The Bossier banner., 1911-05-25

is yet far from beIn- cached There
is little chance to lose money on land
provided it is wisely invested. 1t Is the
lack of knowledge of what constitutes
good farm that makes land an un-
safe investment for the city man.
There may be some honest land
agents. but unfortunately they have no
trademark to distinguish them from
the other variety. To buy land with
out seeing it is painless way Of part
ing with hard earned money. As for
the promised profits. they usually fnd
their way to the pockets Of the land
agent leaving the investor a sadder
and wiser man.
Between 1900 and 1906 the average
increase in the value of the farm land
in the United States was 80 per cent
Between 1900 and 1910 much Of the
land in the western part of the Missis-
sippi valley doubled In value. With a
system of farming that keeps up the
fertility prices will 60 higher rather
than lower
The man who owns q farm has con-
tinual opportunities to put his money
into better fences. better stock and
better buildings He has opportunities
to invest IN more land at hCine or far
ther west
From IL financial standpoint farming
offers opportunities to young men that
are duplicated in few other callings.
Farming as profession Is new. and
its ranks are still far from full The
young farmer is not entering an over
crowded calling where he must COM
bine with his fellows and boost prices
unnarurally in order to make a bare
living In agriculture there are room
and opportunity for all The country
is throbbing with the vitality of new
awakened life. The password is ambi-
ton and the reward Is success
| 1t is not the call Of money alone that
is turning the ambitious young man
| to the farm A calling that can offer
10 reward but finaucial one is scarce
| y worthy Of the name. The chief call
of the city has been the call of the dol
| lar combined With the call of the
crowd Better roads and dellser POI,
ulation have enabled the country ia
offer social life which is superior iu
that of the city Higher prices aud
/ scientific methods have enabled II to
duplicate the financial rewards of the
city In addition. it offers to he yoIn:
man the opportunity to live The broad
est. fullest life of which he is capable.
1t offers him business he can call his
| own and an independence which ht
could gain In the city only after Il life.
time of toll. The greatest need ol
ieaders-meD who can demonstrate oi
| their own farms the possibilities al
scientific Agriculture: men who under
stand the possibilities and the need o1
Il broader community life
The stories of some of the youn:
men who needed the call of the cnuti
try and gave themselves to the devpi
opment of their community read lik'
| romances. 4 dozen years or so ago !:
little Massachusetts community was o,
the downhill road The nearby citie
had sapped 1t of it's strength and Wig
or. InjudiciOus cropping had takel
away much of the fertility of th'
soil. and the people had lost all ambi
ton and were content to let thing
drift from bad to worse About thi
time young man. son of"one Of tn
farmers, graduated from an agricul
tural college He received tempting
offer from the department of agricu
ture to take up work at Washington
a brother in Iowa wrote him u glow
ing invitation to come to the fertil
lands of the middle west. He reiecte
both offers and went home
The most optimistic resident woui
have laughed at the idea of there bt
ing any opportunity there. But tn
young man went to work. He did NC
lecture to the neighbors or advis
them He merely set out to show theI
what the impoverished land was e;
pable of. He made the old farm pa!
and its dilapidation changed to an al
OF prosperity. His neighbors gradual
began to follow his methods aud I
|; catch some of his spirit. The comm,
nifty started to go forward instead I.
backward As soon as he could spar
. the time from his farm the youn
farmer set about reorganizing the II
. lage school. He gave one corner I