TENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART X 543 



country may not follow the descent of the East and the South, it is nec- 

 essary that Intelligent and vigorous effort he made to farm correctly. We 

 must cease abusing the soil. The renting of land on short leases for the 

 purpose of growing grain for market is one of the surest means of reduc- 

 ing the productive power of the soil. The domestic animal, with well- 

 managed pastures and rational systems of crop rotation, is pre-eminently 

 adapted to the development of permanent systems of profitable farming. 

 Landowners must realize this and must take steps to improve renting 

 methods by stocking farms with a full complement of domestic animals, 

 where the renter is not able to do this for himself, and by giving longer 

 leases, whereby the renter may reap the reward of intelligent manage- 

 ment. 



DISPOSAL OF LAJ^D BY TPIE GOVEBNMENT. 



Land owned originally by the Government has, in the main, been wisely 

 given into the hands of millions of small owners, each of whom manages 

 his own holdings as an independent proprietor. This method of disposing 

 of the national domain has led to the rapid creation of well-distributed 

 wealth. It has meant conservation "by utilization on the part of a maxi- 

 mum number of private owners. But the very magnitude and richness 

 of this heritage has led to such prodigality in its use that now, when 

 the period of settlement is practically past, we find ourselves confronted 

 with increased demands for food, which must be met by soils that have 

 been depleted of much of their yielding power. This is an important fac- 

 tor in the recent increase in the cost of food. 



UIPORTAXCE OF CHEAP AST) ABUNDANT FOOD. 



The problem of cheap and abundant food is a fundamental one in all 

 industrial development. It was the abundance and cheapness of food 

 that made possible the marvelous progress witnessed in this country dur- 

 ing the past century. During the last sixty years we have brought into 

 cultivation the largest and richest body of agricultural land in the world. 

 While this land was new and rich the production of abundant crops was 

 accomplished at little expense and with little knowledge of the principles 

 of conservation of soil fertility. This period of exploitive farming is now 

 past. The cost of production is now enhanced by low yields, or the use 

 of expensive methods of maintaining high yields. Whether the era of 

 cheap and abundant food is past depends on our ability as a people to 

 develop cheaper and better means of production than now prevail. We 

 no longer have unlimited undeveloped agricultural resources. Future in- 

 crease in production must come largely from better methods of farming. 

 Whether we, as a nation, shall attain these improved methods after a 

 long period of depression, accompanied by slow adjustment to new condi- 

 tions, as has been the case in older countries, or whether we shall attack 

 the problem resolutely and intelligently and adopt improved methods as 

 soon as the situation demands, depends on the efiiciency of those agencies 

 that in recent years have been built up in this country with a view to 

 meeting the proljlems of soil conservation and agricultural readjustment. 



