206 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



the practice at once, but they \ay bare the facts and give a basis for 

 action. This in itself is an important first step. 



From their isohition and their separateness farmers are deprived of 

 information of a kind Avhich business men of the towns and cities 

 possess. The commercial reports give the business man the informa- 

 tion he needs as to the status of the markets and the special demands, 

 but they do not go beyond his field of interest. The producer on the 

 farm is not informed as to the tendencies and the influences which are 

 operative, and can not take advantage of them, but the fact that his 

 business is not elastic makes advice all the more necessary. 



Studies of the cost of production are beginning to be made and are 

 already showing some surprising facts. The farmer has had very 

 little data of this sort, even for the production of staples, to guide him 

 in his business. Inquiries into thi' methods of farm management, 

 the returns from various systems, and the development of systems 

 which are more rational and give a larger return, are also yielding 

 residts of much value and importance. These things, while still 

 young in their development, emphasize the field which is open for a 

 special type of inquiry. 



Each 3'ear brings increasing interest in the problems of agriculture 

 and the development of the agricultural industry. Interest and faith 

 in land are steadily increasing. xV large number of people in the 

 towns and cities are turning their eyes countryward, drawn by the 

 prospect of greater freedom and the attractions of country life. This 

 is evidenced by the increasing attention given to agricultural matters 

 in the public press and in magazines, and was shown by the large 

 attendance of city people at the Land and Irrigation Exposition, 

 held in Chicago the past fall. 



At the suggestion of the State Commissioner of Agriculture in 

 Xew York. Prof. L. H. Baile}^ prepared a pamphlet on the agricul- 

 tural situation in that State, dealing especiall}^ with the so-called 

 abandoned lands, and advocating a survey of agricultural resources. 

 In this he insisted upon a higher rating for agriculture among hu.nian 

 occupations, and urged greater faith in the land and its possibilities 

 and its utilization to the best advantage. Instead of continuing to 

 dwell on the discouraging features of farming, he urged that the good 

 side should be set forth, and that '* ever}^ time we describe one aban- 

 doned farm we ought to describe three well-occupied farms." 



The Boston Chamber of Commerce has indicated a new interest in 

 Agriculture hj the appointment of a permanent committee on that 

 subject, afid has issued a very optimistic report upon the future of the 

 Xew England farm. It states that interest is awakening in various 

 branches of agriculture and in the development and better adapta- 



