262 THE FARMER AND THE NEW DAY 



evolution and it would not be without precedent if, 

 when the producing and shipping of food is no longer a 

 commercial enterprise, but had been gradually shifted 

 to a desire to feed the hungry, a new and powerful 

 force in international affairs would have to be reck- 

 oned with." Here is a glorious vision of an idealist. 

 But after all is it visionary? Feeding the hungry world 

 is the farmer's task in the New Day. Why should 

 he not recognize it? Why should it not be his great 

 inspiration? This conception of his task and the bend- 

 ing of his will to its fulfillment may have consequences 

 far beyond that of merely appeasing hunger. 



Mr. Hoover has gone abroad again; after he went 

 it was announced that there would be a world organi- 

 zation of the food supply. This step is clearly neces- 

 sary if scores of millions of earth's people are to be 

 kept from starvation. But the idea is profoundly true 

 as a basic need of the New Day. The world will be 

 poorly compensated for its sufferings in the present 

 war if it cannot organize its production and distribu- 

 tion of food so that there is no hunger anywhere. 



AMERICA UNPREPARED FOR THE NEW DAY 



In many ways we are unprepared for peace. We 

 do not have an agricultural program. There is no 

 responsible institution, no representative organization, 

 no responsible group of men with a program. Most 

 of us look to the Department of Agriculture for lead- 

 ership and statesmanship in a matter of this sort. We 

 do not find it. Various farmers' bodies have definite 

 ideas on many of the needs of the new time, but there is 

 no representative group of farmers with a compre- 

 hensive, clearcut, adequate plan for the improvement 

 of American agriculture and country life. The De- 



