RURAL PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT 249 



'side-tracked' into real estate speculation and became parasites on 

 the community instead of producers. Some plan should be devised 

 to relieve them of their present obligations and to assist them in be- 

 coming permanent land settlers. 



The fact that we are likely to be faced with a returned soldiers' 

 problem, that the conditions of unemployment which preceded the 

 war may be followed by similar conditions after the war, is, itself, proof 

 of the unsoundness of our system of land development and industrial 

 organization. Properly organized, there should be no limit, within 

 any reasonable estimate of what is probable in the way of increase 

 of population, to the output of human energy that can be employed 

 to develop the vast natural resources of this country. We should, 

 therefore, have no returned soldiers' problem in Canada, apart from 

 dealing with disabled men. Indeed, we should be ready to absorb 

 the ex-service men of other countries with advantage to ourselves and 

 without fear of an overstocked labour market. But, under circum- 

 stances and economic conditions likely to be faced in the future, 

 owing to our lack of scientific organization, particularly of our rural 

 life, we may well anticipate the contingency of being unable to con- 

 veniently and quickly place even our returned soldiers in productive 

 fields of labour, much less to deal properly with new immigration. 



The problem of rural life, as part of the problem of national life, 

 should be faced as a whole and means should be found to remove the 

 difficulties that stand in the way of natural and sound economic 

 development. It is futile to go on ignoring these difficulties and to 

 deal with problems, like that of returned soldiers, by temporary pal- 

 liatives designed to enable us to get rid of our immediate responsibili- 

 ties, but without any permanent effect in improving social conditions 

 either for the men presumed to be directly benefited or for the country 

 as a whole. 



SOME FINAL OBSERVATIONS 



Canada is said to be at the beginning of a new era. In regard 

 to land development it is certainly face to face with a turning point 

 in its history. It is an appropriate time to enquire into past methods 

 and to revise them if they need improvement. 



The Chairman of the Commission of Conservation expresses him- 

 self thus, as to the ideal we should seek to attain in building up the 

 Canadian democracy in the future : 



"The ideal state is that in which all the citizens, without excep- 

 tion, have the opportunity of living a sane, clean and civilized life, 

 partaking of at least all the necessary comforts provided by modern 



