224 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS 



that, although it is true that we need farm labor very much, as a relief 

 for current immigration agricultural distribution is not promising. 



There are two great classes of immigrants that can find room in 

 various branches of the agricultural industry. The first class is com- 

 posed of those from overcrowded agricultural communities in their 

 home countries. On account of the high state of development of their 

 industry they can teach us much which we have failed to take advan- 

 tage of and which would result in the uplift of many of the sub- 

 industries in agriculture in this country. These should be urged to 

 bring with them their home industries and introduce new phases of 

 agriculture into this country. The United States has been spending 

 millions of dollars in introducing new plants, animals, and methods 

 of farming from other countries. At the same time little groups of 

 foreigners, such as the Swiss of Wisconsin or later the Italians in some 

 southern districts, formerly thought of as the least desirable immi- 

 grants, have settled in our midst and put into practice, their home 

 training, which has resulted in the establishing of great industries, such 

 as the Swiss cheese industry. The class of immigrants most desired 

 is, therefore, those who will add most to the industry they enter. But 

 it is not necessary that the immigrants should introduce some new 

 subindustry or be in advance of us in their methods in order to make 

 them eligible to enter the agricultural industries. We may say as a 

 general proposition that farmers from nearly any agricultural com- 

 munity in Europe would be acceptable in some of the agricultural 

 industries of this country. 



But it is not enough to encourage one class of immigrants and 

 discourage or prohibit others. The immigrants must not only come 

 from rural districts in their mother-country; if they are to succeed, 

 they must be properly located here. Probably the most important 

 single condition is that immigrants should be directed toward and 

 urged to locate where their physical environment will correspond as 

 nearly as may be to that of their mother-country. By that I mean 

 that not only should the climate be nearly the same but the precipi- 

 tation, the soils, and the topography should approach that of their 

 former home if possible. Failure to satisfy these preliminary require- 

 ments has resulted in almost complete failure or a long period of 

 suffering, while attention to these factors has produced unpredicted 

 successes. 



The next consideration of singular importance is that the social 

 environment should be acceptable. If the agricultural operations 



