The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1921-01-28
SCARS Of WAR
IMPROVE SOIL
Effect OF Deep Flowing Produced
Upon Shell Torn France. Saws
American: Vegetation
Is Luxuriant

New York The thought u deep
scars lefs upon The land IN France
nna Belgium by the trenches 81 the
allies and their foes has been one ~
the gloonie~t of postwar reflections.
To those who have feared that per.
inaneDt harm "a the agriculture II the
wai torn areas would result the
special report made ia the Amerlcau
Committee for Devastated France
recently hy Hal n Fullerton. agrleul-
tnral director * the Long Island rall-
road, wifi come as relief Fer tn Il
Mr. Fullerton declares thar the
trenches and shellhoies have accom-
lalshed The one thing dearest 80 The
farmers heart deep plowing
III farmer here Ia America said
Mr. Fullerton to reporters recently.
manages 10 plow 10 depth 81 fopr
Inches be thinks he has done execed-
iugly well For The most part he gets
down two inches The best ever done
III this country Is nine Now What
has happened 10 France Trenches
eight 70 ten feet deep. sheIiholes ana
mined areas from nifty % hundred
feet IN depth and often aD feet square
have brought 10 the surface. without
disturbing H. ne deep SOIL containing
valuable minerals of which the top
soil used for generations, has been
depleted Added 20 these minerals Is
the organic matter furnished rs the
ferflllzatlon ~ dead beasts Thus The
urleayal wrought hy the trenches ac-
tually represents the tyne of culilya.
iion advanced by practical agricul.
turai experts in America and England.
Il remember one former battlefield
who're the trenches had been filed IN
and wheat planted The lines of
trens'hes-F French on one slope and
German an the other-could be clearly
distinguished because the wheat grove
Ing over them was higher than the
rSf and had rich green color that
showed II "a be the best In The field
n was plain example Of deep plow-
ing
Lusuriant Vegetation in Shell Holes.
Among Mr.. Fullerton's many photo
grnnhs was one showing huge she'll
hole. perhaps a hundred feet deep. all
over the bottom of which luxurinnf
including clover. corn.
flower and alfalfa. was growing. An
other snapshot showed untitled
frenches. with discarded ammunition
belts and rifles strewn around. the
whole place covered with grass, ferns
and shrubbery.
Another theory that Mr. Fullerton
has exploded Is thai of the great harm
done 10 the soil by chlorine gas set
free in military operations. on the
contrary. he declared. II It has nny
effect at all II is a beneficial one. for
The chlorine win attract 10 itself sodl-
nm and potassium as chemical bases. /
the result being some Of the very salts /
that are used In the making Of fer
tiizer.
Mr.. Fullerton was full Of enthusiasm /
over the French genius for farming.
While amused by some Of the anti l
1uated tools and methods the peasants I
such as hoes with eighteen
nch handles. forcing the user 10 bend I
his back az right angles as he works
aud obsolete scythe sharpeners. he
'alled to find that Conservatism and 1
iistrnst Of new things with which the
IS 50 generally credited
Ie told Of introducing to some Of them
he wheeled hoe. or automatic seeder.
device that may be used for all soris
Y work. from narrowing to weed
.utting.
Il took IL out 10 a field" he said,
where some OF the French were work
ng. and started in with It. None Of
hem came up 10 look-flley are too
amy for that-bHt I could see them
watching every motior out Of the
orner Of their eyes. A few days later
ne old man decided to try II, and
oon he was getting 50 much more
one in a day than the rest that he
ras the talk Of the town"
The problem Of restoring French
oil... according to Mr.. Fu.lerton's Of
cial report. the result Of three
aonths ihe>the Aisne department at
lie request OF the American commit /.