The Breckenridge news. (Cloverport, Ky.) 1876-1955, 1921-01-05
KEEPING THE FARM GOING

Naturally the Secretary of Agricul-
ture takes up in his annual report the
alarming rate at which people are
leaving the farms. He does not make
the mistake which the Secretary of
the Interior made in attributing the
march to the cities almost entirely to
the lack of comforts on the farm
Secretary Meredith, as publisher OF
farm papers knows well that farmers
have had modern conveniences at
their call for ten years; and yet the
desertion of the farm has gone on as
steadily as it went before.
A century ago 81 per cent of all
American labor was employed on the
farm. In 1910 the percentage was II:
in 1870 it was AZ; in 1890 it was SO
Now. although the census figures are
not complete, it is likely that not more
than 30 per cent of the working pop
ulation is in agriculture Part of this
fall in percentage from one decade to
another. was natural and proper. for,
as Mr. Meredith says increased eff
cheney in farming operations, result
ing from the use of new and better
machinery and the application of
scientific knowledge, has consistently
lowered the demand for labor in GER
tain kinds of farm work" When Mr..
Farmer buys a tractor plough one of
his sons may be free to go to the city
where he perhaps goes to work in a
tractor factory. When that happens
the farmers son is still working for
the soil
But the main reason for the process
81 ~ Co. 90 he he.
fact, as Secretary Meredith remarks,
that "the increased standards of liv-
ing of the American people as whole
have caused great expansion of all
indutries centring in cities; and the in
dustrial bid for workers accelerated
by conditions during and immediately
following the war. has been strong
magnet exerting a pull upon workers
in agriculture. The war made fine
jobs in machine shops and shipwardS
for young men But there was the
wider and more permanent economic
change to which Mr.. Meredith refers ::
the great national demand for the
Injuries that have become necessities
If the farmer and his wife wished
monographs, electric light plants,
steam heaters and porcelain tubs
and they are as much entitled to them
as anybody is-the factories had to
have men to make these things; SO
they called for the farm boys to come
and share the prosperous farmers
money.
The country, however, must have
its farms, and plenty of them. when
American agriculture begins to lose
ground" says Secretary Meredith,
"the political stability of the nation
is endangered. The farm must not
lose it's balance and that balance is
no easy trick to keep. Last year
there were planted in the United
States. brewery head of its popula-
ton, an acre of corn, half an acre
of wheat, two-hfths of an acre of oats.
What with minor grains and pota-
toes. tobacco and cotton, more than
ten acres for every family were under
cultivation. OF course we do not use
all of this, but we must have it. as an
exporter of food, to keep the scales of
trade from fitting "a
gainst us.
The farmer is confronted now not
only with labor shortage but with a
falling market The drop in prices,
however, is something which is OBJ
served in all lines of business; and il
the farmer takes in less money he
will also pay out less for materials
Dulness in the factories will return.
to some extent, his missing labor
This however, will be only temper
airy cure for the help problem. When
the pendulum in the factories swing
back to prosperity we shall see the
young men again leaving the plough
for the bench. For permanent
remedy for the labor shortage on the
farms we shall have to turn to some
thing which Secretary Meredith does
not suggest. This is the admission of
the class of immigrants from the nor
thern countries OF Europe which has
proved itself of wonderful value in
agriculture.