4 DRY-FARMING 
those prevailing in the countries in which scientific 
agriculture originated. Many suggestions for a 
better name have been made. ‘‘Scientific agricul- 
ture” has been proposed, but all agriculture should 
be scientific, and agriculture without irrigation in 
an arid country has no right to lay sole claim to so 
general a title. “ Dry-land agriculture,” which has 
also been suggested, is no improvement over “ dry- 
farming,’’ as it is longer and also carries with it the 
idea of dryness. Instead of the name “ dry-farming ”’ 
it would, perhaps, be better to use the names, “ arid- 
farming” “semiarid-farming,” “humid-farming,” and 
“‘irrigation-farming,”’ according to the climatic con- 
ditions prevailing in various parts of the world. How- 
ever, at the present time the name “ dry-farming ” 
is in such general use that it would seem unwise to 
suggest any change. It should be used with the 
distinct understanding that as far as the word “ dry” 
is concerned it is a misnomer. When the two words 
are hyphenated, however, a compound technical 
term — “‘dry-farming”?—is secured which has a 
meaning of its own, such as we have just defined it 
to be; and “‘dry-farming,” therefore, becomes an 
addition to the lexicon. 
Dry- versus humid-farming 
Dry-farming, as a distinct branch of agriculture, 
has for its purpose the reclamation, for the use of 
man, of the vast unirrigable « desert” or ‘‘semi- 
