FARMERS TO THE FRONT 177 



the necessity of organizing the farmers of Europe 

 to accomplish all the objects of the American Society 

 of Equity in this country, but organization there will 

 follow. It will be a spontaneous lifting up or fol- 

 lowing in the lead of the American farmers until 

 they are on the same level. There is not a step 

 in the process which may not be easily taken. In- 

 deed, the work has already been begun and is now 

 going forward with great rapidity. It would not be 

 too much to say that the organization has already 

 been effected. The problem is not one of the crea- 

 tion, but of the extension of the organization. That 

 the organization can be formed has already been 

 demonstrated. But there is another question which 

 may give trouble to some people, and that is, Will 

 the organization work ? Unless there is good reason 

 to believe that it will not, we are almost justified in 

 asserting, even in the absence of affirmative proof, 

 that it will, since the presumption is so strongly in 

 its favor. At any rate we may say that the only way 

 to find out positively whether or not it will work, 

 unless it can be absolutely demonstrated that it will 

 not work, is to try it. The man who builds a flying 

 machine does not hesitate to put it to the test. Many 

 men were sure that no ship could ever cross the 

 ocean under steam. Yet when the trial was made 

 it was found that the doubter was mistaken. So it is 

 here. There is, as I believe, a great, new machine. 

 That it can be built has already been proved. Now 

 we want to know whether it will operate. The ma- 



