The Mena weekly star., 1909-01-28

l plant nearly 50. .000,000 acres of wheat an- nually. with an average yield of about H bushels per acre; 100 oo.000 acres of corn, yielding an average of about 8 bushels per acre. and so000.000 acres of cotton, yielding about 12000. 900 bales. We had on January 1, 1908. 7l000. .00o cattle worth q. .250 000, 900. 54 000 900 sheep, worth s2i10oo Oo0 5s0e000o swine, worth $s3s 900. The census of 1900 showed sls7 GOO worth of poultry in this coun- | try. which produced in 1899 293, GOO GOO doz- | en eggs.
 The area of cultivated land may pos sibly be doubled. In addition to the land awaiting the blow, 75.000.000 acres of ! swamp land can be reclaimed 70 000. 900 acres of desert land irrigated and mill | Hons of acres of brush and wooded land | cleared. Our population will increase con- tinuously. but there is a definite limit to the increase of our cultivated acreage Hence we must greatly increase the yield per acre. The average yield of wheat in the United States Is less than 14 bushels per acre, in Germany 2s bushels, and in England F bushels. We get 30 bushels of oats per acre. England nearly 45. and Germany more than 47 Our soils are fertile. but our mode of farming neither conserves the soil nor secures full crop returns. Soil fertility need not be dimin- ished. but may be increased. The large yields now obtained from farms In Flu
 
 thousand years prove this conclusively. Proper management will double our aver age yield per acre The United States can grow the farm products needed by g population more than three times as great as our country now contains. '"The greatest unnecessary loss of our soil Is preventable erosion. Second only to this ia the waste, non-use and misuse = fertilizer derived from animals and men.
 The losses to farm products due to in- furious mammals is estimated at $i30, 900, : 900 annually: the loss through plant dis eases reaches several hundred million dol lars; and the loss through insects is reckoned st s659. 900 GOO. The damage by birds is balanced by their beneficent work in destroying noxious insects. Losses due to the clements are large. but no estimate has been made of them. Losses to live stock from these causes are diminishing because of protection and feeding during winter. The annual losses from disease among domestic animals are: Horses. 1.s per cent; cattle. per cent. sheep. 22 per cent; swine, s1 per cent. Most of these farm losses are preventabie.
 Each citizen of the United States owns an equal undivided interest in about 37b.- O00 900 acres of public lands, exclusive of Alaska and the insular possessions. Be- sides this there are about 235. 900 900 acres of national forests. national parks and other lands devoted to public use.
 Good business sense demands that definite land policy be formulated. The National Conservation commission be- lieves that the following will serve as basis therefor:
 .1 Every part of the public lands should be devoted to the use which will best subserve the interests of the whole people.
 "2 The classification of all public lands Is necessary for their administration in the interests of the people.
 g The timber, minerals and the sur face of public lands should be disposed of separately
 s'4 Public lands more valuable for con serving water supply, timber and natural beauties or wonders than for agriculture should be held for the use of the people from all except mineral entry.
 "5 Title to the surface of the remaining non- mineral public lands should be granted only to actual home-makers
 "s Pending the transfer of title to the remaining public lands they should be administered by the government and their use should be allowed in way to prevent or control waste and monopoly.
 .The present public land laws as s whole do not subssrve the best interests of the nation. They should be modified 80 far as may be required to bring them Into conformity with the foregoing out line of policy.
 Forests.
 Next to our need of food and water comes our need of timber.
 "Our industries which subsist wholly or mainly upon wood pay the wages of more than 100000 men and women.
 Forests not only grow timber. but they hold the soil and they conserve the streams They abate the wind and give protection from excessive heat and cold. xur H~ xx.lxA Afar haa or,A happiness of the citizen and the nation.
 Our forests now cover $50 GOO, 900 acres. or about fourth of the United States. The original forests covered not less than s50. .0o0.o 900 acres.
 we have 2o0000.0oo acres of matured forests. in which yearly growth is bal anced by decay; 25o 900 900 acres partly cut over or burned over. but restocking naturally with enough young growth to produce a merchantable crop, and 100000 100 acres cut over and burned over, upon which young growth Is lacking too scanty to make merchantable timber.
 I've take from our forests yearly. in- cluding waste In logging and in manu- facture T, 900. 900 GOO cubic feet of wood. We use each year 100. 900 cords of Are wood: 40.000. 100000 feet of lumber: more than i, GOO. 900 900 posts poles and fence rails: liS,0O0000 hewn ties; 1.50o, GOO. 900 slaves: over f3s.o0o.o00 sets of heading; nearly bo0oOo.ooo barrel hoops; 5000 600 cords cf native pulp wood; 165,0oo 900 cubic feet of round mine timbers. and I,2s0 900 cords of wood for distillation.
 ''Since 1870 forest fires have destroyed yearly average of 50 lives and $50. .000. 000 worth of timber. Not less than so.ooo. 0o0 acres of forest is burned over yearly. The young growth destroyed by fire h worth far more than the merchantable timber burned.
 .sTo protect our farms from wind and to reforest land best suited for forest growth will require tree planting on an area larger than Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia combined. Lands so far xuccessfuIiy planted make total area smaller than Rhode Island and year by wear. through careless cutting and fires. we lower the capacity of existing forests to produce their like again, or else totally destroy them.
 "The preservation by use. under the methods of practical forestry. of all pub lie forest lands either in state or federal ownership. is essential to the permanent public welfare. In many forest states the acaulrement of additional forest lands as state forests Is necessary to the best Interests of the states themselves.
 I've shalt suffer for timber to meet our needs until our forests have had time to wrow again But if we act vigorously and at once we shall escape permanent timber scarcity.
 ..The sole source of our fresh water is rainfall. including snow. From this source all running. standing and ground waters are derived. The habitability oi the country depends on these waters. Our mean annual rainfall Is about 90