The patron of husbandry. (Columbus, Miss.) 1875-1883, 1881-12-24

men OF their prejudices; to get :, th. : !
out of the old ruts; to induce ,hosa1
! so long accustomed 10 allow otbsrs
to DO their thinking, to think for
themselves; to beget confidence in
those who, through the influence
of generations of oppression, extor.
ton and neglect, have come 70
think no man honest and unselfsh.
These, we say, are slow processes.
anc right here comes in most clear
ly the necessity and value of the
educational features of our Order
Just here we perceive its imDor-
lance. No interest, no society. no
fraternity, or other organization
outside the farmers themseIves.sno
co operation not wholly of and by
farmers will ever remove the disa.
bilities of which we complain, or
will ever elevate or educate them
1t is the mission of other interests
to make us worth as much as pos.
sible to them It is ours to make
ourselves worth as much as possible
to ourselves. 1t is our mission to
till the ground, to subdue it, to de-
yelop and increase its productive
resources, to enhance its value and
add to its beauty. Of this we do
not complain. We accept the mis-
sion, and are willing, if need be, to
eat our bread by the sweat of cur
face; but we claim, and we must
insist upon, more equal distribu-
ton of the rewards of our labor
inothe future than in the past. How
shall this be accomplished? Great
social changes are not brought
about at once. We must not only
be organized but educated. We
must learn to labor and wait. We
have enlisted for life, and are to toll
on, toll on, till the Great Master
says well done: when, like the
prophet of old, we will drop our
mantles upon the Elishas who shall
succeed us, and they shall complete
the work we have so well begun.
Revolutions never go backward.
A good beginning is the beginning
of the end. But we must educate
ourselves for the work we are to
do. Arguments, logic, threatening,
coaxing, or scolding will never give
US our rights. But when our cir
cumstances are talked over by the
fireside, rehearsed around the sitting
room table, by the wayside, in the
Subordinate Grange, read in our
newspapers, urged upon our atten-
ton by the quarterly issues of our
Worthy Lecturer, which comes to
us like colporteur's tract, offering
us just what our souls hungered for,
or heard from the lips of the living
speaker, who comes to us with an
earnest zeal in behalf of the great
Order of which we are partial
these influences will awaken our
thought, and thought will result in
action, and action will be effectual
just as soon as it is united. So we
see our work, as well as our princi-
piles, points to CO operation.
We have in our Order of Patrons
of Husbandry such an organization
and such a union of purpose as the
world never saw before This Ma
tiona1 Grange is its acknowledged
head. Patrons expect us to lead off,
to sound the keynote and order the
charge. Il
What we desire is TO do some
thing which shall call the attention
of farmers to our work and our
principles. Something which will
cause him to think: we want to
reach him at his own Preside, away
from adverse circumstances, where
we can force home to his considera-
ton the practical principles of our
fraternity. Your Committee do
not presume to dictate to other com
mittees, or even to advise. Each
committee of the Grange is for the
"Good Of the Order."E All are Ia
boring to secure the same results.
We would suggest that the Com
mittees on Cooperation, and also
on Education, report some plan by
which their suggestions NAV be put
in practical operation. While we
approve the work of the Worthy
Lecturer, and hope his circulars
may he continued, we suggest that
the Grange instruct him to give
greater Prominence to the matter of
cooperation. not only in pecnniary
but also in education and in the
building up and Strengthening of
the Order
Bv order of Committee on Good
of theOrder. D. H. THING,
Chairman.