368 ANNtTALi REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



the New Red of Soutliern Pennsylvania and the Old Red sandstone 

 of the Devonian System, together with a variety of clay shale and 

 sandstone, of various degrees of agricultural value, and at different 

 altitudes, so we have soils and localities adapted to a great variety 

 of crops that may be successfully cultivated within the State. Agri- 

 culture is in a transition stage, passing from the severely laborious, 

 brute force form into a more refined and less burdensome toil, to an 

 art and science wherein machinery and intelligence are requisites, 

 so that the gee orations to follow must be better equipped than those 

 of the past. 



Geologically, there are four distinct periods traceable in the rocks 

 of Pennsylvauia: First, the tropical or semi-tropical period when 

 the great coal measures were formed; second, the igneous period, 

 when the molten material forming the granites and traps, burst 

 through previously deposited formations; third, the glacial period, 

 so well marked in the northern section and last, the tertiaries do'^yn 

 to the present, now known as the temperate period. Nature was 

 very profuse in storing the elements so useful to mankind in the 

 deposits of coal, oil, gas, salt, potash salts, nitrate of soda, phos- 

 phatic materials upon which largely depend the human race for com- 

 fort, and existence, all of which are Nature's products and should 

 not be controlled and monopolized by combinations and trusts, at 

 the expense of all whose welfare depends upon a share of all. Tenny- 

 son writes: 



"There rolls the deep where grew the tree, 



O' earth what changes hast thou seen! 



There, where the long street roars, hath been 



The stillness of a central sea. 



The hills are shadows and they flow 



From form to form and nothing stands; 



They melt like mists, the solid land 



Like clouds they shape themselves and go." 



RATIONAL USE OF LIME ON LAND. 



By PROF. ALVA AGEE, State College, Pa. 



Thepe has been much discussion in recent years of the lime ques- 

 tion and some of the discussion has been illuminating. I believe 

 that we are getting nearer and nearer to the truth about the right 

 use of lime as the result of extended observation and experiment 

 fand I wish to state or restate some of the facts as I see them. 



There has been much irrational use of lime in the past. It has 

 been used as a manure and many farmers have learned that while 

 lime has increased productiveness of the soil for the time, a decrease 

 in prodnctive power follows if lime is made to take the place of 

 manure. On account of the irrational use of lime there is a pre- 

 judice on the part of some land-owners against liming and very often 

 their land needs lime and would be benefitted greatly by its rational 

 use. 



Lime may be applied to the soil to improve its physical condition 

 and there are instances in which it may be needed as actual plant 

 food, but I am chiefly interested in lime as a means of keeping a 



