. The date of
his neyt appearance in this county>has
not yet been fixed, but it has been an
nounced that when he returns he will
give demonstrations in ditching, hill
side drainage and terracing, and all
farmers interested will he invited to
attend these demonstrations. An eff
fort will be made to conduct several
demonstrations in widely removed sec
tons of the county, in order that as
many farmers as possible may see
what is being done by the division Of
extension.
County Agent Mclean said that he
intends to purchase level just as
soon as possible and that he will get
busy helping the farmsre ditch their
farm lands. Mr.. Mclean says that a
full year could be put in at this work
to good advantage.