New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-09-20
THE FARMERS WAR.
IFS EARLY HISTORY IN IOWA.

PICNICS AND THEIR POLITICAL RESUlTS-THE
ANTEMoNoPOLY PARTY FORMED.
fFRoM THE SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRmUNE.l
DIS MONIES, Aug SLOT many attempts TO or
ganize the farmers of Iowa for any purpose, the
Grange is the first that has been successful Farm
er clubs established under the most favorable cir
cumstauoes and ostered by the State Board of Agrl
culture have always proved shOrt-lyed NOT more
than eighteen or twenty could ever DO Kept
in active operation at once, and even
that small number would soon dwlndle
away unless the promise OF rare SEEDS
OF agricultural documents was constantly held out
as an inducement to the farmers to continue thelr
meetings, and new clubs were frequently organized
TO fill the places Of those that died. But the Grange
seems TO have exactly supplied want OF the people
Perhans the "hard times" experienced during the
past two or three years by the farmers of Iowa. in
common with those of other Western States, aroused
them 70 the necessity of united, intelligent co6pera
tion. and prepared them to welcome the Grange as
the first channel opened through which they might
hope for relief At all events, the Order has taken
kindly TO the soil Of Iowa, and has accomplished
moro here than elsewhere while the farmers clubs
have long since disappeared.
In Illinois the spirit of the Farmers Movement
has found expression through the clubs and their
combination IN the State Farmers Association.
There it was famed into activity by the extortions
and their claim to be independent of all legislative
control Many of the clubs have enlisted in other
reforms and have adopted vigorous measures to
promote them. Their plan Of organization Is so
broad and liberal that they are not limited In the
objects or the methods of their labors, and may at
no distant day resolve themselves into political
party ..
Tn this State the Grange and the Farmers Move
a. al Tn of
study the other. have therefore, since my arrival
in Des Moines placed myself in communication
with the managers of the Order. and shall rs briefly
as possible, repeat the information nave received
from them.
The Grange is stronger in Iowa than in any other
State The number of subordinate Oranges is about
1870 and the number of members or patrons
nearly 100000. The Order was planted here soon
after its formation in Washington nearly four years
ago. but for various was not widely extended
until within the past twelve months. During the
Spring of this year it grew with astonishing rapid
ity increasing until the beginning Of the harvest at
the rate Of from 60 to 50 Oranges week It's great
strength is in the country. When the Order was
first introduced it proposed TO plant it first in
the towns with the expectation that 1T would
naturally spread from them into the country. But
this was found TO be impossible, for the town
Oranges seemed to have very little cohesive power
own existence to say nothing of their inability to
propagate their kind 1t was not until the mission
aries went out into the praires and began TO work
among those who gave their whole time and atten-
ton to the farm that the Order took root
DULL AND FLOODING LIFE OF THE IOWA FARMER
The social condition of a majority of the farmers
in this State before the organization of Oranges is
described to me by leading members as anything
but satisfactory. The country is comparatively
III ,,I,r1D to nd ne
people are still very much isolated The dull monot-
ony of their lives has only been broken in upon by
an occasional wedding or funeral and they have
plodded on year after year. working from sunrise to
sunset, taking very few holidays, rarely meeting
each other except at the crossroads store, church.
or town-meoting reading very little, and, in fact,
transforming themselves into corn and wheat pro
ducing machines. OF business methods they have
known almost nothing. 1t was rare that farmer
was able to tell how much it cost him to make
a bushel of corn of wheat, pound OF
beef or of butter or to bale ton of hay.
The condition of the farmers wife was even
worse Her work began earlier and ended
later than that OF her husband. 1t was slavlsh,
life with almost nothing TO give it variety OF to lift
the woman out of the deep rut of her daily drudg-
ery. Perhaps the most of these people have never
known any different kind of life; perhaps they
have had better food and greater abundance OF IT,
more comfortable homes ana better clotnlhB than
before they became Iowa farmers, but their enjoy
ment of lire has been of low order, and any one
who will give them broader ideas WILDE hailed as
benefactor | have not been describing the average
farmer of this State from personal observation that
would be impossible for stranger spending only
a few days or at most weeks, IN the State to obtain
am obliged to take the picture as 1t is painted for
me by those who have been familiar with 1t for
years and who have often sat at the farm
ers table and slept in his spare room"
At the same time ono can ride across this state
without observing even from the window of a rail-
way car a painful contrast betweenthe richness OF
the fields and the poverty of many OF the homes
don't believe there is better farming country IN
the world than the Des Mones Valley, with It's
beautiful rolling prairie lands, and 1t everywhere
shows the evidence of good culture And yet the
owners of those farms live too often IN little
cramped-up houses, unattractive IN many cases IN
comfortable. If there are good houses, they are
generally owned not by the men who get their
living from the farms, but by the men who buy
wheat and ship it, or who have other means of sup
poIt and farm for pleasure, not for profit
SOCIAL INFLUENCES OF THE GRANGE.
Such state of affairs as | have described cannot
be corrected in a month or year, and yet am as
sured the influence of the Grange in eleyatlng the
farmers socially is already very apparent In the
first place it brings together the farmers of neigh
borhood. old and young, men and women, and If 1t
did nothing more it would not have been established
in vain: for the people of a town cannot spend an
hour a week in informal conversation, even, with
out gaining new ideas and carrying away something
20 think about during the days that follow. But the
meetings Of the Grange are not entirely informal.
-. 10 IN fno ~