The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-08-17
NEW SYSTEM OF AGRICULTURE
Prince KPapotkine on the Develop
ment of Productive Farming
in the Future.


his extreme views on social subjects,
points out that the possibilities OF
agriculture are but family understood
by those who have not made careful
study of this subject, or who hsve en-
tered upon it with mir DIS pref diced by
the opinions of Nautilus as to the con-
gsstion of population. He asserts that
there is not country 10 the world that
begins to contain the number Of people
that might easily be supported upon its
own soil without importation OF food
or agricultural supplies of any kind
from foreign countries; that where
there has been an assumed pressure OF
population, as in England and Iielanc,
The causes have been, not that the land
vas cot abundantly able to procure
for item all, and more than all, that
was nee ed for full and satisfactory
support OF existence, but because in
these countries the land laws and the
mon opoly OF land by private ownership
have been such that the people have
not been able to utilize its resources as
they should, and, under other circum-
stances. probably would.
AS an illustration of the productive
capacity of the Garth under proper
treatment, he gives a number of m
stances borrowed from the experience
OF the market gardeners in the country
districts around Paris, where the soil,
even III the hands of relatively ignorant
men, has been utilized so as to be enor-
| mously productive. He refers to one
farm of 81 acres in extent, from which
there are annually taken 125 tons of
market vegetables of all kinds. The
farmer n this case-and he is but
sample Of his class-hes found out q
part of tse secrets of nature, and by
the building of walls to protect his
lands fTtm the colo VIII DIS, by whiten-
ing these SO as to secure all possible
radiated heat. and by constant and
| judtious ute of fertilizers, has his little
farm constantly in productive condi
ton from January lst to Decembe
3lst. He has, in effect, by simple and
inexpensive means, produced a result
| equivalent to what would have been
obtained il t farm had been located
| in the oren air number of DEL to
| the south of Paris.
He and other maxi garden ers
| around Paris make their soil, emo have
each year quite a quantity to sell, for, if
this disposition was rot made, in con
| sequence of the amount of fertilizer
| used, their farms would gradually be
lifted up above the level of the sur
! rounding ground. Prince Krapotkipe
says it does not in the least matter VT at
the soil is from which they originally
start, for a Frf nch market gardener
would in two years Tine raise an abun-
dance Of vegetable product. from an
asphalt pavement as foundation.
Soil, either made up Of loan or fertil-
izers, is chemical product, and not
the least difficulty will be experienced,
when the laws of chemistry are better
understood, in manufacturing all OF the
material needed for plan life.
In his opinion, the ordinary French
marht gardeners are but beginning il
the business, for they devote a great
deal of unnecessary time aud labor to
work which could be much nore easily
performed by mechanical processes.
The way in which this could be brought
about is shown in the experience of one
French market gardner, who has COW
cred over q half acre tract of ground
with glass roof, and has run steam
pipes, supplied by a small steam boiler,
at intervals under the ground Sh, lterer
by this covering. The result has been
that he has been able for ten months
out OF every year 10 cut each day from
this little tract of ground from LOO to
200 large punches of asparagus, an
amount OF product which, under ordi-
nary conditions, would require not less
than sixty acres of land; that is by
skiiful adaptation of means to enCs the
productive capacity of given tract of
land has been increased more than
hundredfold. Even this result great
as it is, has been surpassed by an Eng
llsh gardener, whose eXperierc 8 are
referred 10 in the last number of the
Quarterly Review, who has entered into
the cultivation of mushrooms, and
has been able, in consequence CT the
skill he has shown in This work, 10
net an annual profit from little farm
of one acre in extent of more than
S. Geo. That the market gardens
around Paris are profitable may be
judged by the fact that the average
rental charged for these is $3.50 per acre. |
Prime Krapotkine maintains that. |
even at the present time, with their |
onl" partially instructive methods, the |
cIe..Cu SSTu6ueTS COulQ easily raise |
enough both in animals and vegetables, |
20 supply all that was needed for the !
sustenapce and protection of life at
the rate of LOCO human beinhs to the |
square mile. or. in other words. under
a method of intense ard properly |
directed culture, it will be easy for the |
State of Massachusetts 10 sustain |
within her own borders population of
not less than 100000 human beings. |
and this. be it remem bered, is but the |
beginning, for no one set knows the
limit TO be set upon the productive |
capacity Of the sell.
Taking his state ment a basis, it is |
easy to see that assertions concerning
the present congestion of population |
refer rather to the lack of knowledge |
on the part of mankind or 10 vicious
laws restricting the proper distribution |
of land than To what might he termed |
natural obs acies. Great Britain and |
Ireland have by the last official esti-
mate, a population of 100000 souls;
but, on the asis of sustenance given by |
Prince Krapotkine, yhe land ares in the |
United Kingdom, throwing out one
sixth as mountainous and hence un-
suited to agriculture, ought to be- able
to support without importation from |
abroad, quite 100 900 coo human beings; |