The Conquest of the Desert 



it is called " arid-farming." Still another term 

 is " scientific soil culture." For the sake of 

 uniformity, all experiment stations, agricultural 

 societies, and the rural press would do well to 

 speak of dry-farming and dry-land agriculture. 

 It is sometimes said that dry-farming is a new 

 agricultural practice. But it is not so. Even 

 in America the farmers of Utah have been raising 

 crops on their dry lands with a rainfall of less 

 than fifteen inches for over half-a-century. 

 More than that, dry-farming has been practised 

 since the dawn of civilisation in Mesopotamia 

 in Egypt, and in North- Western India. And, as 

 Professor Hilgard, of California, remarked to the 

 writer, 1 " the great depth of soil in arid regions 

 as compared with that of humid climates 

 undoubtedly explains how the ancient agricul- 

 turists could remain in the same country for 

 thousands of years without having any know- 

 ledge of scientific agriculture." Most farmers 

 are aware of the fact that the roots of plants go 

 far deeper in dry regions than in damp climates. 

 Now, if the roots of plants can penetrate to great 

 depths, so surely must both moisture and air. 

 It would thus seem as if an all-wise Providence 



1 See " Dry-Farming : Its Principles and Practice," p. 10. 

 By William Macdonald. London : T. Werner Laurie. 



96 



