The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1910-08-23

Naat Nfa hHsass VI AAf El44+ A4es VI
course. means the conservation OF the
soil "a the grea. natural resource,
and. equally, OF course, it furthermore
implies the development OF country
life. for there cannot be a permanen,
improvement OF the soil If the life OF
those who live on It. and make their
living out Of il. Is suffered to starye
and languIsh, to become stun,ed. and
weakened and inferior 10 the type of
life lived elsewhere We are now
trying 70 preserve. not for eXploita-
tiOl 10y individuals. but for the perma.
nent benefit Of the whole people. the
waters and the forests. and We are
doing this primarily as a means Of
adding 10 the ferIAty Of the soil !;
although in each case there Is a
great secondary use both of the va
ter and OF the forests for commercial
and Industrial purposes. In the same
way II j. essential for he farmers
themselves 10 try TO broaden the life
OF the man who lives in the open
country; 10 make It more attractive
10 give it every adjunct and aid to
development which has been given to
the life Of ,he man Of ;he cities.
Therefore, friends. the conservation
and rural life policies are really two
sides Of the same policy, and down
at bottom this policy rests upon the
fundamental law that neither man
nor nation can prosper unless, IN
dealing with the present, he steadily
take thought for the future
In one sense this problem with
which We have 10 deal is very, very
old. Wherever civilizations have
hitherto sprung up they have always
tended TO 90 through certain stages
and then to fall. No nation can de-
lelop real civilization without cities.
Up 10 a certain point the city move
ment is thoroughly healthy; yet it is
strange and lamentable fact tha;
always hitherto after this point has
been reached the city has tended to
/ develop at the expense of the country
by draining the country of what is
best in it, and making an insignifi.
cant return for this best. In conse
quence, in the past. every civiliza-
ton in It's later stages has tended
really TO witness these conditions IN.
der which the cities prosper and the
men decay There are ugly signs
that these tendencies are at work in
This nation of ours. 1ut very for
tunately We see now what never be.
fore was seen in any civilization
an aroused and alert public interest
in the problem a recognition of its
gravity and desire 10 attemp, its
solution.
The problem does not consist
merely in the growth of the city Such
/ a growth in itse'f is a good thing and
no, bad thing for the country. The
problem consists in the growth of the
city at the expense of the country;
and, even where this is not the case,
in SO great an equality OF growth in
power and interest as to make the
city more attractive than the coun-
try, and therefore, APP to drain the
country of the people who ought TO
live herein
The human side Of the rural life
problem is to make the career of the
farmer and the career Of the farm la
borer as attractive and as remuner-
atiye as corresponding careers in the
city. Now, am well aware that the
farmer must himself take the lead in
bringing his about. \ century and
a a.quarter ago the wise English farmer,
Arthur Young, wrote of the efforts to
improve french wool: A cultiyator at
the head of a sheep farm of 5000 or
1000 acres would in a few years do
more for their wools than all the
scademiciaus and philosophers vii, ef-
feet in ten centuries. 1t is absurd
to think that any man who has stud
led the subject only theoretically Is
fiji TO direct those who practically
work az the matter. But. friends. | j
wish TO insist to you hereto you
practical men, who own and work
your farms-that it is an pernicious
absurdity for the practical man TO re-
fuse to benefit by the work Of the
student. The English farmer I have
quoted, Young, was a practical farm
er. but he was also a scientific farm
er. one reason why the great busi-
ness men OF today-the great indus
trial leaders-have gone ahead. while
The farmer has tended 10 sag behind
the others. is that they are far more
willing and indeed eager. TO profit {
by expert and technical knowledge