practical papers—Soils. 
37 1 
the other to wheat, giving it still farther working with the harrow 
the same as the other land, so as to properly cover the seed. The 
contrast from the time the plants were visible until the harvest 
was very marked. The'plants upon this strip of onion ground 
were much more vigorous, darker colored, stronger and larger ; 
and I doubt not that one-fourth to one-third more wheat was 
raised upon the spot so prepared, than upon the same quantity 
adjoining, although the land had been treated alike in all respects 
from the time of breaking in 1861, with the exception as above 
mentioned, neither having had any barn yard manure or other 
fertilizer applied. Now, the extra cultivation I gave that piece 
of land did not add fertilizing properties to the soil; it simply 
disintegrated, reduced and made fine the food in the soil in such 
abundance, that the plants could feed and fatten to their utmost 
desire. It matters not how rich our lands may be in all the 
elements of fertility, if the proper means are not applied to make 
those elements effective, or in other words, if the food in the soil, 
however abundant, is not properly prepared so that the plants 
can feed upon it, and have at all times a full supply, we need not * 
look for abundant crops and large returns for our labor. In con¬ 
versing with an intelligent farmer recently, a member of the 
present legislature, he said, “ The cause of the hard times among 
the farmers of the state is not so much to be attributed to the 
low prices, as to the small crops raised per acre. The labor inci¬ 
dent to the raising of a crop of wheat, now yielding me ten to 
twelve' bushels to the acre, is just as much as when I raised 
twenty-two to twenty-five bushels per acre, twenty-five years ago, 
and the straw in the case of the large crop being of equal if not 
greater value than the extra expense of harvesting and thresh¬ 
ing.” Hence, here is a clear loss of at least ten bushels to the 
acre, partly caused, perhaps, by the want of proper tillage, and 
partly by the w r ant of manure. One hundred acres thus culti¬ 
vated would make a clear loss to the farmer of $1,000 at wheat 
at $1.00 per bushel. One-half of this large sum might possibly, 
if judiciously expended in extra cultivation, and in saving, manu¬ 
facturing and applying manures, have produced this extra ten 
bushels, and the balance, or $500 placed to the credit of the 
thriving farmer in his bank account. 
