The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1931-02-24
BELIEF EXPRESSED
BY G. ". RUSSELL,
FAMED irish POET
America Gets its BoundIeSs Ur-
ban Vitality and Life From
Countryside
BLAMES u. S. EFFICIENCY
Scores 'One Crop Farms and
Declares That Diversified
ton Is Coming
By BRUCE CATION

By BRUCE CATION
Columbus, O., Feb. 24.-(NEA)-
America, which began as a rural
civilization and then became the
greatest builder of cities the world
has ever seen, must do an about-face
and turn back to the farm again ii
it is to escape disaster.
This is the warning voiced by
George w. Russell, the famous Irish
poet and philosopher who is known
throughout the English-speaking
world as "AE," under which pen name
he prints mis- verse.
Mr.. Russell has been touring Amer
lea for sevs-al months. In that time
what he has seen of the country has
confirmed his old conviction-that
decay and dissolution are the inevita-
BILE products of urban life. There is,
as he sees it. but n way out; to re-
turn to the farm and the village, and
renew the national vitality by con-
tinued close contact with the soil.
cat present." he says, "your cities
are teeming with vitality. Never have
I seen such cities-such energy. such
boundless life. But where do they
get this vitality, this exuberance?
From the still unexhausted country
side, from which the city's ranks are
constantly being refilled: from the
virile peasant stocks Of Europe.
They will not be able to keep that.
A London sociologist recently told me
that he never found more than four
generations of city jewellers. That is
the way it usually works. So, sup
posing that your present trend con-
tinues? What then?
I'm the course of time you will
have 10 per cent of your people liv-
ing in the country and the rest in
the city. And if only 10 per cent
remain in the country, there will be
no surplus to vitalize the cities. In
a few generations your cities will de-
cay-inevitably."
Blames Our Efficiency
American efficiency, the pride OF
the nation, is largely to blame Tor
the trouble, he believes.
"You are coming to the point of
facing increasing unemployment due
TO the efficiency of both your agri-
culture and your industry" he says.
In industry, you began with mass
production. Then, when that threat
ened to overwhelm you. you turned to
high-pressure salesmanship. When
that reached its maximum you turn
ed, like a fox with a whole bag OF
tricks, to installment selling. I don't
know when you will come to the end
of your ingenious devices.
But come to the end of it you will.
The increasing efficiency OF agricul-
ture and industry will finally force
YOU to consider what you can do
about the growing problem OF unem-
ployment. And then, probably, you
will discover that the best solution is
to enable the unemployed to feed
themselves with the food they take
out Of the ground. and sell the sur
plus.
Your country will go on, for a
time, with q kind Of momentum. If
YOU can speedily pull out Of your
present depression, for instance, you'll
20 on and you won't think OF this
problem with that passionate serious
ness. But if the depression continues,
and you find it is not a temporary
tllulk, OIlO "A4O4S PS"SA
will tackle the problem"
Overpr0ductiOn of Food
Increasing agricultural efficiency,
to MI. Russell, is typified by the "one
crop" farm-he mentioned the great
wheat farms of the grain belt as ex-
anples. These farms, he said, are
harmful in two ways. In the first
rlace, they enormously increase the
rational output Of food products.
They enable a relatively small num-
Der of farmers to produce more food
than a much larger number could a
generation ago. AS q result there is
a great overproduction of food, the
farmer is unable to make money and
the trend to the city gets q new i'm
pulse.
But that is not the only count
against these factory FARMS" as he
calls them.
Nothing" he says, els more empty
than one of these farms where they
produce only n crop and try to
r.arket it for cash. There is no var
iety. The farmer does not grow what
he eats. Life is dull. The children
grow up to think of the cities as al
Turing places. They 60 to them. Even
if they . discover that the city is
not as attractive as they had thought,
they have left the farmland they
suffer for it."
Diyersification Is Remedy
The remedy? More diversification,
stronger farm organizations-and
perhaps less efficiency, the whole