The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1910-08-24
tOt'ONEILI.' TALKS Ii
TO UTICANS.
Elves Advice TO Farmers How
TO Be Happy.
CONSERVATION HIS KEYNOTE

Utica, N T.. Aug 23.--There are n,
two public questions of more vital i'm
portanee to the future of this countr,
than the problem OF conservation ant
the problem OF the betterment of pub
lic life. Moreover. these two problems
are really interdependent. for neither
Of them can be successfully solved
save on condition that there is at leas,
q measurable success In the effort 70
solve the other. In any great country
the prime physical asset--the physical
asset more valuable than any other
lis the fertility OF the soil All our
Industrial and commercial welfare. all
our material development Of every
kind. depends In the last resort upon
our preserving and increasing the fer.
tility of the soil.
This. OF course. means the conserva.
tion of the soil as the great natural
resource. and equally. of course. 1t fur
tbermore implies the development of
country life. for there cannot be a per.
manent improvement OF the soil IL
the life of those who live on 1t and
make their living out of II Is suffered
to starve and langush to become
stunted and weakened and inferior to
the type Of life lived elsewhere.
We are now trying TO preserve. not
fer exploitation by individuals. but for
the permanent benefit OF the whole
people. the waters and the forests. and
we are doing this primarily as a
means OF adding TO the fertility of the
soil. although in each case there is a
great secondary use both of the wa
ter and OF the forests for commercial
and Industrial purposes In the same
way II is essstusi for the farmers
themselves TO try to broaden the life
OF the man who lives In the open couD.
Try. TO make IL more attractive. TO give
II every adjunct and aid 10 develop
ment which has been given to the life
Of the man of the cities.
Therefore. friends. the conservation
and rural life policies are really two
sides OF the same policy. aud down at
the bottom this policy rests upon the
nation can prosper unless 10 dealing
with the present he steadily take
thought for the future
Problem Old One.
In one sense this problem with
Which we have to deal Is very. very
Old. Wherever civilizations have hItb.
erto sprung up they have always tend.
ed TO go through certain stages and
then TO fall. No nation can develop n
real civilization without cities. Up TO
aAcertain point the city movement is
thoroughly healthy. Yet IL Is a strange
and iamentable fact that always hith-
erfo after this lpoint has been reached
the city has tended to develop at the
expense of rho e''country by draining
the country OF what is best in Il and
making an insignificant return for this
best
In consequence In The past every civ.
iHzatioD In Its later stages has tended
really to witness those conditions un.
der which "the cities. prosper and the
men decay" There are ugly signs that
these tendencies nre at work In this
nation Of ours. But very fortunately
we see now what never before was
seen In any civllizatioD-aD aroused
and alert public interest In the prob.
lem. recognition of its gravity and a
desire to attempt its solution.
The problem does not consist merely
In the growth OF the city. Such a
growth IN itself is a good thing and
not bad thing for the country. The
problem consists 10 the growth Of the
cify at the expense OF the country, and
eyeD where this Is not the case In so
great an equality OF growth 10 power
aud interest as TO make the city more
attractive than the country and there
fore apt to drain the country Of the
people who ought to live therein.
The human side OF the rural life
problem is 10 make the career of the
FARMER and the career OF the farm la.
borer as attractive and as remhnera-
tive as corresponding careers In the
city. Now. ] am well aware that the
farmer must himself take the lead IN
quarter ago the wise English farmer.
Arthur Young. wrote OF the efforts to
Improve French wool:
IA cultivator at the head of sheep
farm of 1000 or 1000 acres would in
. few years do more for their woods
than all the academicians and phiioso.
piers will effect In ten centuries" II
10 abaIrd to think that any man who
has studied the subject only theoret-
lcalIy is CT TO direct those who prac-
etcaIly work nj the matter But,
sr1ends. I wish 10 insist TO you here.
- you practical men who own and
work y0nr farms. that H. Is an equally
pernicious nhsnrdity for the practical
uian 10 refuse 10 benefit by the work
ofthe student
Tbe English farmer ! have quoted
Young was n praciifal farmer. but he
was aisoia n srieniihc farmer
- Why Farmers lag,
One reason why The great business
men os todsr. .A. g,sa' 'ni"s' rial 'end
~. have goAe ahead while the farmer
hns tended TO sag behind the others Is
thek they eFs far more willing aud In |
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