118 COMMISSION ON COUNTRY LIFE 



7. NEED OF AGRICULTURAL OR COUNTRY LIFE 

 SURVEYS. 



The time has now come when we should know 

 in detail what our agricultural resources are. We 

 have long been engaged in making geological 

 surveys, largely with a view to locating our miner- 

 eral wealth. The country has been explored and 

 mapped. The main native resources have been 

 located in a general way. We must now know 

 what are the capabilities of every agricultural 

 locality, for agriculture is the basis of our pros- 

 perity and farming is always a local business. 

 We cannot make the best and most permanent 

 progress in the developing of a good country life 

 until we have completed a very careful inventory 

 of the entire country. 



This inventory or census should take into 

 account the detailed topography and soil con- 

 ditions of the localities, the local climate, the 

 whole character of streams and forests, the agri- 

 cultural products, the cropping systems now in 

 practice, the conditions of highways, markets, 

 facilities in the way of transportation and com- 

 munication, the institutions and organizations, 

 the adaptability of the neighborhood to the es- 



