NINETEENTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK— PART II 97 



to be personally interested in the things that you are interested in, 

 so I take pleasure in introducing to you Governor W. L. Hard- 

 ing, of Iowa. 



Hon. W. L. Harding. 



Mr. President and Gentlemen : I am glad that I came in just 

 at the moment I did — I learned something new. I never had 

 understood before that a man who owned a race horse had to eat — 



Mr. Curtin (interrupting) : Only in the spring and fall. 



Mr. Harding (continuing) : • — and I thought even less that a 

 man who owned a race horse should actually be paid. It is a new 

 and startling idea. As I understand it, I am, as governor of the 

 state, a member of this organization, I don't know whether the 

 same punishment is assigned to every member of the State 

 Board of Agriculture that is assigned to the governor — that is, to 

 make, or try to make, a speech every year at the annual meeting; 

 but I assume that the membership suffers more than the governor 

 does under this particular part of the program. 



I was not privileged to attend the state fair except on two 

 occasions this past year. Duties over which I had no control 

 called me to Washington, and I took Dean Curtiss along with me. 

 He got away one day earlier than I did, so that I attended only 

 on the last day of the fair. 



I feel that a state fair is one of the great educational institu- 

 tions of the state, and it fills in a place that is vitally important. 

 It ought to be encouraged ; it ought to be continued. That is not 

 a new thought to any of you. You all agree with me about that, 

 but it is a good thing once in a while to sit down around the 

 table and talk over the things that we agree upon. 



Since the war has been on, we have realized more and more 

 the importance of the farm. We discovered that without food 

 it was impossible for our armies, or those of our Allies, to do the 

 work that we expected them to do and to win victories. We dis- 

 covered also that there is wonderful disorganization in that par- 

 ticular line of industry. In the past we have thought that the 

 farmer could be an individual, isolate himself from the commun- 

 ity if he wanted to ; that it wasn't any part of the public's business 

 what he did with his land, and I think that the war, the necessities 

 of the war, have opened our eyes to this fact; that the farmer who 

 has under his management and control a piece of land has certain 

 duties and obligations to the community, anrl the community has 



