Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes Co., O. [Ohio]) 1870-1895, 1873-10-23
Farm Labofens

l wonder if anybody in the
world has ever written life of q
farm laborer. / have read Jose
phus, Pilgrims Progress and
Jack Shepard, but don't remember
of ever having any book entitled
aLife and Adventures of a Farm
Laborer.n 1t does seem to me
that a good writer could find
enough of interesting incidents
in the life and experience OF al
most any old farm hand to make
q curious if not an interesting
book.
I believe that very few opu-
lent and Independent persons
fully appreciate the vexations
and annoyances that 1arm Ia
borer has to encounter in his OBJ
seure an uneventful career in the
kitchen, barn yard and field. A
farm laborer has his ups and
downs, his plenty of hard work.
and his streaks of sunshine as
well. But he is never utterly
miserable, unless he has the mis-
fortune to be bound for season
to family which it defies his
skill and philosophy to please,
not to mention the matter of his
own happiness. 1t not unfre
quently transpires that a man,
through actual want and hecesity,
is forced to bind himself to a man
that, were he enabled to choose,
he would have nothing TO do
with. The old workman in such
a case trusts to his ingenuity and
philosophy to overcome ever OBJ
stacle and, in very many cases,
his skill and experience carry
him smoothly over.
But what rare qualities must
that man possess, both physical
and mental, to give entire salts
faction and preserve a good name
when bound to a man who may
chance to have on his hands a
large family of genius, philoso-
pliers, poets musicians, acrobats,
clowns, fools, tom-boys, three or
fourlunhealthy babies, three cats
sixteen speckled kittens, sing
ing hen, and pet pig, besides
two kicking cows, and a lop-ear
ed mule. The head of such a fam
lily as this generally considers
himself a hero he has not arriv-
ed at the conclusion from read
ing. tits spontaneous outburst
of his imagination. The wife |
of this man would be apt to re-
gard him as near akin Jupiter,
occupying a place far beneath
where his physical development |
and latent brilliancy should place |
him. The wife herself might be |
the victim of the gross negligence
and carelessness of an unappreci-
ative world might vent her spite
on the hired man through unbak-
ed bread, hard-boiled potatoes,
cold tea, and a hundred other
ways an ignorant and unrefned
has at command to bring
herself into notice.
When a man has the misfor-
tune to fall into the hands of
family like that l have describ-
ed, he sees very little pleasure,
md the daily fourteen hours
IS his sunshine. If he has made
IN agreement for a stated period
he is soon very sorry for it, and
would gladly throw up the con-
ract if he could only get enough
money to pay a nights lodgingI
II two until he he could find an
,ther place. but the employer,
.hough not a "book-larnt" man,
lnows to much to be fooled by his
nan; he withholds all the money,
wen to the coveted dollar or two
which stands between the unhap-
" victim and his freedom, until
he expiration of the time agreed
Ipon.
The plan of binding a man for {
. stated time is all very we'll for
he farmer but let advocates of
his plan step into the shoes of
he laborer for a time and they
Tould be very apt to see matters
n aDofher 1irbt