CHAPTER II 



THE CHANGING PLACE OF WILD LIFE IN THE 

 NATIONAL ECONOMY 



WILD LIFE has occupied a relatively unimportant place in 

 the national economy of the past. Since the settlement of 

 America began over three centuries ago, the trend of our 

 national economic policy has always been towards bringing 

 more and more land under cultivation. Rarely has the 

 question been raised as to the value of land when used for 

 wild life purposes compared with its value when used for 

 agriculture. Little attempt was ever made to measure the 

 social and economic needs of the nation. 1 It was just as- 

 sumed that agricultural acreage should be increased and 

 upon that assumption the government did everything in its 

 power to open up new areas to agricultural use without 

 giving much attention to whether there was need for such 

 increased acreage. 



Now we are witnessing a reversal in national policies. 

 The present administration in Washington is committed to 

 a program which it calls " land planning." 2 In this chap- 

 ter we will attempt to determine what land planning means ; 

 what brought about this change in national policies; and 

 what effect it will have upon the place of wild life in the 

 future national economy. 



1 See Report of the National Planning Board, Govt. Print. Office, De- 

 cember, 1934; also Beard, Charles, The Open Door at Home (New York, 

 1935). 



2 Wallace, Henry A., Secy, of Agriculture, "AAA Program ", New 

 York Times, August 19, 1934, VIII, I : i ; ibid., "America Must Choose ", 

 February 9, 1934, 1:2; Tugwell, Rexford, Under-Secy. of Agriculture, 

 " Land Planning ", Today, January 20, 1934, p. 6. 



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