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  We 
  cannot 
  spare 
  all 
  this 
  land 
  from 
  tillage. 
  But 
  fortunately, 
  

   there 
  are 
  other 
  ways 
  of 
  using 
  it. 
  Land 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  100th 
  meridian 
  

   may 
  be 
  divided 
  into 
  three 
  classes: 
  First, 
  which 
  in 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  

   better 
  estimate 
  covers 
  one 
  third 
  of 
  the 
  area, 
  is 
  hopeless 
  for 
  agri- 
  

   culture 
  because 
  of 
  hills 
  and 
  rocks. 
  This 
  is 
  mostly 
  now 
  in 
  rather 
  

   poor 
  forests. 
  The 
  second 
  class, 
  also 
  covering 
  one 
  third 
  — 
  by 
  the 
  

   same 
  estimate 
  — 
  has 
  been 
  cleared 
  for 
  agriculture, 
  but 
  is 
  so 
  hilly 
  and 
  

   eroded 
  as 
  to 
  be 
  in 
  a 
  low 
  state 
  of 
  fertility 
  and 
  production. 
  The 
  third 
  

   class, 
  the 
  remaining 
  third 
  of 
  the 
  land, 
  is 
  suited 
  to 
  the 
  plow 
  and 
  

   should 
  be 
  plowed 
  and 
  cultivated 
  much 
  more 
  intensively 
  than 
  it 
  now 
  is. 
  

  

  For 
  the 
  first 
  and 
  second 
  classes 
  of 
  land 
  we 
  need 
  a 
  new 
  type 
  of 
  

   agriculture, 
  the 
  crop-yielding 
  trees. 
  Our 
  agriculture, 
  which 
  de- 
  

   pends 
  so 
  largely 
  now 
  upon 
  those 
  members 
  of 
  the 
  grass 
  family 
  which 
  

   we 
  call 
  grains, 
  is 
  the 
  result 
  of 
  accident, 
  not 
  the 
  result 
  of 
  science. 
  At 
  

   the 
  dawn 
  of 
  history 
  man 
  had 
  practically 
  all 
  of 
  these 
  small 
  grains, 
  

   which 
  have 
  probably 
  resulted 
  from 
  the 
  selection 
  and 
  seed 
  saving 
  

   of 
  the 
  primitive 
  woman, 
  as 
  the 
  race 
  came 
  up 
  from 
  savagery 
  into 
  

   agriculture. 
  This 
  primitive 
  woman 
  in 
  selecting 
  plants 
  for 
  her 
  

   garden 
  and 
  Httle 
  field, 
  did 
  not 
  pick 
  out 
  the 
  best 
  of 
  nature, 
  or 
  the 
  

   most 
  productive, 
  or 
  the 
  ultimately 
  most 
  promising; 
  she 
  picked 
  

   annuals 
  because 
  they 
  gave 
  the 
  quickest 
  return. 
  And 
  man 
  has 
  left 
  

   alone 
  and 
  practically 
  unimproved 
  for 
  all 
  these 
  thousands 
  of 
  years 
  

   nearly 
  all 
  the 
  great 
  engines 
  of 
  nature, 
  the 
  crop-yielding 
  trees, 
  such 
  

   as 
  the 
  walnut, 
  hickory, 
  pecan, 
  acorn 
  yielding 
  oak, 
  chestnut, 
  beech, 
  

   pinenut, 
  hazel, 
  honey 
  locust, 
  mesquite, 
  screw 
  bean, 
  carob, 
  mulberry, 
  

   persimmon, 
  paw-paw, 
  etc., 
  because 
  their 
  slow 
  growth 
  has 
  deterred 
  

   us 
  from 
  any 
  attempts 
  at 
  improving 
  them. 
  We 
  have 
  depended 
  

   upon 
  and 
  greatly 
  improved 
  the 
  quick 
  growing 
  grains, 
  which 
  spend 
  

   most 
  of 
  their 
  short 
  life 
  in 
  putting 
  up 
  a 
  frame 
  work 
  which 
  promptly 
  

   perishes; 
  whereas 
  the 
  tree 
  endures 
  like 
  a 
  manufacturing 
  plant. 
  

   Further 
  than 
  this, 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  grains 
  have 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  crisis, 
  during 
  

   which 
  they 
  must 
  receive 
  water 
  or 
  the 
  harvest 
  is 
  almost 
  a 
  failure. 
  

   Thus 
  corn 
  must 
  within 
  a 
  short 
  period 
  receive 
  moisture, 
  or 
  it 
  is 
  too 
  

   late 
  to 
  produce 
  even 
  husks. 
  

  

  Yet 
  trees 
  are 
  the 
  great 
  engines 
  of 
  nature. 
  The 
  mazzard 
  cherry 
  

   tree, 
  growing 
  wild 
  throughout 
  the 
  southeastern 
  United 
  States, 
  

   often 
  yields 
  twenty 
  bushels 
  of 
  fruit. 
  Fifty 
  bushels 
  and 
  upwards 
  are 
  

   often 
  obtained 
  from 
  the 
  mature 
  apple 
  trees. 
  The 
  walnut 
  yields 
  its 
  

   bushels, 
  the 
  persimmon 
  breaks 
  with 
  fruit. 
  

  

  Europe 
  shows 
  us 
  an 
  agriculture 
  making 
  considerable 
  use 
  of 
  crop- 
  

   yielding 
  trees 
  other 
  than 
  the 
  ordinary 
  fruits. 
  Mr. 
  C. 
  F. 
  Cook, 
  of 
  

   the 
  Department 
  of 
  Agriculture, 
  is 
  the 
  authority 
  for 
  the 
  statement 
  

  

  