THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 457 



I860.] 



(or so-called ^'prairie" lands,) are highly 

 and abundantly calcareous — and the " bald 

 pvairies'' excessively calcareous — and that 

 the true and unmixed "post-oak^' lands, on 

 the original reddish or yellowish soils are 

 entirely destitute of carbonate of lime. And 

 I infer of the latter general class of soils, 

 that most of them, even though rich a^d 

 neutral, would yet be benefitted by being- 

 manured with the close-adjacent and very 

 accessible marl — and that all of the natu- 

 rally poorer soils of this class are very defi- 

 cient in lime, and therefore would certainly 

 be improved by such application. 



But, besides the well-marked qualities of 

 these different soils, to be observed in the 

 interior of the space occupied by each par- 

 ticular, body, there are likewise, and of ne- 

 cessity must be, intermixtures of these dif- 

 ferent adjacent soils, where they meet, 

 which partake of the composition and quali- 

 ties of both. These intervening and inter- 

 mixed portions of soil, and the different 

 kinds of soil on each side, when under til- 

 lage together, must have their parts and 

 qualities more and more intermixed, and 

 the intermixtures extended by the effect of 

 the plough in removing the adhering earth. 

 Thus there is necessarily much of medium 

 (or intermixed) soil lying between every two 

 adjoining portions of different soils in the 

 same field. Also, there are black and rich 

 soils in the narrow depressions and bottoms, 

 (the former " slues," [sloughs ?] before the 

 land was under culture,) of which the soil 

 was formed by the deposition of washings 

 from various soils brought from higher 

 slopes. These soils usually are non-calca- 

 reous, though probably provided with lime 

 in considerable, if not abundant quantity, 

 in some other combinations than the carbon- 

 ate. These several intermixed and medium 

 soils may at first seem to oppose contradic- 

 tions to the general divisions and descrip- 

 tions ofiered above ; but if duly considered. 



said, in depressions on the surface of the lime- 

 stone, after tlie latter had been subject to denu- 

 dation. It [the post-oak soil] is composed of 

 clay and lirne intimately mixed, producinj? a 

 subsoil of a light brown color, that is subject to 

 crack by contraction when drying." I should 

 not have deemed it necessary for me to refer to 

 this opposition to my position, whether real or 

 only apparent, Init for the deservedly high scien- 

 tific character of Prof Tuomey, and my great 

 tlefcrence to his general correctness of observa- 

 tion and deduction. 



they will not be deemed exceptions to the 

 general positions assumed.* 



There are also extensive and very fertile 

 bottoms, or flats bordering on creeks, (gen- 

 erally dry, but sometimes overflowing,) 

 of which the soils have been furnished, or 

 greatly increased, by washings brought by 

 rain-floods from higher grounds. These 

 soils contain none of the original lime-rock, 

 (except as a deep under-lying bed,) nor 

 even its smallest fragments or gravel — but 

 only the fine and intermixed lime, difl'used 

 throughout in the minutest state of division, 

 and combined with the different parent soils. 

 Such soils, according to the character of 

 their sources, may be either neutral, slightly 

 calcareous, or highly calcareous — and in 

 either case abundantly supplied with lime 

 in some form. Many of the narrow bottoms 

 (or former ^' slues,) are of neutral soil. 

 The broad flat and fertile bottom on the 

 Chehatchee Creek, Dallas county, (or the 

 only specimen I selected and tested,) is of 

 very slightly calcareous soil — and the rich 

 bottom along the Cottonwood Creek, (Ma- 

 rengo,) is highly calcareous. 



Of the portions of the high lands which 

 I designate as non-calcareous, and which are 

 usually known as "post-oak" lands, there 

 are various qualities, in reference to value 

 and production. Some of the best are 

 more productive in cotton, (though not in 

 corn,) than the best black lands — and some, 

 even when new, are very inferior, for either 

 crop, and some absolutely poor. The best 

 and most fertile lands, of all the different 

 varieties of appearance, are among the rich- 

 est and most durable known any where. 

 The first settlement and cultivation of this 

 country are but forty years old ; and most 

 of the first cropping has been of much later 

 date. But whatever was the time of the 

 beginning, the tillage and exhaustion since 

 have been continued and unremitting. And 

 so well has the fertility been preserved un- 

 der this continual exaction, and almost with- 

 out manure, that it is still a commonly as- 

 serted and received doctrine that the best 

 soils are inexhaustible, and will bear con- 

 tinual cropping for all future time. Long 

 ago, and probably before any decrease of 

 fertility had been observed anywhere, I pro- 

 tested against this belief as a dangerous delu- 

 sion ; and now, as formerly, I maintain that 



* Essciy on Calcareous Manures, (5th Ed.) — 

 Chap, vii., on Neutral Soils. 



