CONSERVING THE SOIL FERTILITY 295 
portion of the central area of the dry-farm territory 
the dry-farms' are at considerable. distances from 
running or well water. In many cases, water is 
hauled eight or ten miles for the supply of the men 
and horses engaged in farming. Moreover, in these 
drier districts, only certain crops, carefully culti- 
vated, will yield profitably, and the pasture and the 
kitchen garden are practical impossibilities from 
an economic point of view. Such conditions, though 
profitable dry-farming is feasible, preclude the 
existence of the home and the barn on or even near 
the farm. When feed must be hauled many miles, 
the profits of the live stock industry are materially 
reduced. and the dry-farmer usually prefers to grow 
a crop of wheat, the straw of which may be plowed 
under the soil to the great advantage of the follow- 
ing crop. In dry-farm districts where the rainfall 
is higher or better distributed, or where the ground 
water is near the surface, there should be no reason 
why dry-farming and live stock should not go hand 
in hand. Wherever water is within reach, the home- 
stead is also possible. The recent development of 
the gasoline motor for pumping purposes makes 
possible a small home garden wherever a little water 
is available. The lack of water for culinary purposes 
is really the problem that has stood between the 
joint development of dry-farming and the live stock 
industry. The whole matter, however, looks much 
more favorable to-day, for the efforts of the Federal 
