Show REPORT TELLS OF NEEDS or SITUATION AS SEEN BY commission ON COUNTRY LIFE deficiencies OUT culture at present not commer dally as prof table as it Is en t tied to be H ehly organ zed rural soc ety recommended as de s rable step poss ble for congress to remove many of the hand caps ca Ps washington the report of the commission on country life made to the pres dent was read in both houses of congress substantially the re port was as follows to the president the commission commissio n on country life herewith presents its report the commiss on finds that agriculture in the united stages states taken together s prosperous commercially when measured by the he cond eions that I 1 ave ol 01 talked in previous years al at though there are some regions in which this Is only partially true the country people are producing vast guan quantities of supplies for food shelter clothing and for use in the arts the country homes are improving in corn com fort attractiveness and healthfulness not only in the material erial wealth that they produce but in the supply of in dependent and strong citizenship the ag ri cultural people constitute the very foundation of our national effia efficiency lency As agriculture is the immediate basis of country life so it follows that the general affairs of the open country speaking broadly are in a condition of improvement most prom nent def blenc es tet yet it Is true notwithstanding all this progress as measured by his standards that agriculture is not commercially as profitable as it Is entitled to be for the labor and energy that the farmer expends and the risks that he assumes and that the social condit ons in the open co are tar far short of theil thel possie titles we must measure our agricultural efficiency by the possibilities rather than by corn com carlson with previous conditions the farmer is almost necessarily handl handi capped in the development of 0 his busl bust ness because his capital is small and the volume of I 1 is transactions limited and he dually stands practically alone against organized interests in the general readjustment of modern life due to the great changes in manu fractures fac tures and commerce inequalities itie s and discriminations have arisen and nd naturally the separate man suffers most the unattached mail mth has lems that government should under stand tl TI e reasons for the lack of a high highly 17 organized rural society are very many as the full report explains the lead ing specific causes are A lack of knowledge on the part of farmers of f the exact agricultural con d dilons and possibilities of their re 9 ons lack of good training hg tor for country life in the schools lack of good high highway wity facilities the widespread continuing aeple tion of soils with the injurious effect on rural life A general need of new and active leadership other causes contributing to the general result are lack of any ade quate system of agricultural cf edit whereby the farmer may readily se c re loans on fair terms the short age of labor a condition that Is often complicated aby by intemperance among lack of institutions and in cen tives that tie tic the laboring man to the soil the burdens and the narrow narro w life of farm women lack of adequate e supervision of public health nature of the fremed es some of the remedies lie ile with the na lional government some of them with the states and communities in their corporate capacities some with volun tary organizations and some with in divi duals acting alone from the great number of suggestions that have hare been made covering every phase of country life the commission now enumerates those that seem to be most funda mental or most needed at ti tl e present t roe axi e t congress can remove some of the hand caps of the farmer and it can also set st some kinds of work in motion such as the encouragement of f a system of thorough going surveyor surveys survey of all a agrical 9 kicul tural regions in order to take tock and to develop a scientifically and economically sound country life the establishing of a nationalized system of extension work in rural communities tl it rough all the land grant colleges with the people at their homes and on the r farms A thorough t hor 0 u g h going go in g investigation i n ves ti gation by ex experts pert s 0 of f t the h e m d addleman dl e m n system of handling farm products coupled with a general inquiry into the farmer farmers s d vantages sad in respect to taxation transportation rates operation cooperation or gan zat ons and credit and the gen eral business system an inquiry into the control and use of the streams of the united states w with jib the object of protecting the peo pie in their ownership and of saving to agricultural uses ses such benefits as should be reserved for these purposes the establishing of a highway en ice or equivalent organs organ bation to be at the call of the states in working out effective and econom leal teal I 1 systems the establishing of a system pt of parcels post and postal savings banks and providing some means or agency for the guidance of public on toward the development of a real rural society that shall rest iest di dl erectly on the land other remedies recommended for consideration by congress are the enlargement of tl e united states bureau of education to enable it to stimulate and co ordinate the ed uca work of the nation careful attention to the farmers interests in legislation on the tariff on regulation of railroads control or regulation of corporations and of spec legislation in respect of riv ers forests and the utilization of swamp lands increase ng the powers of the fed eral government in respect to the supervision and control of the public health P hviding such regulations as will enable the states that do not perm t the sale of liquors to protect them selves selnes from traffic from adjoining states in setting all these forces tn in motion the co operation of odthe the states will be I 1 necessary and many cases definite state laws may greatly aid the work Hem Reme edles dieli of a more general nature are A broad campaign of publicity tha that t mu must t be undertaken until all the pe people pi are re informed on the whole ab sub X eject ot of rural life and until there Is an awakened appreciation of the feces h b t 11 ot of giving this phase of 0 our na dional alo ial development as much attention as has been given to other phases or interests a quickened sense of re in all the country people to the community and the state in the conserving of 0 soil fertility and in the necessity tor for diversifying farming in order e to conserve this fertility and to develop a better rural society and also in the better sate safe guarding of 0 the strength and happiness of the farm omen a more widespread conviction of the necessity ot of organization not only for economic but tor for social pur poses this organization to be more or liss less co operative so that all the people may share equally in the benefits and have voice in the essential affairs of the community a realization on the martof part of hie the farmer that he has a dis natural responsibility toward the laborer in providing him with good 1 I ving facilities and in helping him in every way to be a man among men and a realization on the part of all t e people of the obligation to protect and develop the natural scenery and attractiveness of the open country ng problem of country life the comm aslon has po anted out a n number of remedies that are extreme ly IV important but running ve through h ira 0 aggi refat 11 ll i of t tl 1 ese re remedies e e are ro s several e 1 great f forces e s eser or principles adi 1 ps esa w which h 1 ch must be utilized in the endeavor to solve the problems of country life all the peo pie should recognize ahat these tun fun dan forces and agen agencies cles are knowledge to any situ aaion the underlying facts must be un der stood the farmer must have ex act knowledge of his business and of 0 the peculiar conditions under which he works the united states depart ment of agriculture and the expert ment stations and colleges are rapidly acquiring and distributing this knowl edge but the farmer may not riot be able to apply it to the best advantage be cause of lack of knowledge of hie his own soils soil s climate animal and plant dis eases markets and other local facts the farmer Is entitled to know what are the adian advantages and disadvantages of his condition conditions and environment A thorough going system of surveys yli in detail of the exact conditions conditto under lying farming in every locality is now an indispensable need to complete and apply the work of the great agrical tural institutions As an occupation agriculture is a means of developing our internal resources we cannot de celop these resources until we know exactly what they are education there must be not only a fuller scheme of public education but a new kind of education adapted to the real needs of the he farming peco peo pie the country schools are to be s so redirected that they shall educate their pupils in terms of the dally daily life op tor for training toward tho the agricultural colleges are to be multi alie plied d and made broadly effective every person on the land old or young in school or out of school edu bated or illiterate mu must st have fl a chance to receive the information necessary for or a successful business and tor for a healthful comfortable resourceful life both in home and neighborhood this means redoubled efforts for better country schools and a vastly increased interest in the welfare of country boys and girls on the part of those who pay the school taxes education by means of agriculture Is to be a part of our regular public school work special agricultural schools are to be organized there la Is to be a well de plan of 0 extension teaching conducted by the agricultural colleges by means of the printed page face to face fac talks and demonstration or ob eject lesson designed to reach every farmer and his family at or near their homes knowledge and lua lus in every department of country life organization there must be a vast enlargement of voluntary organized ef of tort fort among farmers themselves it la is indispensable that farmers shall work together for their common interests and for the national wells welfare re it if they do not do this no governmental acrivi ty no legislation not even bettel schools will greatly avail the farm arm relatively anor ers are nevertheless we have only begun to de celop business co operation in ameri amerl ca farmers do not influence legisla t on as they should they need a more fully organized social and life spiritual forces the forces and institutions that tha t make for morality and spiritual ideals among rural peo pie must be energized IN me is rr iss the heart of 0 the problem if we neglect to foster personal persona 1 character and neigh boyhood righteousness the best way to preserve ideals for or private conduct and nd public life Is to build up the inset of refi religion gion the church has g eat power of leadership the whole people should understand that it Is vitally itally important to stand behind the r rural ural church and to help it to be become coffie a great power in developing concrete country life ideals it is especially important that the country church rec cognize that it has a social ty to the entire comm anity as well as to its own responsibility a ous group of people Recommend at ons of the commission the commission recommends all th the 0 correctives tl at have been mentioned under the head had of the n nature a t u re kcf of t the ahe emed es it does not w wish i s h to d dis criminate between important meas ures of relief for existing conditions it has purposely avoided trL indorsing dorsing any particular bill now before con gress no matter what its value or object there are however in the opinion of the commission two or three great movements of the utmost consequence that should be set under way at the earliest possible time because they are fundamental to the whole problem of 01 ultimate permanent reconstruction these call for special explanation taking stock of country life there should be organized as ex in the main report under gov ern rn mental leadership 9 a comprehensive plan for an exhaustive study or curvey of all the conditions that surround the business of farming and the people who live in the country in order to take stock of our resources and to supply the farmer with local knowl edge federal and state governments agricultural colleges and other aduca lional agencies organizations of varl vari ous types and individual students ot of the problem should be brought into co operation tor for this great work of in vesti gating with minute care all agri cultural and country life conditions nationalized extension work each state college of agriculture should be empowered to organize as soon as practicable a complete department of college extension so managed as to reach every person on the land in its state with both information a and not in spir atlon the work should include such forms of extension teaching as lecture lecturer A fh bulletins reading courses correspondence courses demon stra tion and other means of reaching the people at home and on their farms it should be designe to forward not only the business of agriculture but sanitation edu education cation home making and all interests interest of country life |