land was treated as
property of individuals or regarded as a permanent possession by
tribes, the method in which the land was held and its use determined
the quality of civilization, and the land factor became more important
as a determiner of social order as civilization progressed. It was
exceedingly important in determining the quality of the Greek life, and
the entire structure of Roman civilization was based on the land
question. Master the land tenure of Rome and you have laid the
foundation of Roman history. The desire for more land and for more
room was the chief cause of the barbarian invasion of the empire. All
feudal society, including lords and vassals, government and courts, was
based upon the plan of feudal land-holding.

In modern times in England the land question has been at times the
burning political and economic question of the nation, and is a
disturbing factor in recent times. In the United States, rapid
progress is due more to the bounteous supply of free, fertile lands
than to any other single cause. Broad, fertile valleys are more
pertinent as the foundation {146} of nation-building than men are
accustomed to believe; and now that nearly all the public domain has
been apportioned among the citizens, intense desire for land remains
unabated, and its method of treatment through landlord and tenant is
rapidly becoming a troublesome question. The relation of the soil to
the population presents new problems, and the easy-going civilization
will be put to a new test.

_Climate Has Much to Do with the Possibilities of Progress_.--The early
seats of civilization mentioned above were all located in warm
climates. Leisure is essential to all progress. Where it takes man
all of his time to earn a bare subsistence there is not much room for
improvement. A warm climate is conducive to leisure, because its
requirements of food and clothing are less imperative than in cold
countries. The same quantity of food will support more people in warm
than in cold climates. This, coupled with the fact that nature is more
spontaneous in furnishing a bountiful supply in warm climates than in
cold, renders the first steps in progress much more possible. The food
in warm climates is of a light vegetable character, which is easily
prepared for use; indeed, in many instances it is already prepared. In
cold countries, where it is necessary to consume large amounts of fatty
food to sustain life, the food supply