8 THE FARMER AND THE NEW DAY 



of agricultural improvement recognized by farmers as 

 meeting their needs and by statesmen as fitting into na- 

 tional welfare. 



4. Finally, agriculture came to be recognized as a 

 national factor, to be planned for and worked with for 

 large national ends. It was no longer a neglected ele- 

 ment. And so the leaders among the farmers were in 

 a sense received at court; they did " sit with the wise 

 men at the gate of the city." 



Thus when the great war broke out in 1914, it seemed 

 as if in many parts of Europe the farmer had in a meas- 

 ure at last come to his own. It still remains to be seen 

 whether, in the reestablishment of peaceful occupations, 

 and particularly in the democratization of autocratic 

 states, the farmer is to have a full share of responsibil- 

 ity and power. 



THE AMERICAN FARMER 



The final and the greatest exception to the general 

 position of the farmer in society is the American farmer. 

 In no age of history and in no country has there been 

 nor is there now his equal. American farm life has 

 bred the most skillful farmers, the most intelligent rural 

 citizens, the most engaging farm homes to be found 

 anywhere in the world. This praise applies to the real 

 American farmer, the owner and active manager of a 

 family-size farm, who came of the best blood of pioneer 

 America, whose intelligence is comparable with that of 

 the leading groups of citizens of the Republic, many of 

 whose sons and daughters have made their way into 

 recognized leadership in business, industry, and the 

 professions. It is difficult to speak with restraint of 

 this man or his achievements. He conquered a huge 



