6 MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. igi3. 



February 27, 191 1, the president of the New England Min- 

 eral Fertilizer and Chemical Company again wrote as follows : 



"We are shipping yon, as directed, 100 pounds of our Min- 

 eral Fertilizer. After reading your very flattering remarks on 

 our fertilizer in Official Inspections 29 we have concluded that 

 it would be advisable for this company to send a representative 

 to see this fertilizer applied. So if you will inform us when 

 you are ready to make your test we will send a man to see the 

 fertilizer put on and we will also send a man at different peri- 

 ods during the season so that we may stand at least a small 

 show of getting fair treatment." Much of the remainder of 

 tne letter is personal abuse and the following is the only part 

 which bears upon the proposed experiment as it indicates that 

 they knew when they sent the too pounds of fertilizer for the' 

 plots exactly what was to be used on the other plots. "It is 

 very self evident from the tests which you lay down in your 

 bulletin which you are going to make with this Mineral Fer- 

 tilizer and the quantity of what you call high grade fertilizer 

 and the large quantit}^ of stable manure, together' with the large 

 amount of chemical fertilizer that you intend putting against 

 this worthless, good for nothing, ground rock which in your 

 judgment is poorer than ordinary dirt, that you are afraid of 

 some of the statements which you have made otherwise 3^ou 

 would not wish to corral a large percentage of the fertilizer 

 in your vicinity to dope up your soil for fear that you would 

 be beaten in the coming test which you say you are going to 

 make." 



March 7 this letter Avas acknowledged as follows : 



"Your letter of February 27 and 100 pounds of your fertil- 

 izer received. I will notify you as far in advance as I can of 

 the time of the experiments with potatoes and corn on which 

 Mineral Fertilizer is to be used will be stated. There will have- 

 to be two different plantings, as the potatoes wall have to be 

 planted earlier than it is safe to plant corn with us. The farm 

 is open to visitors at all times and you or your representatives 

 will always be welcome." 



May 23 the following letter was written to the New England 

 Mineral Fertihzer and Chemical Company: 



"I have to leave to day for a week or ten days absence. The 

 plots have been selected for the experiment with the New Eng- 



