FAEMEES' INSTITUTES. 107 



Dr. Kedzie.— ^This salt question is an cxteusive one, and it would require the 

 rest of the afternoon and evening to fully answer that question. One marked 

 influence of salt is in prolonging the period of growth, and preventing the too 

 early ripening of a crop. On sandy lailds the crops tend to complete their 

 growth and ripen their leaves too early. On such soils salt counteracts this 

 tendency and may increase the yield of crops thereby. In clay soils there is 

 the opposite tendency to prolong the period of growth, and on such soils the 

 salt might be injurious by increasing this tendency. 



Mr. Tomlinson. — I would like to have Dr. Kedzie tell us how we can imj^rove 

 our pine barrens. 



Dr. Kedzie — I have never had an opportunity to examine the soil or the pine 

 lands of Allegan county, and I can say nothing on the subject. 



S. K. Lewis. — Will the use of salt on sandy soil prevent the ravages of the- 

 cut-worm ? 



Dr. Kedzie. — From experiments tried at the Agricultural College, we found 

 that an amount of salt that would kill cut-worms would also destroy everything 

 growing upon the soil. Of course salt in proper quantities is beneficial to many 

 kinds of crops. 



Mr. Loomis. — AV'ho can give us the best tlieory of manuring our lands, espe- 

 cially those at a great distance from the barns? 



Spencer Marsh, — A good farmer in the town of Parma, Jackson county, took 

 me over liis fine farm and said he could replenish his hind much ea-ier and 

 cheaper by clover than he could by drawing manure from tlie barn-yard. 

 Another farmer who used to raise from 10 to 15 bushels to the acre, told me he 

 was not content now unless he got from 20 to 25 bushels to the acre. He kept 

 his land up by clovcring and plowing the clover under. He also kept a great 

 many sheep. 



Dr. Kedzie. — One of the most intelligent farmers in the United States, 

 George Geddes of New York, told me that by the use of plaster and clover, 

 Avithout the addition of a solitary i)ound of manure, he raised crops for thirty 

 years, and at the end of that time tlie land was in better condition than when 

 he began. 



EVENING SESSION. 



The closing session of this Institute commenced with the following lecture by 

 Mr. K. G. Carpenter, C. E., on 



llOAD MAKING. 



Road making is an ancient art, and histories, as well as tiie remains of old 

 roads, attest that in ages gone by, better roads were in process of construction 

 than are being made to-day. 



The necessity for roads depends upon the amount of social or commercial 

 intercourse between the inhabitants of any given country or countries. 



This age, though surpassing all other ages in the amount of its travel, has 

 given little attention to the subject of common roads, probably because the rail- 

 roads of to-day better meet the transportation demand. 



I would not wish to lower in any way your high opinion of railroads : they 



