CHAPTER FIVE 



THE BARN-YARD WEALTH 



BARN- YARD manure is the farm's most valu- 

 able asset, for without it the fertility of the 

 land cannot be maintained. Deteriorating 

 soils curtail crops, and eventually wreck the 

 whole scheme of supply and demand, so essen- 

 tial to prosperous husbandry. Yet this fun- 

 damental factor of success is ruthlessly dissi- 

 pated by carelessness, and then hundreds of 

 dollars are spent annually to supply substi- 

 tutes, in the form of commercial fertilizers, 

 which are inferior in every respect, except 

 cost. They will, of course, stimulate growth, 

 and are serviceable if used in moderation, and 

 under certain conditions; but they do not im- 

 prove the texture and drainage of the soil, 

 and barn-yard manure does. 



Strange to say, even farmers are extremely 

 hazy about the relative values of solid and 



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