I *— ONLY NEWSPAPER IM A HOME PAPER FOR HOME f*BOPUB—HOH;^ -u_ VOLUME—XVI BREYARD, NORTH CARaLINA, pIDAY, DECEMBER 29. 1911. NUMBER-52 T SOIL SURVEYS AND THEIR REAL VALUE enable farmers to do BETTER WORK ^ Department Official Explains Good to Farmers From the Surveys. Not long since there appeared an article in the columns of the Pro gressive Farmer under the caption, “What are soil surveys worth.” •which seemed to hit wide of the mark and to do considerable injus tice to a movement everywhere looked upon as most worthy and entirely necessary. “What are soil surveys worth?” What is classifi cation worth in any science, or in the study of any related set of facts? What would botanists of today do had not Liunaeus, the Swedish bot anist, made his classification of plants? What would students of anatomy do ^^today without a sys tematic classification of the bones, muscles and nerves of the human body? And what would a course in agriculture be worth today with out a knowledge of soils? And what would a student of agricultu ral soils do today without the class ification of soils begnn by Whitney some ten or twelve years ago? It is hardly too much to say that the knowledge of agricultural soils in the United States and, to a great extent, in the world, bears a direct ratio to the progress iu the proper classi9cation and mapping of the soils in the.United States. ^ Twenty years ago “pigs was pigs” and “soils was soils,” and no one knew or cared to investigate any intrinsic differences existing among them. Our soil facts were in a most chaotic condition and re mained so until Whitney came to the rescue and Degan to set things in order and to develop a science of soils hitherto unknown. True, Mr. King had done much good work on soils but his field was soil physics pnre and simple and did not touch the all-important classification so necessary for a broad foundation on which to build a really import ant working knowledge of soils as related to crop production. Today no agricultural college worthy of the name would think of graduating a student iu agricul ture without first imbuing him with a knowledge Of the classifica tion of the soils of his state, and, in a general way, those of the United States. Furthermore,, there is not an in telligent answer given ” today to a question concerning the fertiliza tion of the soil, or the crop adapta tion of the soil, that is not based on a knowledge of the given soil type. Soil types^ are individuals and must have, to a large extent, nothing of the kind of land the mau had for sale. The man in Ar- konsas took np f* soil map, together with the report on the area, and saw for himself just abq6t what he might expect to ffnd in'thajb region, After asking the man a few well chosen questions he found the soil was a type knoVn as Cecil Sandy Loam with a field of Cecil Loam I lying at one end end of the farm. He knew at once the crop value of this type of soil and sent his check for the price. Two years later the man in Arkansas came to North Carolina to see the farm he had purchased and before getting away was ofiered more than twice what he gave for it by “a neighbor who had known the farm all his life and farmed on soil similar to that found on this place. ^ It is an open secret that many Of the big land doals are based on the soil survey of the area in question. Were you in the west you would find men going from county to county appraising .the lands on which prospective loans are to be made. Suppose a lumber ootnpany is about to buy a large tract of timber land. Would they not get an exx>ert forester to tell them the amount of pine, oak, cypress, etc., on the area ! W"ould you expect a big land company to do less? They also want some means of knowing what they are putting their money into before they purchase, and what is true in case of a big land company is true in the case of an individual farmer in Ohio or Michi gan who \vants to buy a small farm in North Carolina. He wants to know what he is getting before he buys, and you do not blame him. This information he may glean from a soil map which costs him nothing, perhajjs, or a very little if anything at all,'as these maps are nearly always made from moneys that would perhaps go to building warships, equipping navies, dred'g- ing rivers, subsidizing ships or a hundred and one other things that may never be w’orth a brownie to any farmer anywhere. Now bear in mind that a correct classification is just as necessary to a study of soils as it is to the study of any other set of related facts, and that he w'ho undertakes and carries this classification to success ful termination is due just as much of our gratitude as any other sys- tematist who succeeds in bringing order out of chaos. Yes, so far as we know a chemi cal analysis is made of every soil type of any importance mapped in the United States. And this analy sis means something, too. To il lustrate, if the analysis of one of my soils sho^wed a great deficiency of phosphorous, I may expect an application of phosphorous to give me good results. If my soil showed a great lack of potash, I may ex- X>ect an application of potash to give me good results, etc., and this theory cori*esi>onds to actual ex perimental facts. On the other hand, if my soil showed a good amount of phosphate and potash I VEGETABLE RAISING IN WESTERN OPPORTUNITY FOR CAB BAGES AND POTATOES Southern Railway Issues Inter- ' estiog Booklet||C^ These, Vfegetj The splendid opportunity afford ed throughout the Western North Carolina region for the growing of cabbage and Irish potatoes is out lined in an attractive illustrated booklet which has |tist been issujed by the Land and Ii^ustrial Depart ment of the SpTfthern Railway Company under the title “A West- ernJNorth Carolina ’ Opportunity.” While considerabW attention is paid to the growiB^ of cabbages, potatoes and othei*; trnck crops in this section, the Ib^l market is under supplied fgf' a part of the year, and the prodijfetion needed to supply a large porvton of the south east when the crops Ifrom the mountain count'i^y Should be avail able is altogether insufficient. In the growing ot cabbages and pota toes, a crop for which the soil and tjie climate are perfectly adapted, and for which demand and trans portation facilities give special in ducements, a most profitable liveli hood is opened to the man of small meanr. The same tools and equip ment serve for both crops, and owing to the different requirements of the tw’o crops it is easier to pro dude ten acres of ea^'than twenty acres of eithejf ,Bse both crops in rotation eliminate'^ the tendency to disease, as the pests that destroy or harm one crop will be starved out during the time the other crop is on the land. The booklet gives valuable informa tion as to the methods of raising the combined crop ; where to find the best markets, and refers farm ers or homeseekers desiring advice to Charles W. Ma'son, agricultural expert for the ScTuthern railway at Asheville. The Southern railway will give the booklet wide distribu tion in Western North Carolina as well as in sections from which de sirable settlers are likely to bc at tracted. ft UNCLE RUSE” PRESENTED SCHOCL ENTERTAINMENT on the individual treatment. Therefore,may get good results from an ap- when a farmer writes his state de partment of agriculture, his agri cultural experiment station, or the United States department of agri culture, concernmg the treatment of any particular soil on his farm, the answers to his' questions, if re liable, are based on a knowledge of M ^ soil gained from a study of the classification of the particular soil ttiiide by the U. S. soil survey or some other similar agency. Were these sfirveys not made how is any Jigricultural adviser to know what to tell John Smith about his soil iiianagement unless he actually vis its John Smith’s farm and person ally inspects his fields—an imprac ticable undertaking. The soil surrey enables men to bny and sell at a distance without the usual danger of being cheated in a deal. Thousands of dollars are thus saved each year by relianc(9 ypon a faithful soil-map of the area in which the purchase is to be Hiade. To illustrate, not long ago ^ ^ man in Arkansas wished to buy a ^ in North Ca»)lina bnt knew plication of these elements because those in my soil may be locked up The graded school closed Thursday of last week for Christmas holidays. A general en- tainment free to the public was given Thursday night, and in spite of the unfavorable state of the weather the auditorium was packed. , The exercises generally were pre pared to suit the Christmas idea, es»pecially in the pieces rendered by the lower grades. Th6 children acquitted themselves well, and con sidering the lack of .seating capac ity, the order was excellent. All the performers in the play which -^n the afternoon of Christmas day an entertainment was given at Rockbroojs farm, the residence of 3fr. H. P. Clarke,"to the children and patrons of the neighboring schools. The entertainment was given by Miss Nancy Clarke, and invitations were issued,which were responded to by quite a large num ber o| people. ^ ^^0' main hall ot the btiildj^ ’^a's turned into an auditorium with gating cai>acity for about two hun dred, At the front end a stage was built for the performers. • ‘ The players who presented “Un cle Rube” at Brevard last spring had been engaged to give the same play before this audience. They were assisted by Miss Wave Long’s orchestra. The characters were ta ken by the same parties as in the previous performance tvrtth the ex ception of Charles Ashworth, who was too ill to attend, and whose part was taken by Durward D. Brack^.'^' It is quite remarkable about this play—how it bears repetition. Giv en twice at Brevard, it had a bet ter house the second than the first ti!9ie. For an amateur performance it w also remarkable how well the players vrere suited to their parts. The members of this un^>rganized dramatic club went to the work with fine enthusiasm. ^Much credit is due to Mr. Ayres in his oj- pacity as general manager. To the people on the other side of the river the show was new, and for them u fine Christmas treat y which they thcroughly enjoyed, ^s ijb was im possible for an observer not to notice. The orchestra, consisting of four '’^liiis,' aT^ornet, ’cello' antf ^iano, made good music between acts, and showed the fruits of the excellent training given by its leader and teacher, xMiss Long. As specialties between acts a quartette consisting of Messrs. Morris, Jollay, Cantrell and Osborne, entertained the crowd with their singing. The play went through without a hitch and was a decided success. The appreciation of the audience was unmistakable. Hearty laugh ter alternated with the orderly quiet of interested hearers. The pleas ure manifested by the children was sufficient reward for the players and th^eherofls hostess. All \fl{o went from Brevard were enthusiastic over the pleasures of the day and charmed with the fine hospitality of the Clarkes, both to wards themselves and also towards tha people there assembled. WEEKLY SCHOOL REPORT MR. GPPGEff EXmilNS FOR PENSIONS MAINTAINS HIS VOTE WAS PARTY ONE Tenth District Congressman Has No Apok>gies For 'Griti^ - cized Action.*^' and unavailable to the plants. But j ended the program were thoroughly if these elements are in the soil I! can easily get them out by a liberal use of stable and green manure | combined with good preparation' and good cultivation. The chemi cal analysis will show you whether the elements are present in our soil, and this^is what you want to know. If they arc present you can get them out; if they are not there, you must supply them. You are entirely correct. North Carolina has 'spent, in connection with the U. S. Bureau of Soils, thousands of dollars in soil surveys in the state. You might also have added that Alabama, Missouri, Iowa, Illinois,. and a number of other states have spent and are spending more than North Caro lina and are likely to spend more in the future, until a good soil map of the entire state is completed. Yon will find also, on investiga- Continued oif page 6. familiar^ \\Tith their parts. Music was rendered by the orchestra, un der the direction' of Miss/ Wave Long. The followdng was the program: Opening prayer, led by Prof. J. H. Bennett. Selection by orchestra, “The Winning Flight.” Song by second grade, “Silent Night.” Pantomime by first grade chil dren, “Christmas Caiidles. ’ ’ Recitation by Woodford Zachary. Song by third grade, “Old Santa Claus.” Motion song by fifth grade, “Christmas liullaby.” Evergreen drill, by eight girls. Qaartette, “Star of the East.” Selection by orchestra. Play, “Jayville Junction.” ' The school will open again for the remaining half of the session on Mon^y, January 8th« FOR WEEK ENDING DEC. 22. The week ending Dec. 22 seems to have been a time when the tho’t of Christmas was already influenc ing both teachers and pupils. Thir teen teachers failed to make any report at all. This is nearly half the number that arre now teaching •in the county. The schools report ing, all but two, show an average attendance of 50 per cent. Penrose High School had an attendance of 54.7 per cent, and Blantyre 52.9 per cent., both in Boyd township. The lowest attendance reported is 14.5 per cent, in District No. 1, Glouces ter township. The great educational problem before the people of this county just now is how to Secure a better attendance on our schools. Every child should be in the school every day during the term. The question is how can such an attendance be secured? T. C. Henderson, Superintendent. • CARD OF THANKS Please give us space to ^return thanks to the good people of Cedar Mountain for their help and faith faithfulness during the sickness and death of our dear little girl. J. E. and E. J. Huht. As noted in the issue of this pa per last week Congressman J. M. Gudger, jr., of this district, voted for the Sherwood dollar-a-day Pen sion bill, which it is estimated will add something like ^5;