170 



jess suffering from :i lack of organic matter. Tliat may seem paradoxical, hut 

 what I mean is that there may he so much hunuis which has so far advanced in 

 decomposition that it tills up the interstices of the soil sutficiently to interfere 

 with the proper movement of air and water. I hope some day we shall have u 

 conmiittee appointed to determine what terms shall he used. 



What seems to l)e needed frequently is decaying organic matter rather than the 

 '■ niatiere nOir " of (irandean. 



('. C. MooRE. of the Bureau of Chemistry. I want to emphasize what Professor 

 Wheeler has said as to the possihility of determining the available plant food in 

 the soil, by growing a crop on it and then seeing what is the composition of that 

 crop. If the phosphoric acid is high in that turnip, it wotild indicate that the 

 plant food in that soil is greater than in that soil which produces a low turnip. 

 ! believe that is the very keynote in the investigation of soils. I believe that if 

 the soil investigators would consider the composition of the crop, as Doctor 

 Wheeler suggests, they would find themselves on the most direct line to truth in 

 this research. I have had experience in the Department of Agriculture in mak- 

 ing something like .'?.(I00 crop experiments. I have been able to produce crops 

 wherein the yields were identical — that is, within a gram of each other ; yet in 

 one instance there would be as much as six or eight times as much potash in one 

 crop as in the other crop. That was simply because I had fertilized that crop 

 with potash. If I had simply determined the yield, this would have indicated 

 that there was no effect of the potash, and I would have been misled. 



Again, I have been able to i)roduce enormous crops of straw, but no grain. 

 Now. if I had said that the potash had been ineffective because no grain was 

 produced. I would have been decidedly misled. I have been able in a large 

 series of investigations which I have made to establish no relation whatever 

 between total plant food in the crop and the total crop, or the crop yield. 



I think if Pi'ofessor Wheeler's suggestion is carried out, and the composi- 

 tion of the plant be used in determining the fertility of the soil, it will lead in 

 a more direct line to the ultimate end. 



Officers of the Section. 



II. J. Waters, of Missouri, on behalf of the committee on nominations, con- 

 sisting of II. J. Waters, C. D. Woods, and W. R. Dodson, recouuuends as chair- 

 man of the section. B. C. Buffum. of Wyoming ; for secretary. M. A. Scovell, of 

 Kentucky : for programme committee. II. P. Armsby, of Pennsylvania ; C. F. 

 Curtiss. of Iowa ; M. A. Scovell, of Kentucky ; for members of the executive 

 connnittee, W. H. Jordan, of Geneva, and C. F. Curtiss. of Iowa. (See also 

 p. 51.) 



The report was accepted. 



At 4 o'clock p. m. the connnittee ad.jouiiicd to meet at 2 o'clock p. m., Novem- 

 ber 16, 1905. 



Afternoon Session. Tiiirsday. XovEAtBER 16, 1905. 



The section was called to onh'r at 2 ji. m. liy the chairman. IT. J. Patterson, 

 of Maryland. 



How Much Demonstration Work and What Kind Shoild the Experiment 



Station Undertake. 



C. E. Thorne. of Ohio. Mr. Chiiirman and gentlemen. I come entirely unpre- 

 pared to take part, and esi)ecia!ly to lead, in the discussion of this question. 

 All I can do is to crudely outline some of the thoughts that have been passing 

 through my mind of late, without being crystallized into any definite form ; hut 



