Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1912-10-23
Shortsighted Farming.

Conservation of Natural Resources by
E. S. Brigham of ST. Adams.
Since animal life can be sustained
directly or indirectly only by food pro-
duced by the soil it is fortunate for the
welfare of the race that agriculture
differs from the other so called extrac-
tive industries in that by proper meth
DDS of fertilization and rotation of
crops the fertility and, therefore, the
crop producing power of the soil may
not only be maintained but may be
increased, whereas the nine can come
to but one ultimate end, namely, ex-
haustion. AS evidence of this perman-
ency of the soil we may instance the
example of China and Japan which are
today producing large crops on land
that has been cultivated for more than
three thousand years. We may say,
then, that from the standpoint of the
general welfare any system of farm
ing which does not at least maintain
the food producing power of the soil is
shortsighted farming.
1t is no eXaggeration to say that the
greater part of the farming in this
country has been shortsighted farming
The natural fertility of our soil, the
immense acreage of which we were
possessed, and the policy of the feder-
public domain to settlers who would
live upon it, have tended to make us
careless of soil fertility. 1t matlered
little to the farmer that he exhausted
his soil, if his son could go west and
get free Of charge 100 acres of virgin
soil ; and it mattered little to town
that the soil of its countryside de-
clined, so long as its food could be
transported from a distance cheaper
than it could be produced at home.
The result of this policy has been that
our people have lived lavishly upon the
bounty of new land, taking no
thought of the morrow until now the
price of food has increased to such an
extent that the high American stand
ard Of living is threatened and far
seeing public men point out the danger
Of a food shortage if our population
keeps increasing at the present rate.
The question now is what are we
going to do about it? The answer
usually given is, more education for
the farmer" which is good so far as it
goes. Good farming practice is based
+ upon certain laws of nature, with
which man must cooperate, since he
can not change them. Jugglery brings
no reward in dealing with Dame Ma
ture. AS Prof. Carver aptly expresses
1T, 'Nelther impudence, nor a smooth
tongue, nor dist 'rgdished manner,
. nor lurld rhetoric ever yet made an
acre Of land yield a larger crop of
grain: but they have frequently made
an office, Sanctum, a platform, and
even pulpit yield larger crop Of
dollars. - Since success in farming
depends upon an understanding Of
these laws, it is good policy for the
state to make it easy for those who
desire to gain access to this know
ledge. The causes of soil exhaustion,
the elements of plant food that are
likely to become deficient in the soil.
the means of maintaining a proper
physical condition of the soil so that
, its texture and its water holding capa-
city may be preserved, should not only
be taught in our schools, but should be
made accessible to those too old to go
to school by means of college extern
sion courses. With better education
we might reasonably expect to see
better organization of the business of
farming, more careful saving of all
+ intelligent purchasing of fertilizing
materials. and counting in the cost
Of production, the cost of putting back
in the soil the amount Of fertility re-
moved by the crop, without which we
cannot hope to keep up the producing
power of the land. But the problem
of shortsighted farming cannot be
solved by farmers alone. There are
certain phases of this question which
should be considered by all thoughtful
people. Conservation simply means
saving, the denial of some of the
wants of today that the needs Of the
: future may be supplied. During the
II last third of the past century, farm
products often sold for barely enough
g to pay for the labor of producing them.
q In that time of great plenty a system
y of distributing farm products was built
. up which has nowhere been equalled
: for expenslveness. It is estimated
that the sfarmer receives only about
=; one-third of the money paid by the
p consumer for his product. Now that
d land is becoming more scarce and more
capital must be used in the business
, of farming, if the cost of keeping
n good the fertility of the soil is added
to the cost of production, and if the
farmer receives the profit to which he
y is entitled. we cannot expect to retain
our present expensive method of get
ting farm products from producer tt
I consumer without having the cost OF
| living burdensome to the people, Eu
4 ropean countries have found relief il
| parcels post and in cooperative socie
| ties among buyers. Why not we?
4 Our aim should be neither high prices
& nor low prices regardless Of future
consequences, but rather to secure al
n abundance of and permanent supply O
4 food for the people at fair price t,
q them and at the same time at a fai
price to the producers, for in this wa!
alone can the men be kept on the Ian,
81 who will do away with shortsighte'
sN farming.