254 



SCIENTEPIC AGEICULTURE. 



April, 192: 



prices tliat has been seen for many years, 

 this Avork will afford the greatest testi- 

 monial to the practical and economic valne 

 of scientific agricnlture as a factor in land 

 colonization that tliis or any other conn- 

 try has ever seen. 



This is not the best time to take stock 

 of the results accomplished, bnt notwith- 

 standing the depression of today, the po- 

 sition of Soldier Land Settlement is not 

 gloomy, l)nt is rather full of promise. 



Altogether, by virtue of the provisions 

 of the Soldier Settlement Act, more than 

 27,000 returned soldiers have been estab- 

 lished on the land. Of these, 21,000 have 

 been granted loans, and the balance settled 

 on free land without loan. The numbers 

 given may seem small, especially when 

 contrasted Avith ordinary immigration fig- 

 ures, luit when it is remembered that in 

 the whole of the province of Prince Ed- 

 ward Island, there are considerably less 

 than 15,000 farmers, and in the province 

 of Manitoba not more than 50,000 farmers, 

 their true significance becomes apparent. 

 These 27,000 returned soldiers are heads, 

 or potential heads, of families, and their 

 settlement on the land means the reten- 

 tion in, or addition to, the agricultural in- 

 dustry of this country of from 100,000 to 

 125,000 souls. If all the men established 

 under the Soldier Settlement Act were 

 concentrated in the Maritime Provinces, 

 they would occupy every farm in the pro- 

 vince of Prince Edward Island, and more 

 than half the farms in the province of 

 Nova Scotia. 



On this work there has been expended 

 approximately $96,000,000.00 of public 

 money. This includes all advances for 

 loans and all administrative charges of 

 every kind whatsoever, but there has al- 

 readv been returned to the Public Treas- 

 ury more than $13,000,000.00. 



From a ])usiness point of view, the test 

 of the work done must be found by scru- 

 tinizing (a) the number of settlersi who 

 haA-e failed or for other reasons have aban- 

 doned their efforts; and (b) the extent 

 to which the settlers on the land are meet- 

 ing, and are al)le to meet, tlieir repayments 

 as they fall due. 



Of the 21,000 men settled l)y loan, ap- 

 proximately 10 1-2 p.c. have abandoned 

 their efforts and their land and ecjuip- 

 ment have been salvaged or are in process 



of salvage. These figures include deaths, 

 failure from recurrence of war disability, 

 and some cases Avhere the settler lias sold 

 at a profit. In 616 cases, complete fore- 

 closure proceedings liave been taken, and 

 all land, stock, machinery and equipment 

 have ])een completely sold out. In the>e 

 cases there was invested $2,511,000.00 of 

 public money, and the receipts, after the 

 sale of everything salvageable, amount to 

 $2,519^000., or an appreciation of more 

 than $7,000.00. Owing to the decline in 

 the price of livestock, as well as to gen- 

 eral depreciation, which isi to be found 

 in most salvage cases, large losses have 

 been taken in foreclosure sales of stock 

 and equipment. In .some individual cases, 

 losses have also been taken on resales of 

 land, but on the Avhole, due to the sound 

 principles followed in the purc^hase of 

 land, sufficient appreciation has accrued 

 to more than clover thus far the losses 

 taken on stock and equipment. If pres- 

 ent economic conditions continue, it can- 

 not be expected that so favourable a show- 

 ing will continue to be made, but it is 

 clear that the failui-e cases are not going 

 to involve unduly large losses of public 

 money. 



Under their coiiti-acts, set-tlers' pay- 

 ments fall due annually in the western 

 provinces on October 1st, and in the east- 

 ern provinces on November 1st. Shortly 

 after harvest in the fall of 1920, there Avas 

 a A'ery sharp decline in the price of Avheat 

 and otJier grain products. At that time 

 some 12,000 soldier settlers had to meet 

 their first large payments under their 

 agreements Avith tlie Board. These pay- 

 ments aggregated $2,200,000.00. Over 

 10,000 of these settlers made their pay- 

 ments in Avhole or in part, and in addi- 

 tion, a considerable number of other set- 

 tlers made over-payments or prepayments, 

 AA'ith the result that altogether on last 

 A'ear's collections the Board received $2,- 

 300,000. 



In the province of Ontario, 91.3 p.c. 

 of the soldier settlers met their obligations, 

 and in addition, there Avas collected in 

 this province alone, more than $200,000.00 

 in over-payments. 



Economic conditions in the last tAvo 

 months of 1920 and the first six months of 

 1921 Avere not so serious as those existing 

 at the present time. Nevertheless, the 



