36 An American Fruit-Farm 



should be growing peaches ; grapes, when he should 

 sow his fields to buckwheat. It is the old story of 

 the round farm in the square hole ; of meadows in 

 Florida and orange groves in Vermont. 



Within any climatic belt, the chief problem for 

 the farmer to solve is the selection of the site for 

 his farm. This means, primarily, convenience. A 

 well-located farm is like a comer lot on Broadway. 

 Remembering always that land unadapted to farm- 

 ing cannot be made farm land by mere location, 

 of two farms the better located is the more valu- 

 able. Everybody desires convenient land, — ^that 

 is, land most accessible for making a living. Good 

 roads shorten the distance to market and cut down 

 the cost of farm administration. The test is 

 transportation. A farm many miles from the 

 city but connected by good transportation is nearer 

 the city than another lying quite close yet inacces- 

 sible. Location determines the cost of farming. 

 Land remote from markets, though producing 

 heavy crops, eats itself up in transportation; the 

 farmer is attempting the impossible. He may 

 starve amidst plenty. Poorer land well located is 

 worth more than choicer land badly located. The 

 best farms being best located always command 

 the highest price; they cost most and pay best. 



Climate is the constant factor in farming; the 

 value of location varies with world conditions. 

 Every inch of American soil was once out of rela- 

 tion to the world-market. Much of it is now in 

 relation to that market and lands are ever coming 



