62 THE STATE AS FARMER 



as a State cannot be content to see an 

 occasional farmer buying fertilisers and feeding 

 stuffs and out of those a still fewer occasional 

 ones using the Act to secure the delivery 

 of the real thing they bought. I affirm 

 that a system which is good for one is good 

 for all : that all who till the land should have 

 a simple means of putting upon that land 

 exactly what it requires : and that they 

 should have no trouble with analysts, but 

 should simply send to their district depot 

 for the exact article and the exact quantity 

 that their district adviser prescribes. 



But the State does more than pass an 

 Act. It issues capital Leaflets through the 

 Board of Agriculture, which tell the farmer 

 exactly what to buy and what to do. Let 

 me refer to No. 80 in this connection. I will 

 quote a fairly long passage, because it will be 

 found to bear upon what I have advanced 

 previously in the matter of soil surveys. 



In reading the following general recommenda- 

 tions as to manuring [says the Leaflet], the reader 

 should bear in mind that, though the advice offered 

 may be serviceable in the majority of cases, it 

 will not be applicable to exceptional circumstances. 



