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HELPFUL MICROBES,
BACTERIA THAT WORK IN THE
FIELDS FOR FARMERS.
Furnished Free by the Deportment of
Agriculture to Replenish the
Exhausted Soil with
Nitrogen,
Bacteria! The very word has an om
inous sound. Every one instinctively
wishes to keep away from bacteria as
things of fear, gays Youth's Companion.
But there are good bacteria as well as
bad ones —"benevolent" bacteria, that
ask nothing better than to work on the
farm, with no reward except that of
their own virtue. Uncle Sam thinks bo
highly of this class of germs that since
August, 1903, the department of agri
culture has offered to send them, free,
to the American farmer.
And if the farmer is wise, ho will take
as many of them as he can get, and set
them to work in his fields as soon as pos
sible.
These industrious and deserving mi
crobes may be pretty well described by
calling them •"nitrogen-fixing bacteria,"
or in more cumbrous phrase, "bacteria
of the root nodulos of leguminous
plants."
Any boy who lives on a farm noon
learns that to restore the fertility of
worn-out fields, clover or its cousins
must be sown. Cow-peas, vetches, al
falfa are all good for this purpose. In the
rotation of crops to keep land from being
worn out, clover or its equivalent must
come round every fourth year.
The farmer does not know why, but
he knows the fact. The scientist knows
why. It is because clover is a nitrogen
producing crop. Down on its roots are
multitudes of tiny nodules, and in those
nodules are bacteria which have the
power to take in nitrogen somehow,
from the air, and give it to the soil.
Then the corn and wheat crop take this
nitrogen up and exhaust it, and the
field must go to clover or its related
crops again.
Almost one hundred million dollars'
worth of nitrogen is exported from
America yearly, it has been estimated,
in the form of grain. The American
farmer, besides his rotation of crops,
has been forced to keep putting nitro
gen back into the soil in expensive fer
tilizers. This seemed, to a certain clover
German scientist, rather a pity, as Ini/g
as bacteria exist which like the j ,v of '
nltrogenising the ground. As man has j
harnessed steam and electricity, whj
not train germs to do the farming?
So for nearly ten years these bacteria
•have been under culture and experiment
by Profs. Nobbe, Hartleb, and others In
Germany, and lately by Profs. MacMil
lan and Burrill, in America. The Ger
mane wished to develop a high growth
of the germ«on the roots of the legumin
ous plants in any soil. The Americans
went further, experimenting upon wheat
and corn, to see if a crop of grain could
not be made to grow itself and its own
fertilizer at the same time—surely a true
Yankee idea.
The most practical discovery, how
ever, is that of George 1, Moore By his
process every farmer can grow the ni
trogen-fixing bacteria himself and ap
ply them himself to his crop. lie can
send to the department of agriculture
and get a small packet of sterilized cot
ton, on which the germs are growing.
With this come two tiny packages of
chemicals. One of these he dissolves In
a certain amount of water an • drops in
the cotton, germs and all, 10 soak over
night. The next morning he pours in
the other chemical, ai A the germs de
velop until the water becomes cloudy
with them.
This milky fluid is th«n poured over
the seed of the leguminous crop the
farmer wishes to plant, the seed is put
into the ground, and the germs begin
their career of taking in nitrogen.
They will do it in land where it has
never been possible to raise a good crop of
clover or cowpeas before, and they will
do it tenfold in ordinary fields. The ex
perimenters hope that the bacteria will
increase crops from rive to fifty percent.,
■ and do away with fertilizers.
If they can be cultivated on the roots
of corn and wheat—and some of the ex
periments have been promising—the ro
tation of crops can be done away with,
too, and grain-crops follow each other
without cessation upon the poorest soils.
All this seems like a fairy-tale. But
the fairy-tale of science often turns out
to be sober truth. At any rate, the
farmer who hitches his wagon to the star
jf progress is a wiser man than he who
sneers at new ideas; and if bacteria can
be made to pay oft the mortgage, they
ought to be welcomed eagerly all over
the land.
Horrible Punishment.
In 1890 the last instance of boiling
to death took place in Persia. The of
fender, guilty of stealing state reve
nues, was put into a large caldron of
cold water, which was slowly heated
to the boiling point. His bones were
distributed, as a warning, among the
provincial tax collectors.
Rocks vs. Sand.
Edyth—l'm surprised to hear of
your engagement to old Bullyon. Was
he the only man with sand enough to
prop* -■ "
Mayme—Oh, no; but he was the
only one with rocks enough to interest
' me. —Chicago Daily News.
WALL PAPER
■— —
Alfred Peats Wall Papers
are so well known that it
Beems unnecessary to go
into detail as to their
merits. Suffice it to Ray
that for quality, design
and price they are unex
celled.
Please come in, examine
the stock and get esti
mates on your rooms.
MORTON
Any reliable fanner or stockman wish
ing the use of a good Herford bull for the
season on most reasonable terms should
, consult Prof. Elliot, of the College.
FOR YOUNG MEN AND BOYS 1
We Carry a Complete Line of EDERHEIMER
STEIN'S Clothing for Youths and Little Fellows.
Youths suits from $4.00 to $15.00
Boys suits srom $2.50 to $7.50
All new and stylish suits
See window display
WHITHAM & WAGNER
Hill 7^" "What you say goes a long way I
MPp^vjSl with a woman,"
■pj|j}jjs|^ Said Brother Bill. ||
R^illil "But how you LOOK goes further." I
HK^^y^^fil r Write Carl Joseph & C 0.," Merchant Tailors, Chicago, M
E^M^'Si^fe^ for tlulr booklet, "Brother Bill," Duds-osopher, | |
Psiliil lyf/" ])i^ Puget Sound Warehouse Co., ||
Hi We have something of interest to show the ||
I man who appreciates the highest type of made- ||
|f| to-measure clothes. We want him to see the latest 1
|l styles whether he buys or not, for we are the exclu- f J
ft"! sive representatives of the famous Carl . Joseph |;,|
M & Go's, tailor made clothes. The new Joseph |J
|l system of measuring guarantees a perfect fit. Not ||
UP-TO-DATE
WALL PAPER
AND
PAINTING
Large line of Wall Paper samples to
■elect from. Drop me a card and I will
liring the samples to your home for in
spection.
E. W. BUCKLEY
Dr. A. E.Shaw.
DENTIST
All work guaranteed. Charges moderate
Teeth Extracted Absolutely Painless.
E. A. REED, M. D.
Physician and Surgeon.
(Successor to Geo. B. Wilson, M. D.)
OKFICI-: and RESIDKNCH IN 1.0.0. F. BLOCK
Day and Ni^lit Calls answered from
office. Telephones Main 11 and the
Farmers' 'Phone
PULLMAN, - - WASHINGTON
Wanted a good stockman to work at
the College farm —See W. I). Foster, farm
foreman. •
We are Paying 13c in Trade for Hens
: Seasonable :
SPRING
DRY GOODS
are arriving this
week, including
Ladies' Shirts, Ladies' Shirt-Waists,
Wool Dry Goods, Dress Trimmings,
White Goods, Embroideries,
Laces, and Windsor Ties.
Come and see them.
BLACKMANBROU.CO
Pullman, Washington
r~z -——•—- -^
fA.B.BAKEMCO.I
I
I HANDLE THE FOLLOWING I
LINES OF GOODS: I
IStudebaker Wagons and Hacks a
Studebalier Buggies and Carriages I
Canton Clipper Plows I
I Superior Disc Drills a
American Fence Wire I
The Walla Walla Weeder—the greatest 1
I machine yet produced for ground cultivation g
under all conditions. 1
McCormick Harvesting Machinery 1
I I
I We take special pains to have on hand at all times full lines 1
. of extras for all mrchinery sold by us. We believe it will pay' ■
I you to deal with an old, reliable house. Give us a call. I
lof extras for all mrchinery YOURS us. We believe it will pay I
you to deal with an old, reliable house. Give us a call.
YOURS TRULY,
IA. B, BAKER & CO.
1 s i
■ Grand Street, PULLMAN, WASH. I
WOOD general mAYwG. COAL
• ■ f • • AND • , « . .
HAULING OF ALL KINDS
Patronage Solicited, and Satisfaction Guaranteed.
Phone No. 477
Give orders to
hay for sale Phil, £. Bickford
I.XVI ANKhNY, Pres. F. T. GREHR, Cashier.
GAY LOMBARD, Vice-Pres. S. A. TURNER, ASSIST. CASH.
I THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK I
of PULLMAN ■ ■ - — —1 M
TRANSACTS A GENERAL BANKING BUSINESS
Anything pertaining to conservative banking will receive our prompt
and careful attention
CITY MEAT MARKET
Fresh] and Cured Meats
Fish and Game! in Season
South] Side_ Main^Street - - - - Pullman, Wash.
