16 THE LURE OF THE LAND 



And the yearth is full of critters that eat this stuff you see, 

 And change it in a twinkle into ammoniee. 



That arternoon the sheriff he as't us out to see 

 Some Jerseys in his pastur; the prof, he rode by me, 

 We crossed the crick at Haskell's and passed the clover field 

 Whar he hed wheat last summer with sich a bustin' yield. 



The professor he wuz lookin' and when the field he spied, 



" Them taters 're lookin' splendid fur the time o' year," he 



cried. 

 " Them ain't taters," said I, laffin' ; " why, professor, don't you 



know 

 Thet 's the clover which you told us would give us sich a show ? " 



Sence I come back from the Institoot it really appears 

 Thet potash, nitrate, phosphorus, wuz ringin' in my ears, 

 And, William, it seems purty tough thet you and Jim and me 

 Have went along so ign'rant of what we daily see. 



Jist hauled manure out on the pints and plowed and hoed and 



mowed, 



And worked so hard for little pay, and never, never knowed 

 Thet clover, peas, and beans, and sich ez the chemist mentioned 



there, 

 Hev the highly useful knack of suckin' niter from the air. 



Having retired now for several years from address- 

 ing farmers' institutes, I would be almost afraid again 

 to attempt it, so wise and critical have the farmers be- 

 come on all the points relating to the scientific expo- 

 sition of the principles which underlie their profession. 



Not only have the farmers' institutes done this won- 

 derful service, but they are not the only avenues of 

 progress. We have now throughout the country agri- 

 cultural trains passing rapidly from county to county, 

 carrying a corps of learned and practical men, with 

 coaches filled with exhibits and charts of instruction, 

 thus bringing to the very doors of the farmer who is 



