AGRICULTURE                                                27                                                 AGRICULTURE

overseen by superintendents, shelter provided for beasts and vehicles, and records kept of accounts The Scriptures abound in allusions to flocks and herds and the produce of the field

Palestine afforded an early example of intensive farming, where small holdings were the rule The limited farms, it is recorded, produced abundantly, and their fertility was maintained by judicious cultivation and management A mixed husbandry obtained, and the fields were enriched by the application of manures Ancient Romans were among the foremost of their time m agricultural pursuits, and problems of irrigation, tillage and fertilization w ere among those which commanded their attention Cato, Pliny and others expounded doctrines that m the present century are being promulgated by our most learned teachers They recommend rotation, such, for instance, as ha\ ing wheat follow legumes, because, as Pliny said, they enriched the ground, also the keeping and feeding of live stock was ad\ocated To-day it is quite generally recognized that any rational system of farming includes these usages

Dunng the Middle Ages agriculture in Europe under barbarian conquerors was neglected, and those engaged m it held m contempt, its peaceful pursuits were largely abandoned by the landowners for war and the chase and every one not of the nobility was regai ded as a slave, subject to the will of a master This resulted in a most deplorable condition of labor, and retarded progress but the end of the feudal system marked the beginning of a new era, and renewed attention was given to tillage By the end of the seventeenth century it was piobably as skilfully practiced as ever before, and the prestige of the husbandmen had been regained

The eighteenth cpntury was one notable in its relation to the world's agriculture Jethro Tull, an Englishman, introduced the method advocated by him of sowing crops in drill rows, which admitted of their cultivation, and a four-crop rotation that has been followed more or less strictly to the present time is credited tc Lord Townshend Robert Bakewell, another Englishman, revealed the methods by which all breeds of farm live stock have since been improved, l e , by judicious selection, mating and feeding, as illustrated m the Leicester sheep which he developed, and in the cattle known as Longhorns which he improved By the same methods the brof ers Colling produced from the native Teeswater cattle the famous breed now known as the Shorthorn, and Herefords were similarly improved or developed by Benjamin Tomkms These were the pioneers m this work Thomas Bates, Thomas Booth and others became famous as improvers of Shorthorns, as did Amos Cruickshank, a Scotchman, later,and through

the latter's breeding came some of the greatest Shorthorn" of the last quarter of a century

In the light of present-day knowledge and practices agriculture differs much in our own from that of earlier times Chemistry, invention of new tools and machinery and improvement of the old, better methods of tillage, and superior educational facilities raising the general plane of intelligence are among the more potent forces that have effected the change The most far reaching developments have been accomplished dur-durmg the past century, and from the multitude of scientists and investigators now delving into the mysteries of the soil and of animal and plant life, much more of value is likely to be evolved Agricultural implements and machinery were developed and perfected to their present efficiency only in recent times, and there is nothing to suggest that the end in their improvement is near; the rapid extension of railroads and improved methods of travel and transportation are the w ork of the past few years, and the institutions on every hand for agricultural education are also the products of modern times

Agriculture m the United States In the United States there has been no lack of appreciation of agriculture The chief executives from Washington to Roosevelt have been strong advocates of its promotion In his first annual message to Congress, in 1790, Washington urged its advancement by all proper means Many of his later messages and writings contained discussions of the country's agriculture, which he considered of primary importance with reference either to the individual or national welfare In his last message to Congress he said "In proportion as nations advance in population and other circumstances of maturity this truth becomes more apparent, and renders the cultivation of the soil more and more an object of public patronage " President Roosevelt in his message to Congress, December 4, 1906, urged the wisdom of scientific research and education as a means of forwarding the country's agriculture, recognized as the nation's chief industry He wrote "It is a mere truism to say that no growth of cities, no wealth, no industrial development can atone for any falling off in the character and standing of the farming population                          There is no longei

any failure to realize that farming, at least in certain branches, must become a technical and scientific profession "

The pioneer American farmers derived their methods from those in vogue in the respective countries from which they came, and these practiced ever so persevenngly oftentimes failed because lacking adaptability to the new conditions of so 1s and climate Besides the natural wildness of the country to be tamed and subdued, the