The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-05-07

!
pecter which confronts the unem-
ployed. trannplng hatefui streets ia
nope Of food and shelter
All Right in the Past.
Ih+ United States mas been able
easily to take care of the great in
crease of population in the past be-
cause ~ had 4 vast area of InocCu-
pied land This was the main asset
in its natural inheritance Within
practically the last half OF the last
century the whole country from the
Mississippi river 10 the Rocky noun
tains was occupied No pressure Of
population could make itself severely
felt when ii might be turned loose in
such an empire In those fifty years
there We're added 547,64O.932 acres to
the agricultural area, an Increase Of
nearly 200 per cent, and the increase
in the actually improved acreage was
nearly 300 per cent This is cut off
from the list II our resources With
in the last six years there have been
transferred from public IL private
ownership more than 100000. 600
acres Of government land. an area
twice the size OF the state 81 Mime
sofa. The entire area OF surveyed and
unappTopriated land within the United
States is only tWo ana i half times
that amount At the present rate,
| therefore. every acre Of public land
would disappear within the next fiji
teen years. Put as Il large percentage
of the lands included in this estimate
are wholly OF partially unfit for Till
age il is literally true to say that our
arabic public lands have almost dis
appeared. Aud where are cur child
ren TO sind standing room, and the
tens Of millions Of the future q place
for wholesome industry? This is
intensely practical question 1t is i'm
mediate. For within twenty years We
must house and employ in some fash
| ion fifty millions Of additional prDu-
| lation: and by the middle Of this
century at 4 time when the child now
born will be IN the prime of life,
there Will be approximately two ana
q half times az many people in the
! United states as there are today. No
nation in history was ever so con-
| frOnted with a sterner question than
/ this certain prospect sets before us.
/ What are We to do with our brother,
whose keeper We are? How are we
| to provide our own chilClen with
| shelter and their daily bread?
/ Resources OF National Wealth
/ The summation of actual resources
| Of national wealth is u comparatively
! short and simple process. Passing
over the atmospheric elements tha5
/ minister indirectly to the nltonal
| economy, there are just four soures--s
| from Which mankind must draw all
| national wealth. OF these the sea does
not supply more than , or 8 per cent
! of mans food. 1t may therefore be
| dropped from the calculation. as II
! cannot be made much more largely
/ contributory 70 mans support The
/ forest, once 4 rich heritage. is rapidly
disappearing. It's product is valuable
not for food. but for shelter. and a.
] am accessory IN the production or
/ wealth. It's fate is interesting here
! rather in the role of IN example. For
! we have done With our forests al
| ready what We are doing just as sue-
/ cesSfuliy with the remainder of our
| national capital. Except for the areas
/ on the Pacific coast the forest as q
| source of, wealth is rapidly disappear
| ing. Within twenty years, perhaps,
| we shall have nowhere east of the
| Rocky Mountains a timber product
worth recording. and then shall be
| compelled 10 begin the slow process or
/ re-foresting.
Wasting Resources.
| What is less clearly perceived IS
! that we wasting in the same fash
| ion other resources which no repen--
| ance and no ingenuity can replenish
| The exhaustion OF the greatest of
| these the land will be spoken Of
/ later. Our mineral wealth. hoWcNe",
| stands on another plane. What is tax
! en- from the mine can never be re-
| placed. Through all eternity, as Tar
| as we can see the consumption OF
mineral wealth stored III the ground
| must be 4 finality The possible gross
product is mathematically limited
! The aoiaDtation Of this to future use
| should be a mGtter OF infinitely
/ greater anxiety than the present bal
ance sheet Of a business concern Iei
! the singular fact is that, among 4
people convinced that they are
| grounded in the rudments OF politi-
| cal economy, the progressive eXhauset-
| ion of this precious resource ls
| everywhere heralded as a triumph Or
| enterprise ana a gauge Of >nationoi
! prosperity. The nation publishes PC
riodically the record Of q scattering "t
assets never to be regained, and waits
| with a smile of complacence. for gen
| eraI congratulation.
| Coal and Iron.
| The two great resources Of the
under earth. economically speaking,
| that are indisE ensable to human com
| fort and growth are coal and iron.
Our inheritance Of these was princely.
! The most wonderful achievement Of
! this age is the incredible activity with
which we are eXhausting them The
/ coal areas and measures of the United
| States deScribable only IN some
| what general terms. But the fact
Of the future is not doubtful no
| dependable authority gives more than
| I; century Of life TO our main available
! coal supply. 1t will not be all gone
by that time, but the remainder viii !
| have to be obtained from deposits OF
| low grade, or a great depths or from
,
needed. 1t Will be poor in quality.
| or high in price both, so that its
! economic employment on existing
terms will be very difficult. a gen {
| erouS estimate Of competent geOIO
gsts for the life of the better coal
measures of Europe as d whole is less
| than one hundred years. The output
Of the United States is now more than
350,UO0,o0O tons annually. 1t doubled
wiGhin the decade from 1895. 1t now
| MT n hat nd no
| cent of the worlds entire supply. The
estimated life of the Pennsylvania an
thracite fields. whose narrow area has }
| permitted closer approximation, is put
| at little more than fifty Years. The
| larger supply OF soft coal has to an
| SWer Il demand many times as great.
It is certainly a moderate statement
| to say that by the middle of the pres
| ent century, when our population
shall have reached the two hundred
million mark. our best and most con
venient coal will have been so far
Icn nat ha