The Marietta journal. (Marietta, Ga.) 1918-1944, 1919-11-07

they are in a position to force the
Ontario legislature to enact such
measures as will guarantee agricul-
ture a square deal.
1t cannot be denied that the po-
sition of agriculture in the United
States is precarious. 1t cannot be de-
MED that labor is leaving the farm
ers by thousands monthly and that
many tillers of the soil are unable,
because of the lack of help to harvest
their crops, much less get them to
market. So that while children are
starving in the cities, food is rotting
on the farms. Thousands of acres
which hitherto blossomed as the rose
are now growing nothing but weeds.
If this condition is allowed to con-
tinue the time will come when it will
be necessary for America to import
foodstuffs and to depend upon the
bean grower of the orient, the wheat
grower of India, the corn grower of
Africa, for her foodstuff. If that time
ever arrives the doom of this repub-
| lie is assured. A nation such as ours
cannot live if agriculture is permitted
to wither and die. Hence it behooves
every farmer to grid on his armor
and take such steps as will finally in
duce the government to adopt real
national agricultural policy. To do
this spells the nations salvation. To
| refuse to do it presages it's ruin.
TO make the voice of agriculture
effective, it is necessary that some of
the front seats in the synagogue be
reserved for it. It is the farmer
alone who can save the country from
national suicide. 1t took Rome a long
time to die, but she committed an
act of suicide when she allowed her
slaves to produce her foodstuffs while
her free men took the sword.
Agriculture represents a popula-
ton of 4O,00O,000 souls. The farm
ers have the largest investment of
fixed capital of any one interest in
the country. They have a combined
esset worth preserving and they have
an accumulated power, which if mo-
bilized, concentrated and wisely di-
rected would guarantee the stability
of the nation.
The time has arrived when unless
there can be reached an agreement
between capital and labor foundd up
on the most advanced concept of
justice, the farmers of the nation,
cooperating with other forces, must
become the conserving agency. They
must, if necessary, be the ballast as
well as the helmsmen.
Political partisanship must be es-
chewed. While working through any
and all agencies which promise re-
lease from the restraints hitherto
hobbling their industry, farmers must
be careful to avoid party entagle-
ments, just as this nation in it's in
fancy was careful to avoid political
entanglements with other powers.
Farmers have no desire to mo-
nopolize leadership. They have no
wish to become political or industrial
dictators. They do not want to deny
TO another class that which they de-
mand for themselves. But they do
want to be taken into active partner
ship with other forces in directing
the affairs of the nation.
Depend on Agriculture
In appealing to agriculture, we ap-
peal to the best interests of all the
people. We can see that through the
declind of integrity is threatened.
We see that all the armies that were
ever modified, all the navies that
ever sailed the sea, cannot save a
country when it's lands are deserted,
when agriculture is regarded as a
mental occupation and when the best
blood of the land would rather toll
IN a congested factory than in the
open meadows.
|