§ o& a PY The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, January 17, 1996 5 A Case for Conservation w a 5 [Alene AV QF TY | Last week I stood a moment resting against the handle of my shovel. As I surveyed the white expanse that is usually our back yard, I began to daydream about ‘squishing my toes into some nice warm mud. Wouldn't that be refreshing about now? Let's think for a few moments about mud. Yes, I know it's terri- bly difficult to get it out of the carpet or Junior's jeans. But, when you really look at mud, it is pretty amazing stuff. It is simply soil with water added. Yet, people make beautiful pottery out of it or make bricks to build shelters out of it. The mud in the bottom of a pond or wetland shelters worms, frogs, insects, and fish during this winter weather. ~. Now, let's get even more basic ~ let's consider soil. Almost ev- ery-book or article that deals ef- fectively with human relationships with the world around us comes to the same conclusion: soil is fundamental. Soil has been vari- ously described as “the living uni- verse,” “the moist, dark womb of humanity,” or “an enduring and versatile form of wealth.” Under- standing the soil, then, is an im- portant key to understanding how thé earth works and how we fit into this scheme. Let us squish a little deeper into the mud. " Soil begins its existence as small pieces of rock are broken off by various forces of nature (wind, rain, frost) or by biological action. Lichens were likely some of the first soil-makers. These combi- nations of algae and fungus cling to the face of the rock and slowly In praise of glorious mud dissolve and physically pry tiny bits of rock from the larger mass. As they die, they mix with these inorganic particles and a small quantity of soil is made. In fact, it is almost impossible to think of soil without also thinking of the various life forms that help create it and, in turn, find their exist- ence in it. These include fungi, bacteria, insects and worms. These beings process the soil par- ticles and decompose the leaves and other materials that are on the surface of the ground. They also add to the soil as they die and decay. The process of building soil is a very slow one. Therefore, care should be taken not to interfere with it. That means considering the effect of our actions on the tiny creatures that are so inti- mately connected with soil. Ev- erything from pesticides to com- paction can be threatening to the health of soil. The type of soil, the weather conditions, the animals and plants in the area, and many other factors differ from one site or time to another. These differ- ences make the soil more or less vulnerable to possible abuse. So, we would do well to try to learn as much as possible about the soil in our area in order to conserve it well. Obviously, it is the nature of soil towash away eventually. The rain or snowmelt or wind dis- lodges it and it finds its way into a lake or ocean whereitsetles to the bottom. Now itis called sediment. There are probably more kinds of sediment than there are soils. Beach sand is a form of sediment. Oil, coal and rock salt are all of sedimentary origin. Some sedi- ment - like the black muck on the bottom of a marsh - is highly organic. Someis almostall clay or sand. Again, the type of sediment is often dictated by the activity of the plants and animals that cre- ateitorinhabitit. The two cannot be adequately studied separately. One of my professors in college, Dr. Daniel Livingston, once wrote an article entitled “In Praise of Mud.” In it, he explains his life- long fascination with sediments. You see, he is a palynologist - one who studies the history of climate by looking at the pollen grains preserved in the mud of lakes. (And, you thought pollen was only good for making you sneeze!) As he says, “It is common for a thimbleful of lake mud to contain ten million identifiable microfossils....The pollen grains and spores of terrestrial plants provide an index of the vegetation that grew around the lake, whether tundra or steppe, taiga or dense tropical forest.” Sediments record the history of the earth in many other ways, also. Oceanic mud contains lay- ers that are light in color and correspond to periods of high vol- canic activity with ash distrib- uted around the globe. In the deep ocean, oozes form from the tiny skeletons of plants and ani- mals that float in the surface wa- ters when they are alive and then sink when they die. It is particu- larly interesting to study the dis- tribution of oozes made primarily of calcium carbonate because these only accumulate above about 4,500 meters. Below that, the chemistry of the cold water and the pressure at such depths dissolve the shells before they can settle to the bottom. Therefore, if calcareous oozes are found in deeper sediments, it can be as- sumed that these formed in shal- lower water. To summarize, then, many of the same attributes that make soil and mud so interesting to farmers, foresters, and scientists, also make them quite vulnerable to human interference. We all need to pay closer attention to the earth beneath our feet — if it ever reappears. | If you missed The Post - you missed the news! Guaranteed Money Market Account | 00% 25,000 Minimum Deposit So why not invest in something you can always count on. A Guaranteed Money Market Account from Mellon. It comes with a guaranteed great rate available when you open an account with money from another financial institution. The security of FDIC insurance. And there's no penalty for early withdrawal. . Plus, for added convenience, you can also write checks from your account. 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Shine, shine, shoe shine boy.” You may recall the lyrics, even the tune, but you haven't seen one in a half century. Yet before WWII, and even after, shine boys were all over central cities. They plied their trade near the hotels, near the city hall, in the pool parlors, in taverns all over, for mankind liked shoes gleaming and would pay to get them that way. It was part of being dressed up and being on.the town. Hot dog! Remember the feeling? Hardly in early teenhood, usu- ally scruffy, some talkative and some not, young boys carted around boxes of polishing wax and cloth strips, the box hanging from their shoulders by a rope. Upon getting a “yes” to their query of “Shine, Mister?” they would place the box down, kneel in front of it and prepare to polish one shoe at a time. Payment was usually only a few silver coins...hardly ever a bill. Might shoe shine boys make a comeback? I believe I read that ex-Gover- nor Arthur H. James was once one of these boys. Of course, it could have been he was a breaker boy, but surely more than a few politicians, and surely a few fu- ture captains of industry, started in this trade. They learned self- reliance, and some salesmanship. Most developed customers of their own who wouldn't use other boys. Where has this activity gone? And why? Job recruiters list a shined shoe quite high, next to the steady gaze and firm hand- shake, among the attributes they look for during interviews. And didn’t the Army teach the impor- tance of "spit and polish?” Do we, with a bunch of other items, toss shoes away when they be- come scruffy? Or do they sit in the back of a closet awaiting God knows what day to dawn on them again? Of course now many shoe ma- terials (like man-made leather) are made to stay shiny longer. Or, not to need a shine at all. But Kiwi is still going strong, and that name should sound familiar to most of you. Kiwi is, of course, the maker and marketer ofhundreds of shoe- care products. It was founded in Philly (1948) by an Aussie and named in honor of his wife, a New Zealander. (A kiwi was a bird, Century 21/Ruth K. Smith sponsors bowl-a-thon to aid Easter Seals Century 21 Ruth K. Smith Real Estate, Inc. is proud to announce their 4th Annual Easter Seals/ Century 21 Ruth K. Smith Charity Bowl-A-Thon to be held on Satur- day, Feb. 3, at Stanton Lanes Bowl- ing Center in Wilkes-Barre. Real estate brokers, associates, employ- ees and their families will be bowl- ing together to raise funds in sup- port of the Easter Seals Society of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Par- ticipants in last year’s Bowl-A-Thon were able to raise over $30,000. Last year’s event proved to be a great success due to the over- whelming support of the agency's many fine clients, customers, local businesses and friends through- out the Wyoming Valley. Anyone interested in support- ing their favorite agent may con- tact them at any of the three Cen- tury 21 Mary K. Smith Real Estate offices. 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Well that's Philadel phia for you.) : : Their introduction of things like “Scuff Magic” which you spread on the shoe with an applicator - supposedly it “dries glossy to cover scuffs” and is called “self shining” - have nowhere near wiped out the old-fashioned paste wax. X A) Kiwi spokesman says; “You'll never beat paste for bril- liant shines. Besides, guys like the ritual of opening up a newspa- per and spreading, then polish- ing, the paste wax. They like the smell, they love the results.” I am not ashamed to say I've got that box of round polish tins; and the brushes, and I use them. Perhaps not as often as I should, but when I do I feel better when I look down. & There have been, in our life- time, households where (this is a son reminiscing) “mother shined father's shoes every weekday morning for as long as they were married.” Would be interesting to have market research find out how many such marriages lasted. I couldn't find that statistic for you, but here's one: “Close to 30 percent of Americans throw. their shoes away before they need polishing.” (That one came from Kiwi itself.) .. But at today’s shoe prices? I wonder. No paper has as much Back Mountain news as The Post Isn't it Nifty Barbara is 50! - Love, Drew & the Kids 4 fesse 674-6021 UV CE = 2 TOT 2 011] CIRC {042 J od F- 7.2: 826-8970 si Se wo wi Bi se oa nn mss ss lw a mm ws pt te wel Mufflers » Brakes ® Shocks ¢ Springs ¢ Alignments ¢ State Inspections © Tires ¢ Front Wheel Drive Experts OPEN: Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri: 7:30 am - 8 pm, Wed: 7:30 am - 6 pm, Sat: 7:30 am - 5 pm. Fleet & commercial accounts welcome. with funds from another financial institution. The graphic figure illustrated is not intended fo depict the past, © Accounts with these APYs may only be opened Wit |JReS “001 Bent i el Maker Account. Mellon Bank, NA. - Member FDIC. Northeastemn Region . present or future performance of the Index or of = Pee
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