T
8
LO
Tlhte
u u u u u
.'S'M
So
1 h
I
ANTS beet Mend to his
mother the forth . All
she asks Is ttio oppor
tunity ami the will
yield him the wealth of
an account that has
been growing for age.
And he has treated her
an he usually treats his
best friends. He has
taken all she had to
Kite, bought an auto
mobile and a house In
town and then hid his
address from his relatives of the soil
for fnar they would bring their earthy
Bmell Into his new residence.
With quiet Indifference old Mother
Earth endures this ingratitude, but
he time comes when she has nothing
for lils greed. What happens then?
'Look to India for one answer. Ten
million of our own Aryan blood starve
there In a (--ingle famine year starve
upon a soil that once was, and still
could be, almost Inconceivably fertile.
Russia offers another reply, where
"Villi stomachs empty men enter a
world that never fills them. Yet an
other answer, centuries old, may be
found in the Tigris-Euphrates ralley,
which, once marvelously fertile, now
scorches uselessly in the tropic sun.
The necessity of man forged a weapon
that brought him plenty; but the greed
of man forged a weapon that brought
blni penury. For do you think there
can be prosperity when the earth no
longer yields? Do not forget that the
sbaine of Rome was coincident with
the time when one bushel of seed re
turned but four In the harvest. When
the soil exploited, that is when it
is so farmed that the essential ele
ments are taken out In crops and noth
ing returned to Wild It op, the resnK
K V
- 11
t
8
1; ; ' . . ......
KADFORDt
jasa
1- v
is exactly the same an when men are
exploited In workshops and nothing
returned to bnlld nji their bodies. You
cannot haul phosphorus and nitrogen
Jn oats and wheat and corn from your
farms year after year and maintain
the fertility of the soil, if you give
back no phosphorus and nitrogen in
return. Twelve thousand abandoned
farms In the tWale of New York alone
testify to this. After sixty years of
cultivation the lands of the corn belt
are beginning to hint at the same
thing.
We all feel the results; and it is
not the man with the hayseed in his hair who
feels It first but the man with the pen behind
his ear. Month by month the price of each
separate commodity puts a little large punc
ture in his salary, until by the end of the year
his savings, which began hopefully, as an un
known quantity, have ended as ' X nothing."
He It Is who knows the cold dread of middle
age; for unless the land can be Induced to
yield abundantly prices will not settle down to
the point where the man oa a moderate salary
an live free from fear. Farmer and clerk
alike, we are all vitally concerned In this
problem of maintaining and Increasing the fer
tility of the soil that is fertile, and of restor
Ing soils that have been cruelly exploited.
Fortunately they enn ba restored. Intelli
gence is more potent than avarice and can
jnndo the evil Hi has wrought. Even those soils
that have been exploited to the point of appar
ent ruin can bo nursed back to health. Dr.
(Cyril Hopkins, head of the agronomy depart
OTent of the University of Illinois, a soil spe
cialist of national reputation and the author of
jnumerous pamphlets and a book entitled "Soil
Fertility and permanent Agriculture," is ono
of the most enthusiastic workers along this
line. Ho Is a man of hard facts and loves
pretty theories even as the devil loves holy
water. Every fact that he gives out must
prove itself over and over again in tests upon
his own farms, or those belonging to the uni
versity or tixn oiw of the various experimen
tal plots. There ure about thirty of theRo plots
scattered through the state of Illinois, wh'-re
Ihe soils ore carefull examined and then
Topped according to their needs. I roulil tell
you tales of what Mother Earth has done in
the way Of corn, wheal, outs, or clover when
tihe has received proper treatment that would
set you to huil.lm c-imles in (he air upon an
earthy fnundai n 'I'll . ni , yield upon one of
thf nniv-Ti.v l:ivtii.i in I was 87 bushels
to thf acr.- due to T" n iee:ir-t with lin-estotie
at!'! phn-pl'c; 'r i;m lietore w ro farther
4
v4r ).r hik
v t n inif- M
V - vims!i jr
)
tmiiitl..Witili4lf.
i.mri.ii .nil i mifni tin "" , -' m.;,.in
let us consider a few fundamentals of crop
growing.
First, there are six positive, absolutely es
sential factors. They are: (1) the seed,
(2) the plant home, (3) the food of which the
plant Is made, (4) moisture, (5) heat, (f) light.
Now, except in the case of the seed and plant
food ttusc factors are largely beyond the fann
er's control. Dame Nature can, however, he
trusted to attend to them satisfactorily. Mow,
then, has the farmer made use of his ability to
control the two factors? Uy exercising jiidn
ment and care in the selection of seed and In
Ignoring the matter of plant food entirely. The
result? When the land was worn out and had
no plant food to give the good seed the agricul
turist arose irately in farmers' institute nnd
told what he thought of the seed si ller. The
trouble all the time was not with the seed lint
with the soil, which had had the elements of
plnnt food removed In previous crops, and as
a consequence could not respond to the call of
the seed.
What are these elements? There are ten
in the list, but eltjht are provided abundantly.
Three- oxygen, hydrogen and carbon conio
directly from the air anil water. Most nor
mal t-ods contain enough potassium, magne
sium, iron, calcium and sulphur, although some
times the first must be supplied. The problem
of plant food, therefore, narrows Itself, in nioHt
cases, ti. maintaining and Increasing the phos
phorus and nitrogen
Now nitrogen Is as easy to catch as the
measles If one knows how. The air contains
it in Inconceivable amounts. Dr. Hopkins has
eslitnated that the air above an ncre of ground
contains about $10,nnn,nnn worth, if sold over
the counter nt ordinary commercial rales. In
order to induce this nitrogen to enter the
earth, where it may reappenr as food for man,
all that Is necessary is to plant clover, alfalfa,
pea'i or any legume. I!y means of the bacteria
upon the mot; these legumes draw the nitro
gen into the toil, now neof ssary the element
of nitrogen is may be seen from the fact that
a 100-bushel crop of corn takes from the soil
almost 100 pounds of nitrogen In the corn and
about 48 pounds In the stalks. Rich, well-balanced
land In the corn belt contains about
8.000 pounds of nitrogen. Therefore, If the
process of subtraction of nitrogen goes on
year after year with never an addition. It can
be seen clearly that the farmer's finances can
not multiply, flotation plans for grain fann
ers always should include a crop of legumes.
Wheat, corn, oats and clover Is a satisfactory
rotation; also wheat, corn and cow peas; also
cotton, corn and oats and cow peas. The first
of these rotations should include a catch crop
of clover seeded the first year and plowed un
der for corn as late as practicable the second
yesr. The other two should Include catch
crops of legumes whenever jiosslble. Legumes
when plowed under perform valuable services
besides supplying the soil with nitrogen as
they decay they supply organic matter to the
soil which helps other (dements of plant food
to free themselves from the earth and Into the
fanner's hank account.
Now that the question of nitrogen has been
outlined, suppose v.e turn to the problem of
phosphorus, the only element of plant food we
ever shall have to buy. As to the lmortance
of the use of phosphorus upon the common
soils of the I'nlted States, Dr. Hopkins has
this to say:
"Phosphorus is the key to permanaent ag
riculture on these lands. To maintain or In
crease the amount of phosphorus In the soli
makes fiosslble the growth of clover or other
legumes and the consequent addition of nitro
gen from the Inexhaustible supply in the air;
and with the addition of decaying organic mat
ter In the residues of clover and other crops
and la manure, made In large part from clover,
hay and pasture, and from the Ip'ger crops of
corn and other grains which clover helps to
produce comes the possibility of liberating
from the Immense supplies In the soil sufficient
potassium, magnesium and other es
sential abundant elements supple
mented by the amounts returned In
manure and crop residues for Um pro
duction of large crops at least for
thousands of vears: whereas If the
supplv of phospiiorua In the soil Is
steadllv do-rensed In the future In ac
cordance witli the past and preseut
most common larin practise, then
poverty Is the only futuro for the
people who tin the common agricultu
ral la-.d:-. of tho United States."
Phiif-I ortis may bt applied In lib
eral anioiinls as much as 1,000 pounds
to the aero every three or four years
nnd It costs about $7 a ton.
Aftir ti,c problem of returning the
elements to the soil has been solved
the farmer may find another condition
of the so.! which must be corroded
before bis farm will produce as It
should. This Is the tendency of cer
tain soils to acidity. Clover, alfalfa
and other valuable legumes cannot
thrive upon soil that Is sour. Some-
tluies on acid soils when applications
of farm manure are made, the legumes
will seem to grow well, but examina
tion reveals the fact that tho nitrogen
gathering bacteria fail to develop
tironerly. Hence tho most valuable
contribution the legumes have to make
to the soil Is largely lost. Upon cer
tain fields belonging to one of the
most fatuous agricultural stations in
the world, that of Rothamstead, Eng
land, applications of natural limestone
were made a century ngo. They are
still moderately productive, although
other fields near by, which have never
received the application, are extreme
ly unproductive.
Care should he taken that lime
stone Is used for tho one and only pur
pose of correcting soil acidity.
And while we are upon this
subject of soil stimulation, have you
ever thought that most of our nn-
nrovemenis have that In view and
1 1 1 j MAn,fn
Mint nnlv? Improved seeu, iniruvi u mm ..."
irrteatlon, even ciup
Mr. WtTllam A. Radferd will snswor
quentlnns an! rlv ftdvloo KRKH OH"
OOST on ni subjenta pertaining to th
ubjoot of bulldlnc for Ilia rcadt-rn of
thta pnper. On ocount of his wide exp
rlrnco aa Editor, Author and Mnnufnr
turor. ho Is, without dnuht. tho htithnst
authority on nil thw nubjerts. Aildrpsn
nil Inquiries to William A. UHriford. No.
194 Klfth Ave.. Oiloao, HI., and only ?n
cloao two-oent ulamp for roply.
With tho approach of cold weather
there Is one feature of home building
that conies into now prominence. We
hear the qnsetion asked, "How Is the
house heated?" or, more often, "Is
this a warm house V These are Im
portant questions; not more Impor
tant now. It is true, than In the hot
summer weather, for even then the
wise home builder looks forward to
the wintry days and provides against
them by proper construction; but now
that cold weather Is upon us the ques
tion of adequate heating seems to be
more present and absorbing.
With modern heating equipment
there la probably no form of dwelling
that cannot bo adequately heated.
Some, however, are very difficult to
heat and require a much larger heat
ing plant and much more coal than
they should. This Is due sometimes
to faulty construction, sometimes to
unwise design.
In the first place every home build
er should know that there Is no mon
ey so well spent as that put Into Insu
lating felts and high grade sheathing
papers; which, combined with thor
ough construction In other ways, will
go very far toward making a resi
dence frost proof. A house so made
can be kept thoroughly warm with
from one-third to one-half the amount
of coal required to heat tho same
structure If not properly insulated and
put together.
Insulating paper does not cost very
much and it should be used freelv.
The entire exterior walls should be
covered betweon the rough sheathing
and the clapboards and care should be
warm-air furnace, steam or hot-water-systems
very good results can be bad
with this house. Doing rectangular tn
outline, there are no exposed por
tions. Tho solid porch at the front
will be found a great protection, as K
will blanket to a certain extent the
broad exposed side of tho living room.
In other ways, too, the arrange
ment of this house Is desirable. It I
well suited for a narrow building site.
Its width being but 22 feet 6 Inches.
Even counting the side entrance porch.
It doesn't require more than 25 feet.
The side entrance Is very popular at
7o-n7r I Bed Rm
RiBedPm BcdRm
Flwo- 9 crxra'or
i 7
Second Floor Plan.
the present time and this Is a good
example of the possibilities of this
kind of arrangement The living room
extends clear across the front of the
house, the reception room and stair
hall occupy the middle of the side
and at the rear are the dining-room
igTIi
ery,
m
all are
even crop rotation.
leans for extracting from the soil the rich
ness that Is In it. not ior reiuimuB j
?ood elements of grain building. All of these
methods of soil stimulation are excellent in
their way If used In connection with methods
of returning the elements of plant food; but
If used without them they are means of
hastening th" Impoverishment of the soil.
To return to the question of limestone, one
ton to the acre linely ground will correct the
acid condition of most soils. It Is, however,
in tho end cheaper and easier to apply more
and to apply it less often. As much as ten
tons to the ncre was applied to the soil of one
of the experiment fields In southern Illinois
and the crop yields there have been greater
than upon any other fields In that district.
A question that has been given much at
tention lately is the question of crop rota
tion. Undoubtedly it Is absolutely essential
for successful grain farming , but It Is not
the universal panacea some would have us be
lieve. For Instance, a group of theorists
have declared that fertilization Is unnecessary,
that crop rotation will keep the soils In per
fect condition. The Idea Is that plants do not
Injure the soil berause they uso its plant food
elements but because they throw off poisonous
excreta as animals do. Therefore a so-called
worn-out soil simply has become saturated
with this excreta. Plant a crop which will
neutralize the poison of the last crop and the
sollsoll will be sweetened and the breasts of
Mother Earth kept dripping with plenty for
ever. This is very attractive as a theory. It
has, however, no foundation In fact. As Dr.
Hopkins has said, the rotation of crops has Just
the same effect upon wealth In tho sooil as
the rotation of the check book among the
members of the fumlly has upon the wealth
In the bank. Plant food elements cannot be
used up and not returned without resulting
In Impoverishment of the soil.
t Jr it's ' r A f "1 .
MWrjsww-,-., V" 'TW- r"w'
taken to see that the paper is fitted
snugly around all openings, both doors
and windows. The workmen are some
times careless in this regard and It Is
well to keep pretty close watch of
what they are doing when It comes to
this part or the work. Good oil pa
per should also be used In the floor
ing between the rough and finished
floors. This serves a double purpose,
as it not only makes the houso warm
er, but shuts out all furnace dust from
the cellar, or dampness If there should
he any. The building paper used be-
3ORO MTR
, , ,
lfJlTCHr.r J
fjQO'XIi cr D1NIN6 Rm.
ij I ux-xii'o' J
tkNISpiLtiH' TZf
wsrwv Hall f""
I ll-OCTO'
C s
p Living Room
Porch
p ai
Qn Hell'Fer-Sartan Creeh
I had been to Hei: i. i-S.uiain, nnd
h;id heard preaching :hM If I
went hack raw the " oy I h.vl con' I
hould save six Icnv wary miles. I
was tired, a wai did Fait hi til. hut I
Bad not been to .he mouth of lleH-Or-Sartain
and I had not seen th church
:here, and while my curiosity wa sat
fled, my eoiisclem . wisn't. nnd so
from sheer stutilsirnucss 1 stddled Old
ralthful and roil.. j lown VfMl fer-
narM.in through an avenue of c;:i'iiiii
h.cr tre-'s. Never hat I Keen no many
cucumber tree in my life as were on
th't one rocky rnsri, and had they
only been starred with their great
cri nniy lilossoms they would have
been coiupeiiHiitlon for thn whole toil-pnn-.e
H'ln lll.i,ip)otntmcnt nw.ilted
me at the mouth of the creek. The
ch irch there ws c'osed. nnd above
Its door w.m not th pieturesaus title
of the stream, but some fernlike name
that was easily traceable to some,
shocked feminine taste from the outer
j world. Half a mile on I got a dinner
1 ni' cold beans and cold cornbread, and
j joli.. d by a 20-ycar-old school tacher
I on ! big black mule, turned my face
j tow aril Jackson. This young tchool
; teschcr was making money lit bis na-
tite mountains In order to study .'aw
out ride; he had gone to school tn the
Plucgrass and he knew my books.
Just then he was electioneering for
hU brother, who was running for a
county office and ho shouted his slo
gan to some native playing baseball
up the creek, to tho porches of the
houses as we passed, and when we
met a voter In the road he stopped,
while I rode discreetly on, and he nev
er failed to overtake me with a wink
of euccess. I'd like to wager that the
brother won. Hell-fer-Sartaln Creek
had onre deserved Its name, he said,
for there had been a "heap of devil
ment" done up there. There bad been
several fights In the schoolhouse
where where I had beard preacblnfi
but everything had quieted dowc
there, as It was quieting down al
through tho mountains, except ovei
toward Jackson. Ves, the good ol(
times were gone! John Kox, Jr., in
Serlbner.
First and Foremost.
"My wife has a great deal to say t
me about her first husband."
"Nonsense; you're wife was nevei
married before."
1 know It. That's what makes hei
reflections so. painful." Puck.
First Floor Plan.
tween the floors should be turned up
six Inches behind all the base boards.
Another trivial expense while build
ing that proves a very great economy
In the long run Is to have the baso-
ment lathed and plastered. Twenty
ifive or thirty dollars will do this on
!the average Job, while the satisfaction
and comfort resulting will be worth
many times that amount In after
years.
Also great care should be taken that
'what are called the rough sheathing
'boards for the exterior walls should
be good matched lumber. Shlplap Is
very tood for this sud costs very
little more than the ordinary un
matched boarding. Very often large
knotholes In such boarding tire al
lowed to go unnoticed ; hut this is a
grave mlstnke. Much cold can find Its
way In through even one large knot
bole. They should all e hunted out
and carefully plugged before the
sheathing pnper is nailed on.
And In addition to thorough con
struction much can lie accomplished
In the way of easy healing by hav
ing the house properly designed. A
long, rsuihlliiK structure Is much more
difficult to heat than a square, com
pact housi. The accompanying d'tign
la a good example of a residence that
Is vnrv easllv hestrd. Wltr, thr a
and kitchen. There Is a email den
directly back of the stair hall, which
will be useful for many purposes.
On the second floor are three good
sized bedrooms, each with a clothea
closet opening off from It. The bath
room Is also on this floor and finds
Itself directly above the kitchen. Tbla
brings all the plumbing together and
makes quite a saving In this factor of
the expense. It Is in matters of this
kind that the experienced house de
signer can save a good deal of money
for his clients. Too often not enough,
thought Is given matters of this kind,
but there is no doubt but that substan
tial savings may be accomplished tn
the construction of any house by hav
ing It properly designed.
In exterior appearance the honsa
Illustrated herewith Is very satisfac
tory. It Is dignified, neat and sub
stantial. It has the home atmosphere.
A house of this kind has the advan
tage of being very easily kept no so
that It always presents a neat and
well-cared-for appearance. The cost
of thlu seven-room, story and a half
house Is estimated at $3,000.
Restoring Garden of Eden.
Though theologians and geologist!
may disagree as to the exact location
of the garden of Eden, the average
historian recognizes that Mesopotamia,
between the River Euphrates and the
River Tigris was once a garden spot.
It is quite probable that the ancient
Babylonians, and Persians, and Chal
deans, and even their ancestors, util
ized the principles of Irrigation to
make their country blossom like the
rose. Hut It Is certain that Mesopo
tamia, for a number of centuries, haa
been a barren, desertlike land.
An Englishman Is now engaged In
the task of carrying the gospel of Irri
gation into Mesopotamia under the
auspices of the Turkish government,
which provided $750,000 for the pre
liminary work in the 1910 budget Sir
William Wlllcocks is the roan. In
1908 he was asked by the Turkish gov
ernment to make a report on the sub
ject of Irrigating Mesopotamia, and
then engaged for five years as adviser
and instructor to carry out the neces
sary surveys, etc. Sir William report
ed that 3,200.000 acres of desert land
could be turned into garden by tho
expenditure of $37,500,000 ou twelve
projects. In his investigations Sir
William has discovered certain depres
sions in the country which ho believes
o be the site of ancient irrigation
rystems and that can be utilized in the
modern work. He expects to be able
to complete the work to irrigate more
thnn 3.000.0DO acres In three years.
Lightening One's Load.
If your hsd Is heavy don't waste en
ergy lu whining shout It! Expend
yonr rtr-ns'h in tnrrjlng It! Lift It
10 our hoii!der. snd, though It
hum, frry II Mb a smile on your
fare to the M of l he way.
