The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1913-01-03
COST OF LIVING
UP TO FARMER.
Government Expert Says
Depends on Size Of Crops.
Soil Must Be Made to Yield More
Proportion of Farmers
Growing Smaller.

Washington, D. C.-The lever thj
will break the backbone of high pricy
of foodstuffs is more intensive farl
ing, cultivation of unoccupied Ian
near the large cities and more intel
gent methods of agriculture, in t
opinion expressed by Professor Milt
Whitney, chief of the bureau of sol
of the department Of agriculture. D
Whitney is a leading authority on so
and their uses and his many public
tions on soils and their adaptation
crop production and their relation
food consumption have attract
worldwide attention.
DIR. Whitney is preparing bullet
on soils of the country and their rel
ton to the nations future food su
DIV. He draws specil attention to Il
vast amount of uncultivated areas
land, the decline in the cultivate
areas compared with the rapid i'll
crease of the country's population.
"The country is advancing in ever|
line," said DR.. Whitney. People adj
living better than ever before. As
result we are stronger physically anil
mentally. We are consuming mon
foodstuffs per capita than the populs
ton of the European countries andl
would not fer moment attempt d
discourage less food consumption.
is plain that until we get larger sup
ply Of foodstuffs, and if the period d
high salaries continues, we can exped
the present high cost of living to con
tinue.
$50 let us touch the producing sid
of the question. For instance, ths
states north of the Potomac and eaS
of the Ohio river have total area o.
IL, 1922, $50 acres. The area under cul
tivation in this territory is estimated
at little over 40, 200, 900 acres. Add
ed to this is ~, 900, 900 acres used fol
forestry. So we have over $4,000, OOl
acres of idle land in the territory lying
in the states.
During the past 80 years thu
amount of land in use has steadily de
creased until it is now about 20 pei
cent less than in 1880, while the coun
try as whole has been growing at 4
phenomenal rate.
stThe number of persons engaged in
agricultural pursuits in the states
above mentioned has also decreased
during the past 80 years, while the
total population has largely increased.
.'There are at present, mark you,
about l, 100000 persons engaged in
agriculture in the area under consider.
alton with a population of over 3d..
600, 900 non-agricultural producers to
be fed.
"The bureau Of soils estimates that
the land under cultivation in the area
can be made to yield at least -four
times as much as at present by more
intelligent and intensive methods Of
farming. Moreover, the same up-to-
date. methods used on the idle lands
will have a yielding capacity of over
eight times as much as at present.
Careful Investigations conducted
by the bureau prove that these lands
are well adapted to all classes of crops
from the early fruit, truck and vege-
tables to the latest storage fruits and
vegetables for winter use, and to the
most intensive kind of dairy farming
'sThe conditions in the eastern sec
ton Of the country are similar to those
existing in other sections. So whether
the cost of living is to be reduced or
not, it is perfectly plain to even the
layman mind that to feed the present
and constantly growing population OF
the country greater production OF
foodstuffs must be raised.
s.To do this more people have got to
return to the farms; it is necessary to
put more land under cultivation; more
improved methods of agriculture, and
more intensified farming must be for
lowed" 8