Evening star., 1923-02-25
By FRANK G. CARPENTER.
COPENHAGEN, Denmarl

Department Denmark is re-
corded as under the rulership OF
Of Christian y. This is mistake.
Christian y is only a figu-ehead. The
real ruler Of Denmark Is the farmer.
He owns the country. He elects the
congress. He makes the laws.
'rhe Germans call the United States
q ''monarchic democracy" This land
g a farmers democracy.
We bow down to the labor union.
Denmark does not bow down TO the
farmer, for the farmer is Denmark.
His union is stronger than any labor
organization OF our country or Eng
land
There is no land in the world so
built up on agriculture as this: and
mono in which the science and ethics
OF farming have SO firm foundation.
The people worship three gods. Like
.Ieroboam, the King Of the Jews. they
have erected two golden calves at
each end of their country: and like
the ancient Egyptians, they worship
the COW. They bow down also to
the hen. The cock whose third crow
place in the conscience OF that saint
than these Danish hens which lay
golden eggs. The third and last god
is the pig, a Yorkshire OF the bacon
variety: for 1t is his streak OF lean
and streak Of fat. produced largely
from the SKINNED milk Of the COW,
that bring much OF the money which
supports the Danes.
The chief business OF Denmark is
raising bacon and butter and eggs.
These are the three money crops of
the country and they provide the
main support OF the people. They
bring in annually hundreds of mil
lions OF dollars. and from England
alone last year Denmark received
thirty eight million dollars for bacon,
forty million dollars for butter and
lhirty-five million dollars for eggs
The land. in fact, is one great factory
devoted 10 turning out these three
special products. The factory mas
more than quarter OF i million own
ars each Of whom runs a little branch
independent Of the others and all are
iointed together in four thousand CO.
operative societies. the whole being
better organized than any system OK
chain stores in the United States. BY
his ! mean that every farm IS q plant
that works according TO rules made
b. the farmers themselves. buying
and selling only in combination. with
such common standards of production
that all of the output is equally good,
and. IN short, operating as though
the whole country Wee a single big
farm.
THE Danes have often been called q
L nation of farmers. Their little
country is divided up into quarter
Of a million farms. or one farm for
avery twelve persons. If the United
states were apportioned according to
it's area IN the same ratio. 1t would
have about fifty million farms in
stead o. little more tnan six mill
lion. as now.
Hero in Denmark the farms are all
small. OF the whole two hundred and
fifty thousand, there are only eight
hundred which exceed $40 acres. and
Of the remainder all but nine thou
sand range from an acre and a half
TO a quarter section of land. There
are more than one hundred and thirty
thousand farms OF less than twelve
acres. and more than fifty thousand
which range from twelve acres to
forty. There are sixty thousand Of
between forty and one hundred and
Atty acres and the average size Of
the holdings embraced in one million
acres IS only twenty-three acres.
while five million acres are SO divided
that the average owner has only sew
enty-three acres. These farms, large
and small, are scattered all over the
country.
Nine out Of every ten farms IN Den
mark are owned and operated By the
men who live on them, and most OF
the owners have no other means OK
support. There are seventy thousand
holdings Of less than two acres, and
can live and support his family on
three or four acres. This l believe 10
be a mistake. My information from
The government officials and from
farmers, large and small. is that he
needs two or three times this amount
"t land; but all agree that ten acres
is quite enough to enable n man to
made a decent living and educate his
children. They say that The farmer
who has thirty acres is we'll to-do,
while one who has from fifty to one
hundred may be called almost rich.
The men who live on the very small
holdings. say of two acres, thrive by
raising several cows. a dozen pigs and
a good flock of chickens, but they
must work also for their neighbors.
More than half of the farms are of
less than thirteen acres and they
comprise about three-fifths of the
land There are more than a hundred
thousand farms which range between
thirteen acres and one hundred and
fifty acres and the owners Of these
might be called the backbone of the
country. Most Of them are scientific
agrtculturists. They know all about
plants and plant breeding. They are
skilled mechanics and often good
chemists. Many of them are grad
yates Of agricultural schools. and So
cialIy and politically they are Of a
higher grade perhaps than any other
farmers on earth.
They are usually men of some
means. They are interested in the
savings and credit associations and to
a large extent run the cooperative
societies. They control the politics