evidence: But, Washington was not the only president who valued agriculture and the future of farming in the country. Whether it was President Thomas Jefferson who said, "agriculture is our wisest pursuit…and cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens," or President Abraham Lincoln who described agriculture as "the great calling," our presidents knew that farming was a noble profession and a secure food supply was critical for a thriving nation. [...] – President George Washington "I am entirely a farmer, soul and body, never scarcely admitting a sentiment on any other subject." – President Thomas Jefferson "…that no other human occupation opens so wide a field for the profitable and agreeable combination of labor with cultivated thought, as agriculture."