Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1876-11-10
A Plea for Farmers Wives.

To the jewellers in cities and large
towns we are not addressing our
selves. We fear that they could do
very little toward improving the
condition of farmers wives if they
were ever so we'll disposed.
There is, to the uninitiated, a sort of
romance hanging round the country.
City people see it during the summer
months when everything is lovely,
and when green grass and fresh
breezeS and blue skies, make it seem
Il paradise. They eat the sweet
bread, and drink the sweet milk and
praise the fragrant butter, and the
deliciously clean table-cloths, and
never think of the labor which some
body has to expend in making
things so nice and comfortable.
But the farmers wives know how
it is managed, and the thousands of
weary, dispirited, broken down wo-
men all through the country could
tell you, and with truth that farm
ers's wife is little better than a
drudge.
a young man marries a fresh
young girl, who, very likely, is just
from school, and knows as much
about housekeeping as she does
Of gold-mining or steam-englne max
ing. ,.-..7
He takes her home to live on his
farm of hundred acres. Very like
ly his mother is to live with him,and
the young wife is ambitious to make
a good appearance before the old
lady.
Everybody tells her what a good
chance she has got! nice, steady,
industrious, saving husband, with a
good farm and ten cows! What
quantities of butter and cheese she
ought to make, and what minis of
money she can lay up!
Mother-in-law tells her what Won
ders in the way of work she used to
perform. How she used to rise at
four in the morning, and milk twelve
COWS, and churn and make the
cheese before breakfast! and how
they had five hired men to cook and
wash and mend for, beside her nine
children and "Granther and Gran
marm' and she never had any help
except IN haying time!
The young wife thinks she must
do as well. George will be sorry he
married her if she cannot "keep up
her end of the yoke" for that is
what the matrons Of the neighbor-
hood are continually telling her she
ought to do.
The farmhouse, as generally con-
structed, is more than prison. Its
kitchen is on the rear side of every
thing, where the sun never shines
and the north wind has full sweep.
The well is just as far off as it could
possibly be dug without eucroach-
ing on the highway. Ditto the
wood shed. Ditto everything else
which one might be likely to need.
The farmers wife is expected to
draw the water, bring in the wood,
feed the hens and turkeys, milk the
cows; do the entire Homework.
which includes cooking, washing,
ironing, making beds, sweeping,
scrubbing, mendlng, sewing, making
soap, boiling down sap in the proper
time of the year, besides being al
ways ready to lend a helping hand
at turning the grindstone. raking
hay, dropping seed corn, wedding
the garden and a score of other du-
ties which we have hardly space to
cnumerate. She must keep up her
end of the yoke!
Let no one think we exaggerate,
for we arc stating facts, and there
are dozens of women in every farm
ing community who are ready to en-
dorse our statement.
On large farm the farmer always
has more or less help. He would
open his eyes in amazement if his
wife should ask him to do the hay
ing himself and not be extravaganza
and hire help!
But if she asks for "girl" to
help her through the busy seasons,
he thinks she is unreasonable, and
if he isn't more than the average
man, he asks her eff she means to
run the farm out and send them all
to the poor-house?"
On washing days, perhaps, as a
special condesccnslon, one of the
hired men is allowed to stop at home
and help bring the water, but the
farmers parting injunction will be:
Get through as quick as you can,
for work is driving"
AS if work in the house were not
driving! |