12 OREGON FARMER 



While the primary purpose of this bulletin is to furnish to prospec- 

 tive settlers information of what is actually being done by Oregon 

 farmers, doubtless it also contains much that is of interest to these 

 farmers themselves. However, it should undoubtedly be supple- 

 mented by further studies along similar lines. We now realize as 

 never before that the rural problem is a problem of better business 

 and better living as well as of better farming; but before much of 

 value can be accomplished in solving the economic and social prob- 

 lems of the farm we shall have to recognize and act upon the idea 

 that such problems offer as important a field for investigation as 

 do those which relate merely to production. Definite information 

 upon which to base improved methods of production became available 

 only with the development of the research functions of the various 

 State experiment stations, and it is evident, I think, that careful 

 field studies of the factors involved must necessarily form the basis 

 for any satisfactory solution of the social and economic problems 

 of the open country. This work is so fundamental that I consider 

 it most unfortunate that no provision has been made for continuing 

 a line of investigation in which this bulletin represents the first step. 



Statistics Based on Averages. 



The tabulated statistics contained in this booklet are 

 NOT based upon the average conditions prevailing generally 

 throughout the state, but represent the AVERAGES based 

 upon the number of reports received upon the different 

 subjects, and the reader should not be misguided in this 

 respect. It is not the purpose or intention to mislead the 

 prospective homeseeker. Instances of unusual results are 

 not cited in the composition of this booklet, but only 

 the AVERAGES in all cases are taken into consideration 

 so as to avoid all possibility of misrepresentation. Pains- 

 taking care has been exercised to present the conditions 

 as they actually exist, in so far as the results of this survey 

 are concerned, with the average farmer in the state. STATE 

 AVERAGES represent the AVERAGE results taken from 

 farms that were selected as representing average possibili- 

 ties in each section. 



