THE GENESEE FARMER. 



SSI 



strains which posse.'Js excellent niilkitifjf qualities. An 

 animal that lia^ a jireat temleuc}^ to fatten, however, 

 is seldom a gooil milker. 



Dkvoxs. — Tlic Devons, or more correctly the 

 J\''orlli Di'cons, constitute an orijfinal bived of, per- 

 haps, the loiin^est standini^ of an}' distinct breed of 

 cattle in England. It is recorded as having been es- 

 teemed for its good qualities for centuries. There is 

 scarcely any breed of cattle so rich and mellow in 

 its touch, so silky and fine in its hair, or so handsome 

 in appearance. It is said that "they have a greater 

 proportioE of weight in the most valuable joints, and 

 less in the coarse, than any other breed, and also 

 consume less in its production." As working oxen 

 they generally surpass any other breed. They are 

 excellent walkers, and perfectly docile. An English 



NORTH DEVON. 



author says, " As milkers they are about the same 

 as most other breeds, the general average of a dairy 

 of cows being about one pound of butter per day 

 from each cow during the summer months; although 

 in some instances the very best bred cows give a 

 great deal more." For general purposes — for the 

 yoke, the dairy and the butcher combined, they are 

 probably the most profitable breed of cattle for poor 

 and medium soils. On the rich soils of the West 

 they cannot compete with the Short-horns for beef; 

 neither can they compete with the Ayrshires for ex- 

 clusively dairy purposes; but on the poor soils of 

 New P^ngland, for ordinary farm purposes, they are 

 unsurpassed by any other breed at present introdu- 

 duced. Where known, the Devon is justly admired 

 for his pleasing color, elegant form, agile gait, and 

 gentle temper. 



THE PRACnCAL UTILITY OF SOIL ANALYSES. 



Frienp Harris: — You may well thank me for a 

 " friendly criticism," which has given you so fair an 

 opportiuiily to present your views of "the practical 

 utility of soil analyses," in an able manner, to the 

 reajievs of your paper. While conceding the afcility 

 with which you discuss the subject, I still think there 

 u too much ot a partisan spirit in the positive man- 

 ner in which you write, as though perfection had 

 been reached in this branch of science,' and all pro- 

 gress therein were utterly hopeless. (A) Analyti- 

 cal chemistry in its application to the study of soils 

 is too young to be justly condemned for the Httle it 

 has already done in that behalf. All that I have 

 asked, was the proper cultivation of this department 

 of useful knowledge, believing that it will yet bring 

 forth most valuable fruit. If I understand your 

 meaning, it is a sweeping condemnation of soil analy- 

 ees as of "no practical utility." (B) Privately by 



letters, and publicly through the Genesee Fai-mer, 

 you discourage researches into the sources of fertility, 

 and the cuu--es of inlertility in soils, by competent 

 chemists. You u]i[)ear to believe ih'dt truth and fair 

 dealing demand this course at your hands. You 

 say, " If it is true that soil analyses are of no prac- 

 tical utility, the fact should be known. The cause 

 of agricultural chemistry cannot be promoted by the 

 suppression of truth, nor by unfounded pretensions. 

 It is a good cause, and Irvtk cannot hurt it." In the 

 point and justice ot the above remaiks, I entirely 

 concur. But is it " true that soil analyses are of no 

 practical utility?" I think it is not true, and for tb« 

 following among other reasons: 



All intelligent persons will admit that it is exceed- 

 ingly desirable to learn all we can know of the pro|> 

 erties, composition, and intrinsic value of the soils 

 we own, or may cultivate. (C) In searching for 

 the philosopher's stone, which was reported to change 

 base metals, like lead and iron, into gold and silver, 

 great benefits incidentally accrued to chemistry, min- 

 erology, and the art of reducing the most refractory 

 ores. Men at length learned to separate the valua- 

 ble from the valueless, and thus literally transformed 

 coal, iron and copper into coined silver and gold. 

 (D) Your error consists in assuming that a chemist 

 is compelled, by the force of circumstances, to en- 

 cumber his analyses of the elements of fertility in 

 soils with the millions of pounds of flint sand, alumi- 

 na, oxide of iron, and vegetable mould in an acre of 

 ground, and within seven inches of its surface. This 

 is not separating fine gold from quartz rock, but 

 simply taking the whole granite mountain in mass. 

 (B) When I said in a former letter, "Destroy the 

 value of chemistry in its application to the organic 

 and inorganic food of plants in the soil, and you vir- 

 tually damage it to an equal extent in its application 

 to these substances when organized in the bodies of 

 all living beings," I had no idea of troubling the 

 analyst with the iriillions of pounds of common sand 

 and clay in an acre of land, but would confine hia 

 researches to those substances which rain water dis- 

 solves out of the ground, and conveys into the roots 

 of plants to nourish them. The available food of 

 plants, both organic and inorganic, may be less thaa 

 one per cent, of the soil; and its study differs very 

 little from that of phints themselves, and still less 

 from the study of manures. Some manures are more 

 soluble in rain water ttian others; and such is the 

 fact in reference to the elements of crops in all tilla- 

 ble land. Nature takes from three to five months ia 

 our climate to extract the food of a crop of corn 

 from the soil in which it grows. A student of Na- 

 ture will act wisely if he imitates her example ia 

 i this respect — carr fully leaching as many cubic feet 

 j of earth as a farmer allows to a hill of corn, say 

 } from nine to twenty. (H) The investigation of the 

 soluble elements of soils, both organic ai d inorganic, 

 presents a wide field for chemical research that dififera 

 materially from the "soil analyses" to which ynu re- 

 fer. (G) Nor can I believe that you will knowingly 

 throw any obstacle in the way of such analyses. If 

 a soil, perchance, abounds in salts of iron, or alum- 

 ina, to an injurious extent, the fact will be disclosed; 

 and if those of potash, soda, linie, or magnesia, be 

 present in mere traces, in hundred pounds of earth, 

 such information will add to our present knowledge 

 on the subject. The way to increase, our present 

 defective knowledge of the true sources of fruitful* 



