444 Transactions of the American Institute. 



inches deep and pulverize thoroughly, so the humus will be distributed 

 equally through the ,ten inches. Instead of five per cent humus in 

 the soil there will be but one per cent ; the soil will therefore be but 

 one-fifth as rich as before plowing. Just so with every applica- 

 tion of manure, the deeper it is plowed under the less benefit. But 

 this is not all ; plowing ten inches makes it even worse, for it turns 

 the larger part of the humus in the bottom of the ten-inch furrow, 

 where the main body of the roots do not naturally run, away from the 

 heat of the sun, the clews and gentle rains. Nor can all the ingenuity 

 of man make them run out of their natural course to please liis whims ; 

 but they do run where the poor clay has been turned up in such plow- 

 ing, hence his failure. That experiment of Theodore Frelinghuysen 

 is a case in point ; but if the shallow plowing of six inches had been 

 four, it would have been even more striking. If such is the result on 

 land which the deep system theorists say, is the most beneficial, 

 of what possible use can deep plowing be on land which Horace 

 Greeley says does not need plowing at all ? 



J. P. Trimble. 



F. D. Curtis. 



J. Y. C. Smith. 



David Petit. 



■ Sheep Raising in New Mexico. 



The Chairman read the following paper from Mr. Edwin Lyon, of 

 Fort McRae, New Mexico : 



I have taken pains to collect some reliable facts relative to the 

 profits of sheep raising in this territory, but will confine myself in 

 the present article to the information received from sheep owners in 

 the immediate vicinity of Fort McRae, New Mexico. Within a 

 radius of thirty miles from this point there are about 30,000 sheep, 

 of which General Montoya, of San Antonio, New Mexico, owns 

 20,000, and Senor Garcia, of Alamosita, 10,000. There are no small 

 flocks. The area indicated is capable of pasturing over a hundred 

 thousand sheep without going beyond water limits, which means 

 within six miles of the Rio Grande. These flocks are of the common 

 Mexican breed, originally from the State of Chihuahua. Their ave- 

 rage weight of carcass about thirty pounds. They are herded in 

 flocks of from 3,000 to 7,000. A flock of the latter number is divided 

 during the clay, but corralled together at night. They require the 

 constant attention of herders and dogs. To take care of a herd of 

 7,000 sheep required the services of three herders, one majordomo or 



