DEAF SMITH'S SECRET

AN EXPLANATION OF

Dr. G. W. Heard and Mr. John W. Jacobsen

71 years old and not a cavity.

The Deaf Smith Country

by

A. W. EricksonPos

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FOREWORD

In June, 1942, I excavated a block of wheat rootsnear Hereford, Texas, county seat of Deaf SmithCounty. Many years before this, Dr. G. W. Heard,a local dentist, had published articles in the Na-tional Dental Association's Journal stating thatthere was much less tooth trouble in the Herefordvicinity than any other part of the country.

When pictures taken, showing the block ofwheat roots, were published in some papers, na-tional magazine writers became interested, andseveral stories about Deaf Smith and Hereford,the "town without a toothache", appeared in Coll-ier's, the Reader's Digest, and the Saturday Even-ing Post.

As a crop reporter, I travel over a large terri-tory extending from Columbus, Ohio to Denver,Colorado, from Edmonton and Prince Albert, Can-ada to Fort Worth and Dallas, Texas and west toPortales, New Mexico. Frequently, I am asked ifI have ever seen the "Deaf Smith country." Theanswer being in the affirmative, I am plied witha number of questions. Some of these questionsindicate that some erroneous conclusions, not fairto the region, have been formed.

It takes some time to give what I believe arethe proper answers to these questions. Also, thespoken word is often partly forgotten, and later,when repeated sometimes misconstrued.

This booklet is written partly to save time inanswering the questions about Deaf Smith Countyand partly to present the facts as I see them, inprinted form, where they can be studied by thosewho are interested. They are based on my obser-vations as I travel over the great North AmericanBread Belt.

A. W. Erickson

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This places the north edge of Deaf Smith County 120miles south of the Oklahoma panhandle's south borderand the west edge along the New Mexico state line. Onthe east, it is bounded by Randall, and on the south byParmer and Castro Counties in Texas. All of the county,except a small part in the northwest corner, lies on topof the "Cap Rock" and is so level that nearly all of it isarable. Except the small part in the northwest corner,which drains into the Canadian water shed, the wholecounty slopes gently in a general way 10 ft. per miletowards the east and drains into the Prairie Dog Townfork of the Red River of the South, the Deaf SmithCounty drainage entering and forming the Palo Durocanyon a few miles below Canyon, Texas.

The county contains about 1 1-4 million acres of land,more than 90% of which can be cultivated. The countywas without a railroad until the summer of 1898 whenthe Santa Fe mainline from Amarillo to the southwestpassed through the southeast corner of the county. ThenHereford, the county seat. was platted, and this townbegan its existence. It was "cattle country" with thisterm's fullest meaning many years after the railroad wasbuilt. Not until 1919 was the first car of wheat shippedout of Hereford. A few small fields of wheat had beenharvested before this in the southeast part of the county,but Hereford's wheat shipments date from 1919.

In considering Deaf Smith County's position, it isnecessary to appraise the value of its altitude as wellas latitude and longtitude. The county lies on top of theridge formed by the erosions of the Canadian River tothe north and the drainage of the Prairie Dog Townfork of the Red River of the South to the East, and asmall area in the south edge drains into the TerraBlanca, a headwaters branch of the Double Mountainfork of the Brazos. On the north edge near Vega, thealtitude is 4040 ft.; in the southeast corner, it is about3750 ft. On the west edge, it ranges from 4300 ft. alongthe south side to 4800 ft. on top of the Cap Rock southeast of San Jon, New Mexico. Hereford shows an alti-tude of 3860 ft. The whole county will average just alittle above 4000 ft., a very important factor in under-standing the county's favorable position from the healthstandpoint. It is a hieh and usually dry climate which,due to the altitude, does not promote as rapid evapora-tion of the natural rainfall as is the case in lower alti-tudes. This, in turn, gives the annual rainfall a greatervalue than it would have at 1500 or 2000 ft. In this lati-tude. It is necessary to keep this in mind because I be-lieve this is part of Deaf Smith's secret of good teeth.good health. and a high percentage of acceptance by theArmy.

The long time annual rainfall at Hereford is 20 in.,and this annual application runs quite uniform over thewhole county, but varies greatly from year to year. Theextremes are far apart ranging from 9 in. to 39 in. forthe twelve-month period. Both of these extremes weredestructive to cultivated crops, the 9-inch rainfall in ayear developing a drouth which bordered on a totalfailure of all crops, and the 39 in. of precipitation de-veloped rust in wheat, excessive moisture at harvesttime, and in a general way, produced a small crop ofpoor quality. Usually, the best wheat crops are producedthe year folowing the extreme rainfall.

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As a rule, climate makes soil. Climate, which is com-posed largely of changes from sunshine to no sun, frompercipitation to evaporation, from freezing to thawing,from calms to high velocity air movements, grinds therocks until vegetation can obtain a foothold. The airborne particles known as dust and the precipitationknown as rain develop the surface topography of ourland and also determine what the soil contains. Theyalso determine what our food plants extract from thesoil, how much and how many of these elements arefound in the soil, and whether man eating the food anddrinking the water out of that soil will fare well orbadly, physically and mentally.

When we view the Deaf Smith country's topographyin relation to the surrounding terrain with some know-ledge of what climate can do, it is not difficult to seethat we are observing an unusual area. When augerholes are drilled to depths to 6 to 8 ft. in the soils, thesoils in cuts along highways and in caliche pits (whereroad building material has been excavated) are observed,and the underground water flow is lifted in the pumpirrigated areas and exposed to view, we again see thatthis is all different from what we find in other parts

Top: 1200 gallons per minute. R. E. A. electric current fur-nishes power for motor.

Bottom: Irrigating potatoes from a well.

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Deaf Smith's Secret

"When this earth was formed for a habitation everything needful for the proper nutrition of all living things—vegetable and animal—was placed in the earth."

—Dr. G. W. Heard.

From the foothills of the Rockiesdown the valley of the Platte,

Spreading southward o'er the prairiesto the Estacado flat;

From the wheat fields north of Dallasto the Caprock's lofty plain.

Faith and hope are painting picturesof a golden field of grain.

—A. W. E.

"To the observant dentist, teeth and the mouth as awhole reflect the nutritional plane of his patient andthereby reveal not only the irregularities in the qualityof his food, but should point much farther back to theplane of soil fertility in the region where the patient'sfood was grown."

—Dr. Willian A. Albrecht.AMERICAN JOURNAL Of ORTHODONTICS And ORAL SURGERY,

Vol. 51, No. 5, Orthodontics Pages 279-286, May, 1945.

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Who was Deaf Smith?Erastus Smith (known as Deaf Smith because he was

hard of hearing) was the son of Chilish and Mary Smithand was born in the state of New York on April 19th,1787. At the age of eleven years, he emigrated with hisparents to the Mississippi Territory and settled nearNatchez. His parents were exemplary members of theBaptist church and gave him such moral and intellec-tual training as the circumstances by which they weresurrounded would permit. He first came to Texas in1817, perhaps with some of the patriot forces that wereconstantly arriving in the province at that time. (Texaswas then a province of Mexico and under Spanishdominion until 1819). He went back to Mississippi, butonly for a short time. In 1831, he again came to Texasto make it his home. He died on Nov. 30th, 1837, at FortBend, Texas.

Deaf Smith's coolness in danger and battle was un-surpassed. He was a "dead shot", and the loss of hear-ing apparently sharpened his eyesight. He was a notedscout, a warm personal friend of General Sam Houston.His ability to follow a dim trail in prairie grass was soexceptional that anecdotes quote his superior officersas saying, "As long as the sun is shining, Deaf Smith isas good as a bloodhound." He fought in the battle ofSan Jacinto; on orders of General Houston, he cut downVance's bridge just before the Texans attacked theMexicans.

He was a man of remarkable gravity and few words.He seldom answered at all except in monosyllables. Heowned a fine property at Grand Gulf, Mississippi. butnever attended to it. He preferred the prairies of Texaswhere he spent much of his time alone.

Deaf Smith married a Mexican lady in San Antonio,by whom he had several children. A number of hisdescendents now live in that city. He never saw DeafSmith County which was named in his honor over 50years after he died.

Position of Deaf Smith CountyWhen the Texas panhandle was opened for settlement,

the usual pattern of square counties in level prairiecountry took form, the settlements and organizing ofcounties taking place generally from the east to thewest. Along the west edge of the panhandle in thenorthern half when the regular thirty or thirty-six mileoutline was surveyed, there remained a strip 20 mileswide, hardly enough for a country. This strip was addedto the regular county area. Out of this block were form-ed four counties (Dallam, Hartley, Oldham and DeafSmith) each 50 miles long east and west and 40 mileswide north and south. Deaf Smith County is the southcounty of these four.

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or the country. There must be a definite reason for itall. Here is a high, almost level, plateau sloping in alldirections; even to the westward towards the mountains,we find a valley of a little lower altitude. All aroundDeaf Smith County, which lies on top of this elevation,the altitude begins to decline a little.

Had the settlers who staked their claims inside of theDeaf Smith boundary lines been soil conscious and triedto pick a 40 by 50 mile rectangle right on tope of thisridge, they could not have done better. Only one smallspot, the northwest corner, hangs over the edge and isbroken by the erosions of the Canadian River. However,I doubt that any of the early settlers had that in mind.It was good cattle country, good grass. and in parts ofthe county, especially in the vicinity of where Herefordis now located, there was an abundance of water 50 to80 feet below the surface. The prairies all looked verymuch the same, and there was far more land thansettlers. Everybody felt the soil was very good and therainfall very deficient. Lack of rainfall, drouths, prayingfor rain and cussing the country was the order of theday. That this dry climate could be a benefit that even-tually would bring the country national publicity neverentered their minds, and to this day, not very manyof Deaf Smith County's people realize what they have,nor the remarkable formation and position of thatcountry.

Dust The Great Benefactor

Most of the soils from 8 to 80 ft. deep in Deaf SmithCounty are "blow soils", just dust blown in during thepast several hundred thousand years. Most of the ladiesin this area agree fully with this idea except they con-tend it happened during the last ten years; some of themsay at least a foot of the top soil blew in during the pastthree to four years. It may seem that way to the ladiesof the dust cloth, but the area is not what I considervery dusty. The air borne particles that have, throughages of time, formed the soils are seldom noticeable asdust, but during a period of 30 days, a film of dust willform on any smooth surface, though no dust storms haveprevailed. When collected into a small heap, such dustis so filled with particles of minerals that when exposedto the "pull" of a strong magnet, they adhere to itssharp corners until it becomes wooly with pulverizedmetal.

Water and wind erosions have cut down the surfaceof the terrain all around the Deaf Smith plateu. Today,it is the highest elevation until the Rocky Mountains duewest are reached.

We have all seen sweeping winds, broken up by sur-face obstacles. deposit air borne particles into drifts,hummocks and ridges. Areas where air borne soils ac-cumulate are built in the same manner on an enormous-ly large scale, so large men cannot easily see the boun-daries of the drifts. During the span of one man's lifeand within the scope of his memory. little change inelevation takes place. Slow as this process seems to be,

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the tonnage involved is, however, much greater thananything man attempts to move with his own effort.

Usually, the rainfall is a little higher on such plateausthan enjoyed by the surrounding country. This ties downthe soil particles as they are swept up the sides of theelevation by convectional air currents continuing thedrift building process. The region east of the P. , )ckyMountains for some distance is noted for its winds, andsome :of these winds become charged with electricity.This is commonly called "static eletricity." The cause isgenerally ascribed to friction of dust particles in the air.Whatever the cause, such electrically charged air cur-rents appear to lift dust particles with lower wind veloc-ities than takes place when "static electricity" is notpresent. Such "electrical dust storms" never develop ex-cept when very dry surface conditions prevail. Observ-ing such phenomena during the last 50 years leads meto form the conclusion that in this manner, nature isgradually selecting a high percentage of the desirablesoil minerals from surrounding terrain and depositingthem on top of the Deaf Smith drift. In this manner,the soils of this region are not only carrying a higherpercentage of such elements, but such elements are con-tinually being replenished by air borne material selectedfrom the neighboring regions.

Top: 1800 bushels of 10 to 12 inch sweet potatoes per acre.

Bottom: 12 inches long and five pounds weight. Sweet andsound.

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Though there may be some selection of minerals be-cause of magnetic electrical currents in the air, themajor part of the air borne material, which has built thisplateau, is just ordinary lime. On this lime deposit, vege-tation began to develop. This, in turn, decayed and nowforms part of the dark soil on top, At first, this •limedust was almost white, but ,as time went on and morevegetable material, and finally matter of animal origin,decayed on top of it, it turned ftorn white to a pinkishcast. At last there was so much- organic matter, the colorturned to a chocolate brown due partly to the air borneparticles being swept up from the Permain red' beds ex-posed by erosion which reduced the surrounding regionto their level.

These erosions, which definitely form the boundaryof the Deaf Smith plateau, on the very top of which liesDeaf Smith County, have cut hundreds of feet below thislime layer. This exposes the lime stratum practically allaround the plateau, but it is most pronounced northwestof and southeast of Deaf Smith County. This exposedlime formation is locally known as the "Cap Rock".Here, then, we find the reason for the continued deposit-ing of this air borne material from the surrounding ter-rain. In the spring, the prevailing winds are from thesoutheast. They 'sweep up the ledges of the "Cap Rock"carrying lime and mineral particles with them. Thevelocity is somewhat reduced over the higher altitudeof the plateau causing a deposit on top of the Deaf Smithdrift. In the fall, the prevailing winds are frnm thenorth and northwest, and the same thing takes place ex-cept then the convectional air currents carry materialfrom the "Can Rock" north of the plateau. Thus theDeaf Smith plateau upon which, like• a cap ,sheaf, liesDeaf Smith County, receives a double dose of lime andmineral mixed soils as the seasonal winds sweep backand forth over the lime laden plains east of the moun-tains.

Usually, we consider dust Of aboUt the same weight 4,5feathers. Enough festers will weigh a Pound and enoughdust will weigh a' ton. An acre inch of dust will weighabout 80 tons. In the course of three years, the air bornesoil deposits on these plains may equal a half inch' or40 tons per acre. East of the Missouri River where thesoil's lime content has been depleted until it is neces-sary. to artificially replenish this element the generalcustom is to apply about 3 tons of crushed limestone peracre. Ordinarily,: the cost ranges from $1.75 to $2.00, perton Or $5.25 to $6.00 per acre. This usually laits fromthree : to four years, when a similar application is'se-peated. The lime content of the air borne particles sett-ling down on the Deaf Smith plateau ranges about:10%,though frequently it is much higher. If 1 inch (80 tons)of air borne soils from the surrounding caliche ledges ofthe "Cap Rock" settles down on' this plateau every 6years and carries 10% of lime, it is equal to 8 tons ofcrushed limestone applied artificially., It is perhaps bet-ter than the crushed limestone because it is inn muchmore soluable form , and is applied from month to monthas plant life needs it. Rains leach it down into the soiluntil it concentrates at depths of from 18 to. 50 inchesbelow the surface. In other words, the first two to threefeet of soil contain about as much lime as they cancarry, and below this stratum. of dark soil are the oldoriginal high lime deposits which accrued before much

vegetation developed, plus the concentration of limeleached down from the surface deposits of air bornematerial. This high percentage lime base, when themoisture penetrations are deep enough, form a reser-

Wheat roots penetrating over 100 inches deep. Note analy.sic showing calcium content of soil by the side of the roots.This column of soil is in its natural position by the side of theroots exposed by washing.

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BOTTOM: Washing dirt from around roots after excavation.ground.

voir of mineral plant foods and water. Over most of thisregion, within reach of wheat and other food plant rootspenetrating to depths of 7 and 8 ft., there are availablefrom 1000 to 9000 tons of lime per acre. This meansthat it is almost impossible to construct Deaf SmithCounty soils artificially. I also believe this is the foun-dation for Deaf Smith's formula for good teeth and ro-bust health.

ClimateIf climate' makes topography and geography, does

topography and geography make climate? To some ex-tent they do, especially in regions where air borne soildeposits have formed higher elevations. In the climateprevailing over this region, we have the factors of alti-tude and latitude to bear • in mind. At first thought, itwould seem impossible that latitude can be changed byclimate even if elevations are develoyed in part by airborne deposits, but the effect of variations in altitudes

plInt life is similar to the effect of varying latitudes.In maturity of cereal plants, especialiy wheat, a rise of100 ft. in altitude delays harvest about 24 hours. As thetheoretical seasonal advance from the south to the northis about 17% miles every 24 hours, this means that every100 feet, higher altitude corresponds fairly close to 17%miles of latitude. When this is applied to the Deaf Smithplateau with an altitude of approximately 4000 ft., wefind harvest there is generally two weeks later than in

TOP: Shaft of dirt containing wheat roots before removing from The high atitude plain of Deaf Smith County. showing .

wheat field where block of vheat roots was excavated. Theplant, in front of mound 9f soil, with its whole root structure,was lifted. Note how' close to the ground level the clouds floatat 4000 ft. altitude.

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MorsatSunray •'7.10

1-; Pringle. •

31 ti r

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the Red River valley of the South and north centralTexas where altitudes range from 1200 to 800 ft. This issuch a common observation no one thinks much aboutit. Everybody knows the cross country combine opera-tors are through harvesting around Crowell, Seymour,and Olney, Texas, before the wheat is ripe at Hereford.

This is an important observation when we try to eval-uate the life sustaining qualities of the food productsgrown in this altitude. First, we have an abundance oflime, the element absolutely essential for plant life, butwe have also an abundance of all the other soil elements.Then the plants enjoy a greater number of hours of sun-shine which, due to lower humidity, strike the plantswith greater intensity than in the lower altitude, thoughthe latitude is the same. The fact that it takes two weekslonger for wheat to ripen is evidence these plants re-ceive the benefit of two weeks more sunshine, but thisis not all In the higher temperatures of the lower al-titude, evaporation is usually higher with accompanyinghigher humidity. Humidity is nothing but particles ofwater suspended in the air. Drops of water make goodmagnifying glasses when properly handled, which meansthey are able to break up and refract light rays. A moist,hazy atmosphere breaks up the intensity of the sun'srays, encourages vegetative growth at the expense ofseed development. Straw is usually longer in the loweraltitudes. In addition to this, the high altitude, low hu-midity areas of the Deaf Smith region have less cloudyweather, and more frequently precipitation, due to thecoolness of the night atmosphere, falls at night. Whenall these factors are taken into consideration, food plantson the higher elevations receive, while growing. thebenefit of at least 30 days more sunshine than plantsin the lower altitude in the same latitude. Sunshinealone means a higher vitamin content in food plants.but this is not all sunshine and low humidity (hot anddry weather) does to the food plants of the Deaf Smithplateau. The intense, brilliant sunshine of this high plainstrikes these plants with full force and literally drivesthem to wring their existence, their plant food and theirwater from the soil. In the lower altitudes, the plant cantake much of its water from the air and in this manner,escape the effort of drawing it from the soil. The lesswater in the soil, the more the plants are punished bythe sun, the greater becomes the concentration of essen-tial food elements in the grain produced. This step-up,in what is usually included in the word "quality" mwheat, continues until the volume has been reduced toabout 20% of the maximum yields recorded. While 50bu. yields of wheat have been harvested in Deaf SmithCounty, it is usually the 10 bushel yields that produce58 to 60 pound. 19 to 20% protein wheat. Often suchwheat straw is not more than 12 to 14 inches high.

To date, no comparative analysis of what these fac-tors in grains do to the human body has been made.Much of our observations of the quality has been basedon the remarkable growth developed by animals grazingon the grass and eating the forage crops grown there.There has been some investigation of its effect on hu-manity largely by looking at their teeth because Dr.Heard brought out some remarkable observations overa long period of years. What I am here trying to showis the geographical and climatological reasons which

may have an advantageous bearing on the food pro-duced in this area.

Top : Potato roots penetrate more than five feet of soil.

Bottom: Spinach leaves, large as horseblankets, basking inthe brilliant high plains sunshine at Hereford.

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1. 500,000 bushels of wheat in one pile. About one tenth ofDeaf Smith's production the year this picture was taken.

2. A close-up of 60 bu. per acre.8. 17 tons of carrots per acre.4. Onions by the year, 8 1-2 inches diameter. Measured and

weighed 1116 bu. per acre, 50 lbs. per bu.

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While it might be possible to artificially compoundsoils with all the favorable elements found in soils onthe Deaf Smith plateau, it would not be economical.The cost compared with the soils here, developed bynature, would be too great. When we consider the clima-tological advantages and how they have been broughtabout by a number of . factors, we soon discover that,regardless of cost, the climate on the Deaf smith pla-teau may be equalled in some places, but cannot bedeveloped artificially any place. When the climate, plussoil, of this region are combined in food plants andassimilated by human and animal life, we begin to seea combination which may be the real reason for DeafSmith County's 'reputation as a place where the best inman develops. While these two factors are importantin the order. given here, I believe a third factor entersinto the fine teeth, sound bone structures, and general .

good health of the people in this area.I have been asked, "Is it true that Deaf Smith County

babies are bone with a full set of hard teeth which theynever lose?" No, it is not true. Deaf Smith County babiesare just as sweet and dear and toothless as babies in anyother part of the country.

"Is it true that men and women 60 to 70 years old cango out to Deaf Smith County and live there two yearsand then begin to sprout a complete set of new teeth?"No, it is not true, but there are men and women 60 to 70years old ,and some perhaps older, who have lived therethe major part of their lives who still have full sets ofnatural teeth without cavities.

•"Would I have gooth teeth and be strong and healthy

if I ate nothing but food grown in Deaf Smith County? "

If all the water used to drink would be included inthe statement, the answer might be in the affirmativebecause I believe the next important factor in the devel-opment of good teeth in Deaf Smith County is the water.

Water

The food plants we eat and the water we drink isour connection with the soil from which we come and towhich we return.

Parts of the county are underlaid with a stratum 'ofwater bearing gravel from 60 to 120 feet below the sur-face. This stream is thick, in some places from 50 to 60feet, full of the clearest, sweetest water I have foundany place. To the westward where this stratum is found180 to 200 feet below the surface, it is not so thick. butcarries an ample volume of water to keep the ordinkywindmill pumps supplied while running continuously.Where this stratum of water ic found from AO tc, 15nfeet below the surface, large wells have been sunk and8 to 10 inch centrifugal pumps installed. This is knownas the pump irrigated part of the county. This irrigationextends' southeast of Deaf Smith County into Castro.Randall, Swisher, Hale and Floyd Counties.

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Ripley's "Believe It Or Not" Victory potatogrew in the soils of Deaf Smith County, near Here-ford, Texas.

Government surveys indicate this is nothing butground water — water seeping down through the soilaccumulating in this large underground reservoir foruse as needed. In government test wells in years ofextremely heavy rainfall, the guages show the waterlevel rises from 12 to 15 feet. During dry periods, itgoes down. Generally, in driving over the country, itlooks level, but on closer observation, we find largeareas draining into lakes or sinks. One, the largest inDeaf Smith County, known as Lake Garcia, drainsseveral townships. (A township contains 36 squaremiles). After prolonged rainy periods when viewedfrom an airplane, the country appears to be speckledwith little lakes. Some of this water evaporates, butmost of it seeps down to the subterranean reservior tobecome the drinking water for man and animals.

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To drink this water is a pleasant experience—over theterritory I cover, I know no better water. It is clear andsweet. Anyone would say it is pure, but it carries someminerals, especially flourine. It also carries some lime.Analysis shows that the fluorine content is high but not

CHEMICAL ANALYSIS

P. P. M.

pH 7.4

P. P. M. P. P. M.Total Solids ____ 360 Calcium 45 Carbonate ____ 0Silica residue __ 60 Magnesium 45 Bicarbonate __ 811

As CaCO3:- Iron .14 Sluphate 29P. alkalinity -- Manganese -- .1 Chloride 34Total alkalinity 255 Sodium (Cale.) 19 Flouride _ 2.0Total hardness _ 298 Nitrate 7

HYPOTHETHCAL COMBINATION

P. .P M. G. P. G.Calcium bicarbonate 182 __ 10.61Magnesium bicarbonate 208. 12.13Magnesium sulphate 86 2.10Magnesium chloride 12 .70Sodium chloride 41 2.39Sodium nitrate 9- .52

too high. The presence of these minerals in the water maybe another factor in the health of this region, but theclimate, causing man to drink more water here thanwhere the humidity is higher, is also very important.Dry air, bright sunshine, and high altitude cause moreevaporation from the human body, and consequently itdemands a greater intake of water. As this is anothereffect of climate, there is little chance of creating itartificially in other places, and it becomes necessary forman to live in the region described to obtain the greatestbenefit from all of its human life sustaining components.

When we look at Deaf Smith County on top of theDeaf Smith plateau in the light of these explanations.there is no great secret formula, no mysterious some-thing we cannot understand. However, the unusual isthe accumulation of all these natural beneficial andessential life sustaining elements in one spot, one smallregion.,The great abundance of them here and the re-sults it produces also emphasizes the great deficiency ofthese factors in many other parts of our country.

The percentage of men accepted by the Army in DeafSmith County is higher than anyplace where I havehad an opportunity to obtain such figures. In June, 1944.93% of those called had passed the physical examina-tions. When we compare this with a scant 65% acceptedfor the whole nation and the low points where only 30to 40% have been accepted, it becomes a remarkablerecord. Time did not permit classification of these fig-ures into those born in the County and those who im-migrated to the County during their adolescence or asadults. The percentage of acceptancy might be a littlehigher if computed only on native-born residents. Whatthree and four generations of living on the Deaf Smithplateau might develop in men and women. we do notknow because to date, the few observations recorded areall on immigrants who have lived here a few years andfirst generation people born in this region.

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The general trend of development of this nation hasbeen from the East to the West, but where this trenddeviated from the common pattern, the immigrationtook place from the seaboard towards the interior. View-ed from the East to the West or from the gulf seaboardto the North, the Deaf Smith plateau was among thelast of our rich soil areas to be pre-empted by the whiteman. When men who had lived in 'the timberland re-gions of lower altitudes moved west and saw the treeless"Cap Rock" plains of the Texas panhandle, they con-cluded it was the next thing to a desert. Trees have al-ways been considered an idicator of a country's produc-tive ability. A treeless barren country has little attrac-tion for men not accustomed to it. For this reason, mostof the people who came to this region had the wrongconception of its ability to sustain human life. Theywere accustomed to a humid climate and suffered dis-comfort in the dry, arid atmosphere which we now seeis beneficial in producing man's best food.

Granaries full and 100,000 bu. grain piled on the ground20 miles north of Hereford, Texas.

Top: A million bushel elevator and the ground in frontof it covered with wheat.

Bottom: They still produce Herefords at Hereford. Texas.

Instead of trying to cultivate the soil, they were as-tonished it produced something when they did plant afew seeds. They judged everything by the amount ofrainfall, which was small, compared to that which theywere accustomed. In most instances, their personal feel-ings in summer and the barren appearance of theprairies was their guage of precipitation, and for years,many of them never knew what might be the total oftheir annual rainfall. All of them felt certain that allthe country needed was more rain, less agriculture, andperhaps a few more "stock cows."

In this manner, while somewhat influenced by thememories of a secure childhood, men have formed thewrong conception of where their best and most essen-tial foods grow. Timber is the last stand of vegetationagainst erosion, and pine is almost allthe last stand of avegetation against this soil depleting movement. Pinewill grow where almost no other plants can exist. Wherethe rainfall is heavy water erosion, leaching of the soilsand continuous cropping have reduced the essentiallife sustaining soil elements until neither man nor hisfood plants can exist. Yet man loves to live there and

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extolls this environment; anything different from it istranslated into disparaging comparis9ns. When we applyour present knowledge of the essential soil minerals re-quired to properly sustain man, we find man's commonunderstanding of the sources of his food is wrong.

As time goes on this knowledge of the value of foodproduced on soils and under climatic conditions such aswe find on the Deaf Smith plateau will be disseminatedmore and more. Transportation will be speeded up andgradually men will demand to know the soil origin oftheir foods. When this takes place the demand for foodsgrown on the Deaf Smith plateau may exceed the

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supply. When the simple facts here presented becomecommon knowledge many will move to this region toobtain the full benefits of its soil, climate and water.Others may be content to eat some of the food productsgrown there. Of the many items of food the area canproduce, wheat and wheat products are the most econo-mical to transport and preserve. Because of this thecountry's major production will undoubtedly be thestaple bread cereal for some time to come. Because ofthe size of Deaf Smith county and the large percentageof arable land within its borders the wheat acreage caneasily become so large that in years favorable for highaverage yields, 10 to 12 million bushels will be producedwithin the boundaries of Deaf Smith county.

Minneapolis, MinnesotaSeptember 8th, 1945.

See Pictures on Opposite Page

1. Over 200 bags, or 10 tons, or 888 bu. per acre of potatoes.

2. 12 to 17 tons per acre of carrots out of Deaf Smith County

8. Granaries full and running over.

4. 60 to 73 bu. of white corn per acre.

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