The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1881-11-18
The Hired Man.

I'm kinder lookin' around the market for
a hired man" he exclaimed, as he stopped at
one of the stands and nibbled at an onion
81 kinder need one, but yet | kinder hope |
shan't be able to find him."
| slows that? 2"
"Wall, thar amt no profit in hired man
no more. No, sir, he's no good any longer"
whats the reason"
"Oh, dozen reasons. First and foremost
times have changed, and the hired man has
changed with EN-. All sir, it makes me sad
when l think of the hired man we had before
the war-great big fellers with the strength
of an OK and the vim of locomotive.
didn't have to holler my lungs out to get one
| of EN- out ofbed at three o'clock in the morn
ing, and it was all could do to coax em to
go to bed at ten o'clock at night Pm afraid
that we shan't never see no more hired men
with keepin' around for their board"
That's sad"
ITS sad, and more, too. No, rs | said, I
want hired man. I'm willing to pay S11
or Sl2 month for Il smart one. Some far
mers want man to work all day and all
night, but that amt me. have never asked
one to get out of bed before three o'clock
never. allus give my man three. quarters
OF an hour at noon, unless the hogs git out,
or cattle break in, or shower is coming up.
After man has worked right long for nine
hours his system wants at least half an hour
to brace up in. They don't quit work on
some farms till eight o'clock, but I'm no such
slave driver At half past seven / tell my
man to knock of. All he has to do after that
is to feed the stock, cut a little wood, NOW
some grass for the horses, milk four cows, fill
up The water trough, start smudge in the
smoke house and pull few weeds in the
garden. lneVer had hired man who didn't
grow fat on my work, and they allus left me
feeling that they hadn't half earned their
wages"
He stopped long enough to wipe tear
from his eye, and then went on:
And now you look at the hired man of to-
day. lie wears white shirt and collars. He
wont cat with n knife. He wants napkins
when he eats, and if we don't hang up clean
towel once week he wipes off his handker-
cher. Call him at three, and he gets up at
six. He wants whole hour at noon and af-
ter supper he trots off to singing school, or
sits down to newspaper. Fifteen years ago
ifmy hired man was sick for half day |
could dock him. If he died, | could take out
months wages for the trouble. He was
glad to git store orders for his pay, and he
would wash in the rain barreland wipe on the
clothes line. There's bin a change sir-an
awful change; and if reaction don't set in
pretty soon you will witness tho downfall Of
"Then you won't hire another?"
WALL l can't just say. Work is power
fully pressing, but Pm going glow. Before
hire him | want to know whether he's
man who'll pass his plate for more meat than
taters, and whether we've got to use starch in
doing up his shirts. The last man l had took
me to task for not holding family prayers
twice day, and after had done so for three
months found it was onlya game of his to
beat me out of half an hour a day. He thought
he had a pretty soft thing, and he looked
mighty lonesome when | cut Old Hundred
down to two lines, and got through with the
Lords Prayer in forty seconds"