Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1911-09-28
PRESIDENT TAFT
/. ON CONSERVATION
Chief Executive Addresses Big Aud
fence at Kansas City.
GIVES SOME INTERESTING DATA
Conservation Of the Soil and I'm.
proved Method Of Farming Advo-
Gated to Offset the Big In
crease In the Population.

Kansas City, Sept. 25.-Conventior
Hall was packed tonight. Conserva
tive estimates place the number in at
tendance at 10000. President Taft
was present and In addressing the
Third Annual Conservation Congress
in part said:
members Of the National Conserva-
ton Congress-:
"At last years convention Of this
congress, had the honor and pleas
ure OF delivering an address on the
subject of conservation Of our ma
tional resources, and therein at
tempted to state what the terms con
servation' of our national resources
meant, what were the statutes affect
ing and enforcing conservation, CLASH
fed the different public lands to
which 1t would apply, and suggested
what thought was the proper method
OF disposing of each class of lands.
Nothing has been done on this sub
ject by congress since that time, but
1t Is hoped that the present congress
at Its regular session will take UP the
question of the conservation OF govs
eminent land containing coal and
phOsphates or furnishing water pow
er, adopt time laws that will permit
the use and development of these
lands in Alaska and in continental
United States, and evolve a system
by which the government shall retain
proper ultimate control of the lands,
and at the same time offer to private
investment sufficient returns to in
duce the outlay of capital needed to
make the lands useful to the public.
The discussion did not invoke the
consideration of any question which
directly concerned the production OF
food.
Tonight, however, I wish to con-
slider in a summary way another as
pect of conservation far more i'm
portant than that Of preserving for
the public interests public lands, that
is, the conservation of the soil with
a view to the continued production OF
food In this country sufficient to-
feed our growing population.
I'VE have In continental United
States about 100000, 900 acres. OF
this, the agricultural department,
through their correspondents, esti-
mate that 95O,000,0O0, of this are
capable Of cultivation. OF this, $780,
$4,000 acres are now In farms. The
remainder, about 1,O00,000,000 acres,
is land which is untillable. 1t Is
reasonably certain that substantially
all the virgin soil Of a character to
produce crops has been taken up. It
is doubtful how much Of the part not
included in farms can be brought into
a condition where tillage will be prof
table.
1.-THE total acreage Of farms In the
last ten years, although the pressure
for increased acreage by reason OF
high farm prices was great, was only
about 4 per cent or about 32,OO0,00O.
There are upwards Of 25,000,0 900 acres
that will be brought In under our irrf-
cation system, and perhaps more,
and the amount of lands which can be
drained and made useful for agricul-
ture will perhaps amount to about TO-
100000 acres.
"The total improved farm lands in
the United States amount to 77,448,-
900, which Is an increase In the last
ten years of 62,S4S,000, or 10 $40 per
cent. The product per acre actually
cultivated increased in the last ten
years one per cent year, or ten per
cent. The total product increased in
ten years nearly 20 per cent.
j "The population in this same time
increased p per cent. II the popula-
ton continues to increase at Its pres
emit rate, we shall have In so years
double the number of people we now
have. 1t Is necessary then that not
only our acreage but our product per
acre must increase proportionRtely SO
that our people may be fed. We must
realize that the best land and easiest
land to cultivate has been taken up
and cultivated and that the additions
to improved lands and to total acre
age In the future must be Of land
much more expensive to prepare for
tillage The Increase per acre Of the
product, too, must be steady each |
year, and each year an increase Is
more difficult. Still even In the face |
Of these facts there Is no occasion |
for encouragement We are going to |
remain as a self.supporting country
and raise food enough within our |
borders to feed our people. When we
think that In Germany and Great
Britain, crops are raised from land |
which has been IN cultivation for one
thousand years, and that these lands
are made to produce over two and
three times per acre what the com
paratively fresh lands in this country
produce In the best states, II becomes
very apparent that we shall be able
to meet the exigency by better sys-
tens Of farming and more Intense
and careful and industrious cultiva-
tlon. The theory seems 10 have been
IN times past that coils became ex-
hausted by constant cultivation, but
the result In Europe. BY which acres
under constant use for producing
crops for ten centuries are made now
70 produce crops three times those
Of this country, shows that there u
IN this theory. and that sue
cessful farming can be continued on
land long 10 use aud great crops
raised and gathered from 4 n only
n ~ treated rcienufcaIlr and IN ac-