The Dickinson press., 1909-11-06

hogs are to be found in almost every
farm yard The most prosperous cream
cry in the state of North Dakota. think,
is in the dry farming district in the
vicinity of New Salem. l noticed that
something over two dozen : manure
spreaders were sold in that community
last season and saw from that how
humus was incorporated in the soil,
the moisture preserved and successful
yields obtained.
The demonstration farm in that COM
munity has shown these people that
growing peas and oats ON their land,
manuring it, doing good plowine and
working the seed bed thoroughly has
given them material increase of yield
and they are changing to more intense
form of cultivation, seeing that it is
resulting in more profit.
: One of the encouraging features in
tn e opening up of dry land districts. is
that it makes land ownership possible.
Statistics indicate that America is
unmist stakably drifting toward tenant
system of farming. Economists all
look upon this trend with. disfavor.
The population of America has doubled
every twenty-five years throughout its
entire history. Now that the popula-
tion has grown to upward of eighty
million and the humid land has been
practically all put under cultivation.
this fact becomes interesting to all and
alarming to some. when we contemplate
that in 1910, a date when our young
men will still be actively engaged in
productive pursuits, our population will
be two hundred million, if history re-
peats itself. We are thus brought face
to face with the fact that we will need
all of the dry land available. Even
Enow.- our export of grain is greatly
reduced and economists see the day in
the near future when; it must cease
entirely. When that time coues every
acre of dry land will be made to pro-
duce its maximum and represent values
which we do not now generally realize.
Labor must then become very cheap
as compared with the present price Of
it and dry land work can be better and
mere economically carried on. The
fact that the dry lands do not lose fer
tility by teaching like the humid dis
tficts and that it; is nee essary to in
corporate humus in them to retain the
moisture, will, in my opinion. cause
them to. be held up in fertility and
productive power much better than the
lands lying to the east of them. Cheap
intelligent labor will be the one thing
that they will require for greater pro-
duction and the increase in population
will certainly bring about this result.
We of the experiment stations are
giving all possible help to the dry land
district and feel that we have had con-
siderable hand in their development.
North Dakota is studying dry land az
rlculture at twenty points in the state.
We are putting forth unusual effort fol
the discovery of suitable varieties; we
are investigating the Incorporation Of
llumus and the effect of doing so in var.
ious ways; we are continuing our worl
on soil mulch; we are studying the
troubles Of drifting soil and attempting
to find methods of prevention. The
state and national government through
their activities are cooperating in the
most interested way with the settlers oil
the dry land districts and l have little
question as TO the outcome.
With the pressure Of population, the
hunger for land. the government effort,
and the dry land farmer intelligence, j,
seems to inc that success is assured.