White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1922-12-01
Will THE FARMERS
own THE FARMS?

UWN IHL IhnNlO:
eve may look ahead to the
land passing into the hands OF
capitalists, and its operation by
tenants, said Prof. O. J.. Wal
Ter, of the State College of
Washington, addressing the
Washington Irrigation Institute
in Yakima last Friday on the
question of development of the
raw land. His conclusion was
drawn from a survey of the,..ra
pid increase in the price OF farm
land throughout the United
States.
"The average value of farm
lands, including improvements,
between 1850 and 1920 in
creased at a rate equivalent to
compound interest Oh the orig
inal valuation of 2.65 per cent,
but from 1900 to 1920 the rate
was G.45 per cent Considering
the large area of poor lands in
Guided in the farms, it would
seem from the 1920 price that
the better farms must be selling
from 5000 to $500 an acre. 1t
will readily be seen that even
at $3.50 an acre the cost of a
farm involves an amount Of
capital very few young men
would have, unless they inherit
cd it. We may. therefore look
ahead to the lanil passing into
THE hands of capitalists, and it's
operation by tenants"
Tie quoted O. Il. Baker, agri-
cultural economist of tho u. S.
! Bureau of Economics, as saying:
Improved land Increased less
than S per cent an acre from
1910 to 1920 as compared with
Is per cent to so per cent pre-
vious decades; and this 5 per
cent increase was practically
confined to the pecarionsiy pro
dnctive semi-arid lands of
the Great Plains region. The
land in the United States suit
able for agricultural uses with
out irrigation, drainage. or
heavy fertilization is nearly all
occupied. Consequently one of
the, great questions before the
American people, is how to
flnaintain the Supply of foods and
fibers for the increasing popu-
lation at the high level to which
we are accustomed"
"Occasionally we hear the
statement made that we already
have enough lands under culti-
walton and in crop" said Prof
Waller, chat the United has Il
surplus of food; that during the
war we fed our allies and could
do it again; that it is a mistake
to advocate the development of
any more lands either by irriga-
ton, drainage or clearing cut
over lands.
''.Just now we are exporting
foods, but that cannot last long.
Orr population is rapidly in
crcasing, and in a few years our
own people will require all the
produce the farms can raise
Since the establishment Of Fed.
eral experiment stations acre
yields have been constantly in
creasing and will probably con
| tinuc to for some time. Because
of scientific research tn"
productivity of the American
farm has increased about IL per
cent in the last decade. The
time will come. however, when
Il further increase in acre yield
will cost much money for fer
tilizcrs and intensive -c,Iltiya-
ton; and when such costs have
grown beyond the cost Of bring
ing new lands under cultivation.
then the public will demand the
reclamation Of our deserts by
irrigation. the drainage Of wet
lands, and the clearing of that
class of stump lands that is
suitable for crop production.
"The arid lands are the rich
est, and probably will be the
first developed. We have only
irrigated about 10 million acres
of arid lands, and they are Civ.
ing us an annual yield Of double
the acre production Of other
lands of the United States. They
will, therefore, pay interest at
a very much higher cost of de-
velopment than will the swamp
and cmt-over lands. If the total
area that can be irrigated were
added to the improved area, the
addition would be less than 4
per cent. The Columbia Basin
would add less than .04 Of / per