FARM POLICY AND MANAGEMENT 113 



portant questions that confronts the agriculturist is 

 to decide what kind of a farmer he wants to be and 

 what kinds of farming will give best results under 

 his special local conditions. In making his decision 

 he must consult, not only his own preferences and 

 abilities and his available capital, but the nature of 

 his soil and climate and particularly the character 

 and needs of his available markets and his transpor- 

 tation facilities. A certain amount of specialization 

 is undoubtedly desirable. The man who undertakes 

 to grow too many crops will succeed with none of 

 them. There are many cases, too, where either on 

 account of special skill and knowledge or peculiarly 

 favorable local conditions a farmer's wisest course is 

 to confine himself exclusively to some one or two 

 specialties. In general, however, diversified farming 

 is safer and more profitable and lends itself much 

 more readily to a proper rotation of crops and the 

 preservation of the fertility of the land. The all- 

 wheat, all-corn, or all-cotton farmer is seldom per- 

 manently prosperous and he inevitably leaves an 

 inheritance of depleted acres to his successors. 



The average farmer should first and foremost see 

 to it that he produces at home, so far as possible, 

 everything that is to be consumed on the farm. 

 Second, he should study the possibilities of his local 

 market carefully and seek as far as possible to 

 supply it. The man who produces the bulk of his 

 own supplies and sells enough produce to his neigh- 

 bors to furnish his other necessities is assured of 

 success no matter wliat the state of the market for 

 the great staples. It is true that it takes more care 



