UNCLE SAM’S BIGGEST BANK ACCOUNT 25 
underbrush form small basins which check the force of 
the surface water. In China, land which is quite subject 
to erosion is terraced in order to keep the soil in place. 
The farmer of the present faces a far different situ- 
ation than the tiller of the soil a generation ago. Then 
if his fields showed signs of exhaustion there were 
virgin lands farther west to be had almost for the ask- 
ing and he could acquire another farm and start anew. 
Today there is no possibility of wholesale exchange of 
old lands for new, for out of the 280,000,000 acres still 
owned by the Federal Government approximately 
5,000,000 acres are capable of tillage when water is 
available. Moreover, at present there is very little land 
to be obtained from a generous government. The era 
of splendid giving is past. 
No country has been more lavish with its land. 
Homes could be had almost for the asking and to en- 
courage the opening up of the West with wagon and 
Yailroads enormous tracts have been given—altogether 
an area five times the size of Pennsylvania has been 
granted to the railroads—and a large proportion of these 
holdings are still owned by the large corporations in- 
stead of being split into small holdings as the Govern- 
ment intended. To schools in but thirteen of the 
Western States 67,000,000 acres were given, while the 
swamp land withdrawn from the public domain and 
granted to the States totaled 64,000,000 acres. Both 
are princely gifts. With the passing of the era of free 
land we have left behind the pioneer stage of national 
development. From now on it means careful use of our 
agricultural acres in order that we may feed the hordes 
that the coming centuries will see upon our land. 
Waters.—In addition to the marvelous land resources 
which were originally owned by the nation, Mother 
