124 SWEET CLOVER 
upon the raw, white beach sand of King Island, located 
near the south coast of Australia. Among the wreckage 
were some mattresses that had been stuffed with sweet 
clover which contained some seed. This seed fell upon 
the sandy beaches and grew, and in the course of time 
spread over the whole of the coast of this island and 
transformed it from an island of useless shifting sand 
to a land rich in grazing for cattle, sheep and horses. 
This wonderful plant by its almost magical enriching 
powers has made of the white sand a dark brown soil 
and increased its value a hundredfold. A once barren 
island of sand now exports fat cattle and dairy produce 
and fine horses of the finest grades and quality that com- 
mand the highest prices in the markets of Tasmania. 
The powers of the plant as a soil builder is simply its 
ability to gather from the air and store into the soil great 
quantities of nitrogen, and produce through its root and 
branch system great quantities of organic matter esti- 
mated as high as twenty tons to the acre. 
It is simply a great nitrogen-gathering and organic 
matter producing plant, and herein alone lies its secret 
as a soil builder. And while the author has never ex- 
perimented with this plant, he is satisfied that its merits 
have not been exaggerated, because any plant that has 
the capacity to draw from the air large quantities of 
nitrogen and which produces a large quantity of organic 
matter in its foliage and root system, and which will so 
readily grow on poor soil, is a plant whose worth as a 
soil builder cannot be estimated. 
Any one possessing lands so poor that nothing will 
grow on them should not hesitate to give sweet clover a 
