COMPETITION IN FARM PRODUCTS. 



AN ADDRESS 



Delivered before the 42(\ Annual Fair of the Housatonic Agricultural Society, 



BY WILLIAM E. BKEWEK, 



Professor op Agriculture of Yale College. 



Competition in Farm Products lias in recent years taken on new 

 features which most profoundly disturb Agriculture in New England. 

 But this is by no means local to New England. Agricultural com- 

 petition is just now, in one way or another, disturbing all of the older 

 countries of Christendom. 



Within much less than a lifetime so many new conditions have 

 been introduced into the methods of production and transportation 

 of crops and live stock that the changes in agriculture have been 

 greater in this short period than in all the long ages before, from the 

 very dawn of history. The most of the capital of the civilized world 

 has, heretofore, been vested in this industry, if indeed, it is not now, 

 and the majority of those who work with" their hands, have tilled the 

 soil or reared live stock, hence anything that widely disturbs such an 

 industry profoundly affects the nations, and " Agricultural Competi- 

 tion" is just now the subject of more discussion than any other one 

 thing affecting the industries of the world. It has perhaps more 

 political importance in the old world, but, in its economical aspects, 

 New England is as truly affected as Old England. 



New communities, settling new regions, naturally grow in accord- 

 ance with this new condition of things, but old communities must 

 adjust themselves to it, and the disturbance of old ways and old 

 methods in this conservative industry brings with it more or less of 

 discomfort. Individual farmers, in trying to adjust their operations 



