CHAPTER XV. 



PLANT BREEDING. 



Ignorance of the Laws of Nature Make up the Mys- 

 teries of life. 



HISTORY OP All material and mental progress hinges on 



BREEDING man's ability to wrest from nature more tlian 

 he needs for mere subsistence. It depends pri- 

 marily on his ability to apply and use natural 

 forces. Perhaps T may carry the thought a step 

 further and say that true wealth and true ad- 

 vancement depend , not so much on the abund- 

 ance of raw material, as on our ability to work 

 changes in that material which make it contrib- 

 ute to our happiness and contentment. 



I^ever before were the minds of men so keen. 

 Certainly there is no evidence that our forebears 

 could make the intelligent use of natural forces 

 that men are accomplishing today. This ad- 

 vancement is apparent in all lines of productive 

 industry. It is through the more or less intelli- 

 gent guidance of man that the vital laws of plant 

 and animal change and improvement enable a 

 less number of tillers of the soil to supply the 

 basic support which allows other forms of civil- 

 ized activity to proceed. Time was when man 

 must use all his effort to procure neces- 

 sary food alone. Afterward raiment was added 

 as the first luxury, only to become a fixed neces- 



