4 —Lancaster Farming. Saturday, June 25, 1960 FROM WHERE WE STAND - Soil - Retain Is Better Than Rebuild Badly eroded soil can be brought back to full production with comnlete fertilizer. The University of Missouri has proven this with tests on corn plots where the entire seven inches of top soil had been removed by erosion. Tests on the University farms showed that subsoil given a full ferti lizer treatment produced as well dur l ing the ten year period as did the nor mal surrounding plots or even the plots where the eroded soil had built up to a depth of twice the original a mount. With the summer storm season at hand and with plenty of moisture in the soil already, farmers might well do some thinking on the problem of erod ing slopes. Some persons might be tempted to take the view that since eroded soils can be brought back to productivity readily, the little extra effort required to prevent erosion in the first place is not worthwhile. We feel that such a view is very dangerous for several reasons. In the first place, the Missouri re searchers concluded that while the productivity of the soil could be brought back with complete soil treat ment and continued with the proper maintenance treatments, retaining the soil is much cheaper than trying to build it back. Even if economic considerations Were not included, the occurrence of PLANTING ROW CROPS THIS NEAR -HE EDGE OF TH. RAOD is false ecm omy The few extra plants the farmer man iges to squeeze into the field will never re pay him for the loss of soil he will have during heavy rains. The highway supervis or in the area of Martic Township where this picture was taken reports that the grad er moved some of the plants during norma c eaning of the gutter., —L. F. PHOTO Oovldion This column is a copy of identical letters we are writ ing to the chairmen of the Farm Policy Advisory Com dittees of the Republican and Democratic platform committees Gov Herschel Loveless of lowa, chairman of the Demo cratic advisory committee, and Charles Percy of Chica go, temporary chairman of the Republican Policy Com mittee, will be meeting wuh members of their respective committees early next month to draft “farm planks" for their parties. Both have invited suggest ions for a farm program which their parties will con Lancaster Farming Lancaster County’s Own F’rm Weekly f> o Box ”>24 anna st er. Penna OfPcas* r ‘> Vnrt), p.iko St Larvnftster Pt nna PhiitK* - T anoasfpr IRVnress 4-'W47 Terlr Owtn K.lltnr jlntvar-» rt Pampbo’i Advortlfuntr t>rortof A- pusfnrßß ■Rsto Ushod Novomhor 4 ■> '>s«; Pub’lahod ovory - Saturday by I*anrart»r Farm-wf Lancaster. Pa Fnt**'od «r 2nd m" ‘' r - ot I-anr-wtor Pa under Act of Mar ft H”« additional entry at Mount .Wy Pa Sti''Ror|nt|or> Ratea- J 2 per year tbme w"rs tl Stnjjie eopv PH CO f* ceftts Mrmbeoa Pa VewstMner P"b’l*h e<-n’ \ ■ •oo.etion- National Fdttor tal Aasoeiation THIS WEEK —ln Washington With Clinton Davidson * > Farm Policy sider at the nominating con ventions in Los Angeles and Chicago in July We are ac cepting that invitation. Dear Sirs: The development and a doption of a sound and sensi ble farm program is one of the most critical and urgent matters before the nation to day. It is not sore’y a farm problem, but rather is one of national concern Our Basic Industry Approximately 40% of all people employed in this country earn their living from agriculture, either di rectly or indirectly, through producing, processing, trans porting and marketing the products of our farms, or in producing and marketing goods and services used on farms. Farming is our largest sin gle industry. The total inves ted capital in farming far ex ceeds the combined invest ment of steel manufacturing the automobile industry, and the railroads. Total farm as sets, according to the XJ. S. Department of Agriculture, exceed $2OO billion. Last year some 3Vz million fanners sold almost $4O bil lion worth of foods, fibers and forestry products. They paid about $2O billion for such production items as fer tilizer, gasoline, machinery and insecticides. The $ll bil lion of “net” income was soil erosion by water should be pre vented. Sod in suspension travels downhill and downstream and it must be depos ited somewhere. If it goes to the ocean it can never be regained, but it does relatively little harm. But if it stops on the neighbors farm it may do his farm a great deal of harm. There have been many court cases growing out of a situation where one farmer let flood waters deposit silt on the property of his neighbor. But if the soil is not deposited on its trip to the sea, it still does immeas urable damage in the streams carrying it on its route. If there is a question in anyone’s mind why there are so few fish in many of the streams in farming communities, a look at the Conestoga creek during the rainy season this spring should give a pretty good ans wer. By and large the red coloring matter in the streams does not come from the grasslands and wooded areas near the creek but from the cultivated fields farther up on the slopes. Soil conservationists can not do the iob alone. The Soil Conservation Dis tricts can not do the whole job. The soil belongs on the slopes where it formed. The only person who can keep it there is the man who farms the land-. At least that’s how it looks from we stand what was left to pay family -living expenses, interest on inves ment, taxes, deprecia tion and wages. Had all of that $ll billion been allocated to a fair re turn on investment, and none to living expenses, taxes, de preciation or wages, the re turn would have been 5V£%. Mo*t industries showed a higher return on investment But, the $ll billion fell $2 billion short of meeting ac tual farm expenses, that be ing the amount by which farmers went deeper into debt in 1959. Not a Partisan Issue It seems obvious that far mers generally are not shar ing equitably in our unpre cedented national prosperity, The U S. Department of Ag iriculture reports that farm ers’ purchasing power—the goods and services they can buy with the dollars they earn —is the lowest .in more than.2o years. Since 1940 fanners have doubled their production per worker but in terms of what they pan buy their in come 1" down. What do you think organized labor would do if manufacturers reduced wages to the same purchas ”n to Page Rural Rhythms YOUTH'S SUMMER DAY Bv; Carol Dean Huber Down in the meadow is a w~>'d; And through it runs a stream. I while away the afternoon As 1 sit there and dream. blossom and all folks are urged to act at once. .. 6 TO ELIMI” -TE ELY BREEDING PLACES— Wet w eata |( _ ~ , , so far this spring has meant an increase in the fly ' ia C * bank Cre S * ia< * y to moist co. ditions around many buildings. All P r °P A book before me spread. owaers are f minded ih Js£ e fi "f t **** f fiy And build my castles in the sram 15 80 “* samtaUort &d a thorough clean up P” a „ a i r Barnyards b >x-stalls, pens, manure gutters For all the years ahead. places tha 4 J’ect filth should be cleaned frequently Bjblo Material: Matthew 7 21-29, 21 2S- I'evotional Heading: 1 Co.intluans 3 10- Un Tka Me Lesson for June 26, 1960 PLEASE NOTE the title of this column It is On the Rock, not On the Hocks. The English lan guage is peculiar. On the Rocks is a nautical expression referring to a ship cracking up on a rocky reef On the Rqck is a builder’s expres sion, leferring to solid founda tions. You could mix the metaphors by saying “You’ll never go on the rocks if you’re on the Rock.” Bypassing Jc-sas We are not surpri Who make no ! claim to being Christians low- rate Jesus and re- fuse to consider him an authority. But it is surpris ing, and sadden- ing besides, to find professing Christians by- passing Jesus as Number One authority In their lives. One way of doing this is to say that Jesus was not giving di rections for this life, even for this world; but that he was telling us how we should live when the King dom of God comes on earth. In other words, that Jesus was giving directions for some future era, not for then and there in Palestine nor for here and now m America. Another way of by-passing Jesus is to take the opposite tack, and claim that Jesus was speaking only for the old dispensation or period of the Law, and that all his moral directions and ideals went out when the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost. Still another way to by pass Jesus is to allege that his com mands were impossible, and that he knew it; but he wanted to set the standard so high that people would give up trying to be good and rely on faith instead of works. Taking Jesus seriously * Jesus himself gave no support to such lopsided caricatures of his teaching and intentions. Every- Now is The Time . TO REVIEW FIRE INSURANCE COVES AGE—AII property owners arc i emindet of the need to review fire insurance poll cies m relation to the amount of coveraje Due to the increase in value and the 1# er replacement value of most buildup m many cases the amount of the pohcj should be increased In arriving at thn figure the replacement cost should be tin guide rather than the original cost of th< building, in addition, the average valued the grain, hay, supplies, and machmen MAX > kept in the building should be considered The time t . eview this coverage with your insurance agent is now rathe than after you have had a serious loss TO REMOVE THOSE BLUEGILL SUNFISH—Farm pond owners arc reminded of the need in removing sunfish from their ponds With bass season at hand many ponds will W fished dur the coming months; in many cases the fi-'lier man will keep only the larger bass and return the sunns to the pond As a result, the pond becomes overstocked wd sunfish with diminishing food supplies and all fish m A* pond are s unted. Pond owners are urged to remove a least three times as many sunfish as bass and to realize tM importance - * proper balance in the pond. TO MOW THOSE THISTLES—AII property owners are rc-j ponsible foi, the control of Canada Thistles. In the state o Pennsylvan his weed is termed a “noxious weed" an one to be destroyed by all citizens. Control may be ac ‘ m ’' ■cd by either spraying the thistles early in the season, s ” following bv repeat sprays if re-growth is present, 01 _ keeping tire thistles mowed frequently to prevent seed mation. Owners of vacant lots, real estate develop lll4 ” and farmer with their land in the soil bank are coin® offenders of thistle control. Thistles are now corning 11 thing he said indicates u, tended to be taken sei 11 spealcs distinctly 0l l0ll; l would one day call hn l1 S , 011l! “not do what I tell , i0l(l 6:46): and he has notw!” 1 say of such people j ei ** So real people with i e ni tal ' What main-hne Chi'i t discoveied down is, that what Jesus .V, e people he met face to tu t( good foi our day ,i u ,i f ace ii It is nothmg betlm th,* 11 talk to call Jesus “Loui” d; “God” and roluso to Pnv ® to him when he for living. h Building cn the rock The exact woid n „ „ is "on THE lock,” not “on Anywhere m tlie wo- id If r down far enough, you s ’ t ,,. 5 and all the rock of th.,, connected togethei hy ti,," 01 forces God has cicated s’” is one Rock on which an.°, life can be founded Chn s t teachings But a question* 1 come to mind Human bti n J enormous \auety. Their t r ! are innumerable Jesus cm and did not, give us his nw many of the most difficult lems of our time How then p say that his teachings areth rock of all tiuly successful!,, Jesus could say this, noth, he was a new Moses, not bscau was delivcung rules forever, on all occasions. He could sit because his teachings aie tie versal bedrock beneath »n variety of human pei sonahtiei situations As we saw when ta into the “Golden Rule,” j esus us principles rather than rule does not do our thinking for u furnishes the foundation,« us has to build his own house Tesftd by storm A house of cards will stinj long as no one breathes on house with any flimsy unJi nmg, or none, will stand solo the weather is good The toil house is not sunshine but i And If there is one thing ci about every man’s life, it is the sun will not always shuit it Blight days may be certa come, too, but they are notth nble test The daik days, the zards and the floods and tbe canes, aie the times sine to for each of us Tuo nouscs look just the same before thee How they look afterwaidiis counts. <Ba*e(l on outlines cppjrlßht llio Division of (linstlan Ldn National Coc*p cs l of the rhnrr Christ m tlij§ U. c A Helen Community Press Service) BY MAX SMITH
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers