28 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [P. D. 4. 



THE WORK OF THE FEDERAL LAND BANK. 



LEONARD G. ROBINSON, PRESIDENT FEDERAL LAND BANK, SPRINGFIELD, 



MASSACHUSETTS. 



Last spring, when this nation was submarined into the 

 world war, President Wilson made a stirring appeal to the 

 loyalty and patriotism of the American people. To the farmers 

 he said : — 



I take the liberty, therefore, of addressing this word to the farmers of 

 the country, and to all who work on the farms. The supreme need of 

 our own nation and of the nations with which we are co-operating is an 

 abundance of supplies, and especially of foodstuffs. The importance of 

 an adequate food supply, especially for the present year, is superlative. 

 Without abundant food, alike for the armies and the peoples now at war, 

 the whole great enterprise upon which we have embarked will break down 

 and fail. 



The world's food reserves are low. Not only during the present emer- 

 gency, but for some time after peace shall have come, both our own people 

 and a large proportion of the people of Europe must rely upon the harvest 

 of America. Upon the farmer of this country, therefore, in large measure 

 rests the fate of the war and the fate of the nation. 



The President's appeal has electrified the country. It struck 

 a responsive chord in every heart, and the American people 

 rose as one to the needs of the situation. The response of 

 the farmers was immediate and effective. Last year's food 

 production tells the story. 



It is a story without words. Words are inadequate to de- 

 scribe the almost insurmountable obstacles that the farmer had 

 overcome, and the great sacrifices he had to make to do his 

 bit. Shortage of labor, scarcity of seeds and fertilizers, and 

 the high cost of all instruments of production were only some 

 of the difficulties he had to face. There is a mistaken notion — 

 believed in by many who ought to know better — that, be- 

 cause of the high prices of farm products, the farmers made 



