Putnam patriot., 1910-06-03
Advancing industrial and Agricultural
 Interests.

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 The New London Business Mems As !. soeiaiion has sent out 10 similar orzan- izations in the eastern part Of the State a request to send delegates to eonven. tien, to be held in that city, to considor ways and means of advancing the iD- dustrial and agricultural interests of ! their part of the State
 The object of the proposed convention Is a good one, but as there are organiza- E tion of farmers who make agricuItu- ral interests speciality, their assoeia- { tion should be invited to send delegates \ to the proposed convention, or else the convention should confine it's labors to e the consideration of advancing the in- E dustrial interests of this part of the State.
 The consideration of ways and means to advancing the interest of agriculture is receiving the attention and assist anee of the Department of Agriculture ! Of the United States and also from the various State agricultural institutions, 1 from all of which agriculture is receiv- ] ing some benefit, but not all that it should. The life work of the farmer makes him conservative and he is slow to change his methods of work, espe-
 cially on advice given him by outside
 parties of high attainment in agricul-
 tural knowledge. To utilize this out
 side advice plan Of practical demon- 
 stralion is being carried on by both Na-
 tional and State agricultural instiIn-
 lions. But that is slow work and feach-
 es but comparatively few Of those for
 whose benefit IL is intended.
 What is needed, therefore. in addi-
 ton to what is being done to advance
 agriculture, is to unite the farmer and
 business man, that unitediy they may
 discuss plans from the stand-poi of
 each how to advance agricultural in-
 terlsts in business schemes on large
 character, which will inure to the ben
 eft, mol only of the classes engaged in
 discussing and planning them, but ev-
 cry individual of the population.
 What may be undertaken in piann
 ing and working out schemes will de-
 pend on the parties brought together
 i'll convention for that purpose. Some
 of the many problems that are now be-
 ing discussed, which are affecting the
 welfare of our country and all the rest
 of the world: How to increase and
 eheapen the food supply: How to re-
 move the congested populations of the
 cities, and place them where they will
 be able to become useful and indus
 trious eitizeus: How to utilize the de-
 serted farms of the New England and
 other Eastern States, that they may
 be made productiveiy valuable: How
 to get rapid transit facilities between
 the central railroad towns and the al-
 most deserted back sections of country.
 There are other like problems that
 may enter the discussion, but these are enough to illustrate some schemes that can be worked out successfully to ad-
 vance agricultural interests and at the
 same time be made to benefit all other l interests.
 The first step in one scheme would
 be 10 incorporate land improvement
 company, say with capital of about $l ,000, ,00O, placed in the control of able and responsible men. Their next step would be to buy a section of land back
 some distance from a railroad center, suited for fruit, vegetables and other farm products. Put up suitable build- ings to start village. From the con- gested city districts secure desirable class of people on terms mutually ad-
 vantageous, to cultivate from ten to | fifty acres each, to produce whatever each is best fitted. The transit ques- | ton should then be considered, to be built when the success of the scheme becomes assured.
 This enterprise would not be for spe- culation in any form, but to demon- strate how each of. the problems named | could be solved to advance agricultural | interests to the mutual advantage of all concerned, and to become an example for hundreds of similar enterprises all through New England and elsewhere. This is merely rough outline sketch
 of what might be accomplished to uti- lize farm land now almost valueless, increase our population by giving op- portunity to worthy men to secure homes for their families on easy terms, and improve waste places by making them fruitful, and enrich and enliven all surrounding neighhorhoods.
 Hundred and perhaps thousand of places for forty miles around New York city were started on plans similsr to the above suggestion, some of which have become large and populous cities and all have become more or less sue cessful, increasing the value all ad- joining farm lands from five to ten fold.
 Able business men can be found who will say that, with capital, an enter prise like that named2could be carried through successfully, and would lead to the building up of other similar en- terprises, which would greatly advance industrial and agricultural interests wherever started.
 People Tell Each Other Aboat Good