Page:The truth about the railroads (IA truthaboutrailro00elli).pdf/171

Rh which 873,729,000 acres have already been taken up and are in farms. There remain 76,271,000 acres of arable area not in farms, and while it must be conceded that, of the area classed as untillable, future scientists will find means of utilizing some portion, it will probably be no great part. What remains to be utilized for farm purposes, plus that which may later be brought under cultivation, is small, compared with the probable population in 1950 and the proportion of the arable area now occupied by farms.

It is fortunate for the future of North Dakota and the adjoining States of South Dakota and Minnesota that their areas of unoccupied land, and consequent opportunities for the settler, are so large. Of North Dakota’s total land-area, 45.5 per cent is in farms. Of South Dakota’s area, the land in farms amounts to 32.2 per cent, and in Minnesota but 38 per cent of the land-area is in farms. The best authorities in North Dakota estimate that there still remain about 10,000,000 acres that can be profitably put into plow land, and Rh