The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1917-12-27
TIT BATTLE OF THE FARMERS

L
| Day by day it is becoming increas-
ingly evident that food is to be the
prime factor in this war. 1t is real
~ a great war between the American
farmer and the German farmer aer
quite a great deal of it, from the
British farmer and the french farm
grow enough food % enable them to
win the war Without the help of
the American farmer, Germany must
corn is fighting the German farmer
hoeing potatoes, Just, as certainly as
the American farmers boy in the
front line trenches is fighting the
German farmers boy.
! The producing power of the. Ger.
man farmer has been the wonder of
the war. 1t is partly the result Of
| and partly the result OF the help he
has. received through a carefully
worked out government policy. For
| forty years, Germany has literally
believed in Deutschland uber al
les" Germany Supreme meant to
them increased manufacturing so or
ganized as to be able to complete
with England and the. United States
| in all the markets of the world.
| Germany Supreme meant to them an
agricultural development SUFFICIENT
to feed the greatly increased manu-
Germany Supreme meant, in their
| minds an agriculture capable OF feed
| inc the Vaterland in time of war.
| Count Caprivi, who followed Count
Bismarck as German chancellor,
said,. twenty years ago.. 1T is my
unshakable conviction that IN. a ~
ture war, the feeding of the army
| md tho country NAV Dlay an abSO-
Lutte and decisive part. His con-
| viction of the fundamental import
ance of agriculture to "Deutschiand
uber allies was shared by other
German leaders. Blood-and.lronl
the significance of agriculture in the
| development of the German nation,
but even he finally helped to adjust
| import duties in such a way that
German agriculture would be foster
ed. Starting with 1879, the Ger
man government protected agiicull-
heavy tariffs until throughout Ger
many the workingman in the city
was paying the equivalent OF about
| twenty-five dollars annually to slim.
f! ulate agricultural production. "
course, city people com naos doS ana
theless, the German leaders adhered se
productive. agriculture, having in
! mind the absolute necessity OF bulld,
! ing UP an agriculture which could
supply the nation with food IN time
of war. Perhaps the German lead a,
ers welcomed war in 1914 rather
| ing their efforts to sustain agrlcnl-
| ture, the pull of the cities was IN
| creasing.
most terribly in their diplomatic re.
lations with other nations III asa,or a ahIv
imbued with German ideas that they
could not understand the ideas OF
other people. But in their attitude
toward agriculture they have shown
| far more intelligence than any other
government in the world. Ihey
have studied the ECONOMICS OF arr,
culture, it's Importance with reiatloH
TO manufacturing and industries OF
ali sorts, and it's transendent I'M
portance in. case of war.
Forty wears ago, Germany raised
abont twenty bushels of rye and OF
wheat, and thirty bushels OF oats per
acre. During the years just preceu.
| ing the war, the yield OF rye ana On
shells. and the yield of oats about
fifty bushels. Forty years ago, Ger
| many's productive power per acre
was not much superior to that OF the
United States. Today, Germans one
hundred million acres of farm lana
are supporting a population OF sev-
enty millions in time Of war; while
| the United States, with nearly nine
hundred million acres OF farm iano:
| Is supporting her own popu!atlon OF
something over one hundred mllilon
ard probably twenty million across
the water. From the standpoint OF
| production per acre the GERMAN
farmer is about twice as ehlc1ent as
the American farmer.
. On the average one hundred acres
of farm land, Germany, before the
war. kept twelve dairy cows. twelve
other cattle, twenty-five hogs, hve
| horses and nine sheep. In Iowa, on
! the average one hundred acres, we
] keen four dairy cows. eight other
| cattle, twenty-eight hogs, four hors-
I es. and three sheep; and Iowa is the
/, best live stock state in the Union.
1 Even today, under war condltlons,
which must be far more trying 70
\ agriculture than in any other cOun-
try. Germany is supporting more
live stock per acre than Iowa. Sne
| nav not have quite SO many hogs
rnfS arueaainpk 20 has decidedly more
s $ 8: 8; ); J. IS; ::