AS long ago as Shakespeare's time, it had already become 

 proverbial that "you cannot make a purse out of a sow's 

 ear." The world is supposed to have advanced immeas- 

 urably in knowledge and wisdom since then, and yet, in spite 

 of all our study and all our boasted efficiency, there are thou- 

 sands of people twisting away at the patient old porker's ear 

 in the vain hope of making something beautiful. This is es- 

 pecially true in respect to land. There is a prevalent idea, 

 fostered by some real estate men, demagogues and misguided 

 agricultural enthusiasts, that a paying farm can be made out 

 of any kind 'of land. But it requires very little imagination to 

 liken a paying farm to a purse, and a glance at history will 

 soon convince any open minded man of the similarity of a 

 portion of this fair country to a sow's ear. 



In the old country the largest crops in the world are raised, 

 "his is partly due to the intensive methods used, but more 

 irgely to the careful selection of the land. Each little patch 

 >f land has a reputation for its ability to raise some partic- 

 lar crop. Some of it is recognized as unprofitable or even 

 )tally unfit for any crop at all. Even in this country certain 

 jlasses of land are recognized. We hear of corn land, wheat 

 land, clover land, etc., thus admitting that there are different 

 ides of soil. Why not have the nerve to carry this to its 

 logical conclusion and admit that there is some land which 

 not fit for any crop? Admit that a certain portion of it is a 



's ear? Admit that it is fit only for a forest? 

 In the early days in this state it was the ambition of every 

 inner to raise wheat. Land not in wheat was waste land. 

 Gradually they began to realize that there were crops which 

 would pay better than wheat on some land. As a consequence, 

 the crops became more diversified and the profits larger and 

 lore sure. This recognized the principle that land was not 

 it for the purpose of producing any particular crop, but rather 

 to produce revenue from anything that can be grown. Why, 



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