CHAPTER IV 



THE SOIL 



"When tillsc 



— Daniel V 



Old Daniel had a way of hitting the nail on 

 the head and when he made the above statement 

 he eertainly "said a mouthful." The history 

 of agrieultnre. and of civilization, is the history 

 of tillage — of cultivation. Before the time of 

 civilization, men depended upon animals and 

 wild plants for their food. Wild apples, wild 

 wheat, wild oats, all were harvested where they 

 were found. Now. only the latter crop remains 

 as a factor in our life, all of the other cereals 

 and fruits having in one way and another been 

 brought under some measure of control. 



The first cultivator made a great step for- 

 ward when he discovered that by planting some 

 of his wild wheat instead of eating it all, he 

 would have a supply another year. Through 

 the ages one step has led to another in the 

 progress of agriculture. For a time men were 

 content to grow wild things in much the same 

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