PRINCIPLES OF FERTILITY. I39 



particles of soil are firm and more retentive, and consociuiMitly there 

 would not be the danger from leaching, as with the sand}- soil. 

 What is the lesson ? If 3-011 are going to fei-tilize a sand}' soil, use 

 thoroughly decomposed manure in small quantities, so that the 

 plants Avill take it from the soil the same season it is applied and 

 make plant growth of it ; the next year you do the same and get 

 another crop. Make your applications frequently ; stir your soil 

 frequently, and rotate your crops frequently on a sandy soil. This 

 is not so necessar}- or so advantageous with a clayey soil. We 

 should adapt our methods to the soil we are handling. 



S. L. HoLHUooK, member from Sagadahoc : It is very evident 

 to the casual observer that the farm is i)assing through a sort of 

 transition state. The farm of to-day is not what it was fifty years 

 ago. The enterprising farmer is not satisfied with the wa}- that 

 farming has been managed, and is seeking a better wa}-. He is 

 not satisfied with the production of one acre of corn, a piece of 

 potatoes, one cow and a few hens ; that will not meet the wants 

 of society ; he has got to farm it on different principles and adopt 

 new methods. 



We have under discussion the ver}- important question of the 

 fertility of the soil, a question which lies at the foundation of our 

 business, and in fact of all industries. I will throw out a few 

 suggestions and then leave the matter in the hands of the farmers 

 present. Professor Chadbourne once asked his college class to tell 

 him, at the next recitation, the diflference between a plant and an 

 animal. They thought it over and when they came together not 

 one of them could answer the question ; the}- could not tell that 

 there was an}- difference between a plant and an animal. lie told 

 them that all the difference he could give wa^s that one possessed 

 the power of voluntary motion and the other did not ; and that one 

 feeds on organic and the other on inorganic matter. He said, " the 

 plant eats as we do, breathes the air as we do ; it has veins and 

 arteries as we have, and I don't know but it possesses sensation." 



This point should be thoroughly understood, that all plants must 

 be fed ; they must have nourishment ; and in proportion to the 

 nourishment which they receive they will flourish. There are 

 different ways in which we may improve the fertility of our soil. 

 The first and principal way is by manuring. This is an im|)ortant 

 question, and on this we shall succeed or fail. We have been told 

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