Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1910-02-27
MORE coon ADVICE FBQaes HILbs|

MORE COOP ADVICE FBQMsH Hill
| II we mistake not, James ]. Hill
was one of the first of the country's
business men and economists to point
to the inevitable increase in the cost
of food products to result from the
drift away from the farm. Before
the matter was generally discussed
Hill in repeated interviews stated
his belief that food products would
grow higher in cost and the cost OF
living larSely increase If the farm
acres in this country were not made
to produce more heavily and If the
farms were not better cultivated In
recent address before body of
Minnesota commercial men Mr.. Hill
repeated his beliefs in the following
effective address:
| Everybody depends upon the
ground and it's products. An entire
crop failure for one year in the ag.
ricultural states of the northwest
would mean shortage in the food
supply of the nation that would have
dire results, You as RETAIL mer-
chants depend upon the sale, and
whatever helps you helps every one
| else.
81 have been preaching the doc
trine of rotation of crops for the
past twenty-six years and during the
past two or three years L have re.
ceived more, encouragement than
ever before.
II have tried to impress upon the
people that they dare not take any
thing out of the soil without putting
something back. For every bushel
!of wheat produced by the soil some
thing must be given the soil in re-
turn. It has been only few years
since the state of Minnesota was new,
but as it grows older more care must
be taken to prevent - exhaustion of
tie properties of it's soil.
II was surprised to receive let
ter the other day from a man who
criticised me for agitating the ques-
ton of rotation of crops, and who ex-
pressed his disbelief in the virtues
of my arguments. There can be no
question of this necessity. Every
experiment station and every practi-
cal farmer who las used advanced
methods of preserving the strength
of the soil agree that rotation Of
crops must be eventually adopted in
all agricultural communities. The
land will not renew itself.
1.-THE cause Of the increased cost of
living" continued Mr.. Hill, "is the
result of two things: First, the ma
tural increase in the population of
the nation, and, secondly, the fact
that production has not increased.
The truth of the latter statement is
in the fact that our national export
of agricultural products Eas been
decreasing in the past few years.
"There are proportionately far
greater number of people living in
the cities of the United States today
as compared with the population of
the rural districts than ever before,
declared Mr.. Hill. "1n 1868 but 20
per cent Of OUR people were living
in me cii1es:- Today. the. percentage
ID OsoI ~ Pei SoA| VI lilly u"0A0AS D.
with the remainder tillers of the
soil.
I'm the past twenty years the
American people have at least learn.
ed how to spend money with a free
hand, If they have learned nothing
else," said Mr.. Hill. amid laughter.
"As tie people better their condition
they better the table which they sit
down three times day." he contin.
ued, II don't believe in boarding
money. 1t has it's uses for doing
good, but do not believe that it. is
respectable for people to squander
money that other people have earned
for them.
"For the present year 1000, 900
automobiles have been ordered for
the people of the United States. At
an average Of $1,000 an automobile,
this would amount to 100000, 900.
No one cent of this $500 100000 is
invested in anything that will pro-
duce one single bushel of grain"
In conclusion Mr.. Hill predicted
that from the present outlook, the
agricultural states Of the northwest
will enjoy at least ten or fifteen
years of continued prosperity, and
that, in his opinion, with the use OF
improved methods of farming the
land there: is NO reason, why that
prosperity should not continue in
definitely. Keep the young people
on the farm" he urged -'it is the
best place for them
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Tom Hancock of the Edgeley Mail,
is IN trim south and finds other