Consequently ,government at
(10) all levels worked to encourage farmers as a social group and agriculture as economic
enterprise.
Both the national and state governments developed transportation
infrastructure, building canals, roads, bridges, and railroads ,deepening harbors ,and removing
obstructions from navigable streams .The national government imported plant and animal
(15) varieties and launched exploring expeditions into prospective farmlands in the West .In addition,
government trade policies facilitated the exporting of agricultural products.
PRACTICE TEST 03 – August 2003
20
For their part ,farmers seemed to meet the social expectations agrarian philosophers
had for them ,as their broader horizons and greater self-respect, both products of the
Revolution ,were reflected to some degree in their behavior .Farmers seemed to become
(20) more scientific ,joining agricultural societies and reading the farm newspapers that sprang
up throughout the country .They began using improved implements, tried new crops and
pure animal breeds , and became more receptive to modern theories of soil improvement .
They also responded to inducements by national and state governments .Farmers
streamed to the West ,filling frontier lands with stunning rapidity .But farmers responded
(25) less to the expectations of agrarians and government inducements than to growing market
opportunities .European demand for food from the United States seemed insatiable . War,
industrialization , and urbanization all kept demand high in Europe . United States cities
and industries grew as well; even industries not directly related to farming thrived because
of the market, money ,and labor that agriculture provided