Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-08-13
ABANDONED FARMS
Agricultural Papers Rail at
Improvement Agitation.
MOVING JUST SPECULATION
Selling Means Breaking of Home
Ties, Is Argued.
TENDER MEMORIES WIPED OUT
Movement to Settle and Develop
| Sterile Lands Subjected
| to Ridicule.
MOVING JUST SPECULATION
TENDER MEMORIES WIPED OUT

NEW YORK. August lo.-The big asr,-
cultural papers OF the country have been
thrown into fever OF expostuiation in
defense OF the farmers ever since the
agitation for the improvement OF the
abandoned" farms began, started bv
President William c. Brown OF he New
York Central some weeks ago when he
announced that he would inaugurate A
campaign for the settlement and cuItiva-
ton of such property in New York state.
The Maine Farmer has taken the mat
ter seriously TO heart and is printing
editorials it almost weekly. Two OF
the most recent Of these utterances ara
interesting in that at the same time they
rail at the entire agitation. defend the
abandoned farm idea and preach stabii-
ity to the farmer
Excerpts From Editorials.
These editorials are entitled Time 70
Call Halt and "A Demoralizing
Policy The most emphatic excerpts
from them read:
ITO the Farmer ii seems that IL Il
high time TO call halt in this senseless
talk about abandoned farms and get
ting people out on the land. Ii these men
really want to better the condition OF
things why don't they get in touch with
the farmers before they begin to talk?
If they did this 1t would save many from
a serious mistake.
with all the changes progress Is certainly
being made. Farms have been left. and
they should have been. They ought never
to have been opened up in such out-of-
the-way places, but there never was a
year when the volume OF farm products
was greater in the state OF Maine than
in 1909
Measure the industry by the output.
gentlemen, If you really want to play fair.
There are more abandoned mill and fac
tory sites and shops in Maine than there
ever were abandoned farms. but with all
this there never was year when the
state produced so great a volume Of I'm
shed products of as good quality as in
1909
These platform speakers. far too many
of whom have fattened Off the labors OF
the farmers, would be prompt to meet
any cry about abandoned mill sites or.
factories. and be ready with good ex-
PLANTATION. just the same as should be APP
piled to the farm problem.
Farmer Equal to His Task.
'They see the force Of the lesson in
their own chosen field of operations. but
they either do not, will not, see the
universal application of the same. As
the men engaged in other lines Of work
are amply able to work out the problem
and increase the industrial wealth of the
state. in their field of operation, so. too.
the farmer is fully prepared to extend
farm operations and the only service
wanted is assistance in opening markets.
equaliZing rates of transportation and in
surfing the producers fair proportion OF
the price paid by the consumer.
The thing to do is TO stop talking
a abandoned farms, or getting the poor peo-
pie out the land Let the farm work
ers alone. All this tommyrot is harmful
and should be checked.
What is required is good, strong,
positive word of encouragement, the clear
setting forth of the advantages of the
state, the establishment of the fact that
good markets are growing all about US
and liberal train facilities put us in close
touch with the great distributing CEN
tiers. This will help. but it's high time
to call halt on the senseless stuff being
doled out in so many ways.
NO man is fully himself who simply
owns land. There must go with that the
deep-seated attachments and strengthen
ing ties which land and home alone can
insure.
Even the tenant who remains in one
spot year after year comes to feel some
measure of these bonds. and is a better
laborer and citizen than the foater. The
temptation to sell when prices are up and
profit can be realized may be strong, as
1t surely is when prices are steadily faii-
ing and there is prospect of greater loss
In both cases the home problem is over
looked. and it is this which must be en-
phasiZed.