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Show farmer's ability to meet them. It was discovered, on a test experiment of 37 farms, that the invest- ment needed amounted to an average of $20 per acre. The return from the investment, however, in the form of increased yields, was $50 per acre. Another example of effective social engineer- ing is the Great Plains Council, whose operations cover the 10 Plains States. This group is an out- growth of an early self-constituted committee of farm leaders, which formed the nucleus of the Southern and Northern Great Plains Councils, organized in 1935 and 1938 respectively. The purpose of these several organizations was to iso- late the problems of the Great Plains, devise some remedies, and cooperate with operating agencies and research groups in an attack on the problems. The Future of the Great Plains, pub- lished in 1937, is based on the work of these organizations. The council was formed because of an urgent need for coordination and guidance of the many national agricultural, economic, and social pro- grams that began in the 1930's, as they affected the Great Plains. Among the factors which set the Plains area apart from other areas were an erratic climate, which greatly affected the life of the people; variability of income; sparsity of population, creating problems in education and other public and private services; and the diffi- culty of land management. Early meetings of the council established a set of principles upon which later work has been built. Among them were: 1. Progress depended upon an informed people, who would modify their own farm man- agement in accordance with changing Plains conditions. 2. Decisions should be arrived at democratic- ally, by a group of representatives from the dif- ferent States and agencies. 3. Programs should be instituted by a process of voluntary cooperation in group decisions. The council has a number of continuing com- mittees and has made extensive studies in such aspects of Plains life as soil, forest, and range conservation; economic and social adjustment; credit, tenure, and land values; production ad- justments; housing; and a wide variety of related subjects. Many national programs have been success- fully adapted to meet specific Plains problems. The wind erosion program, for example, has had first priority. Farmers have incorporated cer- tain tillage practices, strip cropping, and cover crops, in their normal operations to minimize normal blowing of the soil. In the event of a continuing drought, the farmers are armed with knowledge of emergency practices to be insti- tuted. The Committee on Conditions keeps con- stant check on moisture conditions, and issues quarterly reports on its findings. Also of high priority in the Plains is the need to restore certain lands to permanent cover. About 10,600,000 acres have been returned to cover during the past 14 years, although there has been a trend to increased plowing in the last 2 or 3 years. Farmers have also cooperated in the provision of water storage for stock, irrigation, tree plant- ing, consolidation of farm units, and other related programs. The council's job has been to provide the administrators of national programs with perti- nent Plains facts; since it was organized it has been of great value in adjusting the programs to local needs. Another approach to watershed management is that followed in Decatur, 111., more fully dis- cussed on page 131. This approach is significant because it reflects the urban as well as the agri- cultural interests in watersheds. The city has recognized the significance of surface and ground water for municipal, industrial, and other uses, particularly as they relate to the surrounding farm lands. It has employed conservation ex- perts and consulting engineers, and has attempted to find long-range solutions for its problems. There are undoubtedly many other areas where cooperative action by farmers, timber operators, businessmen, and bankers would result in sup- plying the necessary capital, providing a satis- factory return to both businessman and operator, and securing a net gain to the country as a whole in the form of increased productivity of our 139 |