The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1914-11-12

tions of our Industrial existence. 1t
has been assumed that we have had
natural monopoly in agriculture,
that 1t could take care Of itself. and
for the most part we have cheer
fully left it to do SO; and. too, reck-
nessness and waste have been incl
dent to our breathless conquest Of
continent. And SO, as the Presi-
dent recently said: "It has, singu-
larly enough, come to pass that we
have allowed the industry Of our
farms to lag behind the other activ-
tiles Of the country in its develop
ment. ." Our thoughts
may ordinarily be concentrated upon
the cities and the hives Of industry,
upon the cries Of the crowded mar
ket place and the clangor Of the
factory, but it is from the quiet
interspaces of the open valleys and
the free hillsides that we draw the
sources of life and of prosperity,
from the farm and the ranch. from
the forest and mine. Without these
every street would be silent. every
office deserted, every factory fallen
into disrepair."
Peace and Prosperity.
We rejoice over the prosperity
and the progress Of American agri-
culture, which on the whole are
marked. We witness a vast expendi-
ture of money to foster agriculture
through all sorts of scientific and
practical measures on the part of
the States and of the federal gov
ernment. We are grateful for the
fact that while the leading civilized
nations of the world are in the
throes of a deadly and destructive
war, this nation is at peace and the
American farmer Is receiving in
creasing compensation for his effort
and is permitted to enjoy his work
and the fruits of 1t free from the
burden Of militarism, and without
threat of wholesale destruction Of
life and of property. No thoughtful
man can fail to be optimistic over
the situation and the prospects, but
optimism should not blind us to the
seriousness Of certain problems.
With all our efforts, while we
witness an increasing diversification
of agriculture and both a relative
and absolute increase in many Of
our important lines Of production,
such as wheat, forage crops, fruits
dairy products, and poultry, we still
note not only relative but also an
absolute decrease in number Of
our important staple food products,
such as corn and meats. In the
former, in the last Is years, there
has been no substantial advance.
In cattle, sheep, and hogs, there has
been an absolute decline--in cattle
from the census year 1S99-1909 Of
from so million head to Al million;
in sheep OF from 81 million to 81
million; of hogs from So million
to 5S million. while population has
increased 16 million.
Remember that this situation ap-
pears not in a crowded country but
in one which is still in a measure
being pioneered; in one in which.
with 935 million acres Of arabic
land, not over 400 million or As per
cent Is under cultivation; in one in
which the population per square mile
does not exceed 81 and ranges from
Z Of one per cent in Nevada to sos
in Rhode Island. What Is the trou-
BILE? Is 1t that the American farmer
has not as much intelligence or as
high a degree Of efficiency as those
of other nations? l would resent on
behalf of the American farmer such
an imputation and the facts contra
dict it. 1t is true, he does not pro-
duce as much per acre as the farmer
In a number of civilized nations
but production per acre is not our
standard.
1t is production per person en-
gagged in agriculture and by this
test he is from two to six times as