HOUSE AND GARDEN 
June, 1912 
34 
sons out of ten it would make enough to p.ay. It can’t all be 
clone at once, of course: the soil must be deepened gradually. 
But certainly deep plowing, on most soils, is one of the two 
greatest insurances against the efifects of drought. The other, of 
course, is the dust mulch." And the professor went on to ex¬ 
plain in detail the reasons for the result of the experiment. 
IMantell had read, of course, that deep ])lowing was desir.able, 
but this practical illustration drove the thing home in two 
minutes, in a w'ay that all the hooks obtainable could never have 
done. 
But the thing that interested him most was ,an experiment they 
were trving in the vegetable garden, and on onions and celery, 
with which extensive trials were being carried out. 
'AVe have been trying one scheme and another for the last 
several vears," said the professor, "to apply water to growing 
crops in ,a ])ractical way, and have used. hose, pipes with sprink- 
soming of the vines, and given them a prettv good hilling up. 
This had been some time after the dry we.ather set in, and they 
had not grown much since, although they still looked very 
healthy. Alantell could see, however, that his old held, except 
where the bugs had injured it most severely, had caught up with 
the Scpiire's, and it was still growing, if very slowly. The main 
difference between the two was that his was still a d,ark green, 
while the Scphre's was beginning to get a little rusty looking— 
their growth had ceased. 
Most of Alantell's neighbors thought him very foolish, to say 
the least, to continue cultivation during the dry weather. "M’hat 
good can it do?" they asked each other, ,and kindly attributed his 
waste of effort to the over-zealousness of a beginner. The Squire 
had been inclined to do the same. l:ut his several discussions with 
Alantell had given him more respect for the latter's methods of 
doing things. 
1 here was a mellowness and peacefulness about the on-coming autumn which Mantell had never realized in the city, even on those rare occasions 
when he got away for a drive in the neighboring country 
lers to be moved about, overhead revolving sprinklers, etc., hut 
none was really satisfactory, and all expensive—one or two of 
the best too expensive for practical use. We are just putting in 
now a new system of overhead parallel pipes, with nozzles for 
spraying every few feet. It is a new system, but highlv recom¬ 
mended and we have great ho])es that it will take away the dread 
of drought for all intensive crops. I shall be glad to show it to 
you in operation, if you can come down a little later, and anyway 
will let you know how it works." 
]\fantell felt well rejiaid for the time and monev spent for his 
trip, and went home with a firmer determination than ever to do 
his utmost to win out against the parching sun. 
Shortly after this, on one of his visits to the Squire's, he 
strolled out with the latter to look at the potato ])atch. The 
Squire, true to old customs, had stopped cultivation with the blos- 
When, the next day, in response to Alantell’s invitation, the 
Squire went over to his place, and took ,a look around with him, 
he, too, noted that the dry weather seemed to be affecting i\lan- 
tell's crops less than most of those in the neighborhood. There was 
hardly room for the horse and cultivator to get Iretween the rows 
of potatoes, but Robert and Prince were busv in their midst stir¬ 
ring the dust dry surface of the soil. The field of corn that had 
been put in late especially commanded the Squire's attention. 
"I don’t understand that," he said. "Put in late, poor soil, no 
fertilizer - " 
"(Dh, yes, it was fertilized," broke in IMantell. "After it was 
planted we put on several hundred pounds of fertilizer." 
"Well, that's a new one on me," admitted the Squire. "It 
seems to be a good plan.’’ 
{Continued on page 61) 
