General Manager
Jewish Agricultural Society
In attempting to answer the question how the Jewish farmer in the United States has weathered the storm of depression, we must remember that the depression has not affected all farmers alike.
Fortunately most Jewish farmers are not in the zones of sharpest distress. They are located mostly in metropolitan centers, near good markets, and are engaged in branches of farming that suffer not from over-production, but as a result of under-consumption.
In order to reach the proper conclusion as to the status of the Jewish farmer, we must look at the question in its relation to the occupations engaged in by Jews from whom the Jewish farming class is largely a recruit. Such a comparison would show that, although the Jewish farmer has his troubles, his lot is no worse, perhaps a little better than that of his city brother. Relatively fewer Jews have been driven off their farms than out of business or employment.
There is room for more Jews on the farm, but care must be taken that they are properly settled. In directing the landward movement among Jewish people, the aim must be to enable the families to derive a livelihood from the land. We can not however, overlook the distinct value of such a movement from the standpoint of larger Jewish interests. A reduction of the disparity between city and farm population would tend to dispell the prevalent but mistaken belief that Jews are by aptitude and inclination unfit for productive agricultural pursuits.
HELEN FRIEDLAND ELECTED
Miss Helen Friedland was elected to the presidency of the student council of the Women’s Division of Brooklyn College for the coming year.
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