CHAPTER II. 



THEORY OP SCIENTIFIC AGRICULTURE FORMATION OP THE GLOBE 



ITS TEMPERATURE COMPOSITION OF THE EARTH 



ITS PRINCIPAL ROCKS CHEMISTRY OF VEGETATION 



NECESSITY FOR GEOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE REMARKS ON 



DRAINAGE AND IRRIGATION. 



The theory of scientific agriculture is based upon a complete 

 knowledge of the nature of soils, plants, animals and manures, and 

 it is evident that until these elements are thoroughly understood, 

 no attempts at improvement or plans for increased production can 

 possibly be successful. It is curiously illustrative of the general 

 ignorance that very few people know anything of the earth they 

 tread or the soil they cultivate, in what way it was formed, or what 

 is its composition. How, then, can they imagine the mighty in- 

 undations and the terrible upheavals ? How conceive anything of 

 that gigantic disemboweling of the earth - monster, and of the 

 awful torrents of burning lavas which it has vomited forth ? Can 

 they realize that our tallest mountains, even those which from their 

 height are covered with perpetual snow, were once submerged in 

 rolling seas ? or that the rocks and cliffs we meet with in our plains 

 are nothing more than agglommerated masses of organisms that 

 swarmed the waters ? 



We might very easily allow ourselves to be carried far away by 

 this seductive topic, but must needs confine our pen for present 

 purposes to a brief synopsis of elementary facts which, if they serve 

 no other purpose, may induce some of our readers to "seek for more." 



