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December 13, 1929 WILMETTE LIFE . -35 Introduction of Modern Agricultural Methods Slow and Discouraging Task Editor·~ note: Rev. and Mrs. Clarence E. Wolsted, minister in India for the Winnetka Congregational church, are spending their furlough year at 796 Pine street, Winnetka. Following is the first of a series of interesting articles which Mr. Wolsted has prepared exclusively fol' this publication concerning the work in which he and Mrs. ·Wolsted are engaged. BY CLARENCE E. WOLSTED India is primarily an agricultural country. Eighty-five percent of her people depend on the farms for their livelihood. Therefore any work that where it is only the propounding of some theory, without a background, \YC cannot place · much confidence in it. It is easy to make up some armthe social engineer is needed. Many plans that we make look ideal on the surface and we start in work with high hopes. But to get the people to act is another mattl:r. "This is not our custom," they ~ay first of all. No where the world over will you find any people so huund by custom. Several vears ago I sent home some pictures of the farmers at work. An answer came from a typical American, "Why don't you fix up some harness and better implements for the people there?" In India cattle are used for plowing, aa shown in the above. The old time yoke is still in vogue, the cost of the modern collar for draft animala being, as yet, prohibitive to these farmers. aims at the development of India must be planned with that in mind. A stupendous task it mav be but it is because of this that we can be especially hopeful for the future. Great . things are in store for her as an agricultural nation. The possibilities in tropical climates arc now receiving careful study and some day India will bd supplying world markets. At present there are many factors that are working for the good of the villagers. The Royal Commission has To his mind here was a golden opportunity to show these people some of the benefits that are so commonplace in the \\/est. \Vhy should the yoke chair theory as to how to build up a community. It is another thing to make it work. Here, if any where, be used here when the horse collar would be so much more humane and efficient? \Vhy did we allow the peepte to continue to scratch over the ground with a wooden plow? \Vhy do they continue to thrash out the ·· I Farmer·' old methods produced fodder only three feet in height. With methods of cultivation, as shown in the accompanying picture, it is possible to grow fodder from eight to eleven feet hiah. mad'e a careful study of village life and the r~orts have been publis.hed. Every daily paper now has, articles about "Rural Reconstruction. Conferences a-re being held in many centers and the educated classes are responding. It is in fact the popular subject of the day. These reports. an~ discussions are all very helpful 1f tt comes from real experience. But gr,a in by driving the bulls <;)Ver the pile and so laborously tramplmg out the seed? . These and many other questions naturally come up. Many of the practices are the same as in use 2,000 years ~go. I wro~e to this American a~d tned to explam but I ~m sure he dtd not accept my explanation of why (Continued on Page 37)