November and December, as will appear by the following table, sbowing 

 the dates when the temperature was as low as 32 degrees : 



In view of the extremes of heat and cold and dry and wet weather, 

 it will be seen that there were serious difficulties to contend with 

 during the season of 1899. 



RANGE IMPROVEMENT. 



METHODS EMPLOYED. 



The section of 640 acres was divided into six pastures of 80 acres 

 each, two of 40 acres each, one of 70 acres, and the remaining 10 acres 

 were set apart for testing such grasses or forage plants as fairly 

 promised to be of practical value in the semiarid regions of Texas. 



The work as planned by the agrostologist in 1898 was as follows: 



Pasture No. 1. — No treatment except to keep stock oft' until June 1, 

 pasturing the balance of the season. 



Pasture No. 2. — Cut with a disk harrow and kept stock oft' until 



June 1, pasturing the balance of the season. 



Pastures Nos. 3 and 4 (of 40 acres each). — Grazed alternately, the 



stock being changed from one pasture to another every two weeksj 



thus allowing the grasses a short period for recovery after each grazing] 



Pasture No. 5. — No treatment except pasturing until June 1 an( 

 keeping stock off the balance of the season. 



Pasture No. 6. — Left as a check, without any treatment whatevei 

 except to keep stock oft" during the first season. 



Pasture No. 7. — Dragged with an ordinary straight-toothed harrow 

 and stock kept oft" during the first season. 



Pasture No. 8. — Disked and stock kept oft' during the first season] 



The 70-acre pasture, No. 9, was not grazed. Seeds of a number o| 

 wild and cultivated varieties were sown directly upon the sod. 



Three of the most experienced stockmen of Texas personally inspecte( 

 every acre of the section March 23, 1898, and unanimously reported thai 

 its utmost capacity for supporting cattle at that time was 1 head oj 

 mixed stock to every 10 acres, or 40 head to the section. The rainfall 

 during 1898 was exceptionally light, and practically nothing wag 

 accomplished that year on the station except the cultivation of the| 

 native sod — that is to say, a disk harrow was used in two of the 80-acre 

 j)astures to cut up the sod as thoroughly as i>racticable. An ordinar;^ 

 iron-tooth harrow was used on one 80-acre i)asture, and the surface ol 



