The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-02-15
IRRIGATION CREATES
HOME MARKETS

| Games Wilson, Secretary of Agriculture,
in Forestry and Irrigation)
If we take note of what is IN mems
minds at the present time we find that
public discussion turns more upon mar
kets than on any other one PROPOSE
ton in planning for our national pros
perity. The policy of the United States
for the last forty years has been TO
build up home markets, not only for
our manufacturers, but for our farm
ers as well. We have built up our
manufacturers in order that we might
have nome markets for our farmers,
and also to encourage everything that
could permanently live and prosper
within the United States through the
diversit alton of our industries.
Changes are coming about gradually.
! When I was a boy, fOrty-siX years ago
went TO Iowa. 1t was a new country
| in those days and there was no home
stead law. We bought our land. Our
friends, the farmers OF the east. were
somewhat alarmed as to what the re-
suit might be; but those friends in the
! east built railroads out to us and over
took US with the railroads, and some
! TIRES went farther west with them
thar we had gone, and waited for us
| to come. and the result, as regards
the marketing of eastern farm prod
ucts, was in some cases unsatisfactory
to the eastern farmer; but the eastern
manufacturer got such a market as is
not to be found anywhere else in the
/ world outside of ths Mississippi valley,
and the prosperity of the eastern man
| ufacturer has in turn brought pros
! perity to the eastern farmer.
Whatever temporary detriment the
/ opening UP to agriculture Of the rich
/ lands of the Mississippi valley caused
| the eastern farmer has been wholly
I overcome and overbalanced by the
I benefit which the eastern farmer has
! received from the establishment of the
I great manufacturing Industries Of the
I east
We have gone on developing the west
/ as far as the roth meridian. Last year
\ we sold $3.50 coo, 600 worth of American
/ farm products i'm foreign countries and
we are developing market for our
products in Asia which viii absorb the
whole surplus of farm products from
! the west, no matter how many addi-
J tional acres of arid land we may re-
claim and cultivate. The product Of
/ the western lands viii simply increase
] the great aggregate of wealth which
! the American farmer is bringing back
! to this country for our agricultural ex-
ports.
The immigration i'm those early days
/ of which / have spoken was of home
/ seekers. People who came from for
( eign countries in those days wanted
/ farms. and they got them and built up
/ the northwest. A change has come-a
most desirable change. The hOmeseek-
! ers who want farms are not coming TO
! such an extent as they did in those
/ early days. The man is coming TO this,
| country TO live in the cities and work
IN. he a z -
l forced upon us that the United States
/ Of America in its population is be-
/ coming somewhat out of balance as re-
CARDS the town and the country. The
cities are growing in proportion faster
/ than the country.
There is danger in this. as all recog-
nize. We should do everything we can
20 promote the growth of rural poDu-
iation by opening opportunities for
/. people 10 get homes on the land and
| training them TO till il. SO that they
wiz know how TO get their living from
/ the ground. Everything We can do.
and that which the department OF ag-
/ riculture is doing. to make conditions
/ of rural life more pleasant and pros
| porous. tends TO correct this growing
| evil OF too many people in our cities
and too few in the country.
A prominent question today in the
/ minds OF great many people is a de-
! sire for foreign rearkets: but we must
{ never forget that the best market is
the home market. both for the farmer
and the manufactured. The Mississip-
/ pi valley is worth. as market. for the
manufacturers OF the United States
| more than all the rest OF the world put
J together, because those people all have
good incomes and they spend their
/ money.
I am in favor Of having more homes
cut in the west. Uncle sam has q
great deal of land and great deal OF
! water out there. That land is arid. am
the water which would make il pro-
I ductive is running TO waste. wouI
wet scme of those great mountain val
/ leys and plains. build more homes and
make more markets.
The population of this country is out
/ Of proportion. Only about one tenth Of
/ ii is in the western half of the country.
/ Il would be a good thing for all sec
! tions to more nearly eaualize the
/ growing population % the United
states. I would dam some or those
I rivers and streams. and spread the wa
ter out over the land in Uncle Sans