THE DRY FARMING COSNGRESS. 



277 



hereafter to be called, The Dry Farming Congress. Less than three years 

 ago this movement was given no serious attention. Men who talked about 

 dry farming were considered land boomers. Men who advocated organiza- 

 tion were met with ridicule on every side. Many attempts were made 

 to organize this Congress, and when a convention was finally called by 

 the commercial bodies of Denver, the newspapers, some of them, were 

 inclined not to treat the matter seriously. 



"Business men in the city of Denver did not give it a second thought. 

 The commercial bodies treated it seriously only because they h,ad taken 

 hold of the subject and had called a convention. But, so far as looking 

 forward to any practical results from the organization was concerned, 

 Denver gave it no serious thought. 



First Annual Sessions. 



"You will all remember, those of you who attended the first Congress, 

 that when that Congress closed, it had practically no organization. It has 

 held several very interesting sessions, filled with not only instruction 

 for the men present, but with deep meaning for the west, irom the de- 

 velopment standpoint. Yet, when that Congress closed and the last fare- 

 wells were said and a dinner or two had put everyone in good nature, 

 about all that was left was the memory of the Congress. Some news- 

 papers gave liberal space to the discussions; a report was issued by the 

 Denver Chamber of Commerce, but still there was not a lasting im- 

 pression as a result of the work. Something was lacking. There was no 

 machinery. No scheme of finance had been arranged; no method of man- 

 agement had been provided. In fact, from the time of the closing of the 

 Congress until a very few weeks previous to the opening of the meeting 

 at Salt Lake City, The Trans-Missouri Dry Farming Congress was merely 

 a skeleton organization based upon good intentions. The president of 

 the Congress, Fisher Harris, a man whom we all love, was taken very ill 

 and was unable to give the matter his attention. There was no office and 

 no central organization. To use a slang phrase — 'nothing doing.' Until, in 

 the face of most discouraging conditions, Mr. Harris decided to call the 

 second Trans-Missouri Dry Farming Congress. 



"At one time you will remember that a proposition was made that 

 some other city be allowed to take the second Congress. It seemed there 

 was no one looking after it; no one giving it any force; no one caring 

 whether it was held or not, and so when Mr. Harris issued a call for the 

 Congress, it was a very modest call, in black and white, and only a few 

 thousand copies were sent out. And yet, you all remember thai the sec- 

 ond Congress was a most interesting event. 



"More than six hundred delegates registered at that Congress, and 

 more than one thousand people attended the sessions and listened to the 

 addresses. The Armory haU in Salt Lake City was filled with enthusiastic 

 dry farmers. There were some theorists present but no land men. There 

 were many land agents, but not men who give their time and talent and 

 offort to the exploitation of iand propositions. That Congress closed 



