LIFE ON THE FARM. 



CHAPTER I. 



I 4 00 

 THE SOIL. 



How soil is formed. Relation of water to soil. Water both destruc- 

 tive and useful. Movement of water in the soil. Where the 

 water goes. Retention of soil water. When plowing benefits 

 soil. Soil air. Why cultivation is beneficial. Effect of air 

 pressure. Soil temperature. Relation of heat to soil. Chemical 

 composition and kinds of soil. Elements composing the soil. 

 Relation of earthworms and other small animals to soil fertility. 



The soil is the source from which many useful 

 things come. Wheat, from which bread is made, 

 comes directly from the soil; and most of the meat 

 we eat was once in the form of grain or hay, and 

 this grows directly from the soil. The same may 

 be said of the different kinds of cloth, leather, 

 carpets, lumber, and a host of other useful things. 



Soil is composed of decayed rocks, and of the 

 remains of plants and animals. It has been form- 

 ing for thousands of years, and the same work is 

 going on to-day. 



Roots of plants, from the tiny weed that grows 

 by the roadside to the forest tree, have the power 

 of penetrating the earth in such a way as to break 



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