144 BACKGROUND AND MEANS OF SERVICE 



Moreover, an efficient and prosperous citizenship on the 

 farms is essential to public welfare. Agriculture can be 

 sound, permanent and efficient only when it is profitable 

 to farmers. That this has not always been the case during 

 the past fifty years, the strong continuing movement of 

 population from country to city is evidence. This con- 

 stant movement from farms to cities, supplemented by the 

 natural growth of cities and by immigration chiefly to 

 cities, has changed the ratio of one farm family to one city 

 family in 1860 to one farm family to practically three city 

 and village families in 1920 ; so that now one farmer must 

 feed his own and two or three other families. 



That the farmer has been able to do this is due in part 

 to the great improvement and increased use of farm ma- 

 chinery, and in part to education and the application of an 

 increased intelligence to his problems. But conditions in 

 the country are not yet sufficiently attractive to hold enough 

 of its best young men and young women there. The aver- 

 age age of farmers is high. We are probably due for a 

 further recession from the farms. 



Agricultural conservation, development and education 

 are therefore matters of public concern. There is great 

 need for more intelligent public understanding and con- 

 sideration of farm problems, and for the formulation of a 

 forward-looking constructive public agricultural policy. 

 The county agent system can and does contribute to these 

 ends and is therefore in the public interest. Farmers may 

 receive the direct benefits of the county agents' work, but 

 the general public often receives the larger if the less direct 

 benefits. 



THE OBLIGATION OF FARMERS 



Because agriculture is of such great importance to all, 

 the farmer himself has a peculiar obligation and responsi- 



