THE CALL OF THE LAND 



rural interests here in the United States. 

 Europe was settled mainly under military 

 motives, land going to great vassals of the 

 king. All over Europe even today the great 

 landowner is a more significant person than 

 the great townsman, manufacturer, or 

 banker. Socially, land-owning counts more 

 than wealth in other forms. The blooded 

 aristocracies of European lands all stand in 

 some sort of connection with the proprietor- 

 ship of land. It is easy to see that in the coun- 

 tries named there is an immense influence 

 other than that of wealth operating against 

 that of mere wealth. In the United States, 

 unfortunately, we as yet possess no such 

 counterpoise against the dead weight of 

 Mammon. We need to raise up such ; and 

 the only apparent way, at least the best way 

 apparently, to accomplish that result is to 

 cultivate rural interests. Build up and keep 

 up a country population worthy and able to 

 determine our national character. 



How can such a country population in 

 the United States be reared? How can the 

 landed interest be put in a condition to be 



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