Idaho semi-weekly keystone. (Ketchum, Idaho) 1884-1885, 1885-07-29
The Farmers Hired Nan.


"Tm kinder lookin' around the mar
ket for . hired man." he exclaimed =
be stopped at one OF the stands and
nibbled ut an onion. - / kinder need
one, but yet, I kinder hope ! won't b.
able to find him. ;"
''How's that?"
"Wall, there amt no profit in hired
man no more. No, sir, he's no good
any longer"
Whats the reason ?"
so, a dozen reasons. First and fore
most. times have changed, and the hired
man has changed with them. All sir,
it makes me sad when I think of the
hired men we had before the war
great big fellows with the strength Of
an OK and the vim of locomotive. I
dn't have to holler mr. lungs out to get
one OF 'em out OF bed at O'Clock in the
morning, and it was all I could do to
coax EN- to go to bed at 10 o'clock ct
night. I'm afraid va shan't nAver ses
no more hired men wuth keepin' around
for their board"
"That's sad"
"1t's sad, ard more, too. Now, ~ /
said, wanS q hired man. I'm Wiling
to pay $l1 or $12 month for smart
one. Some farmers want man to work
all day and oil night, but that amt me.
have never asked one to get out of bed
before 3 o'clock-never. I allus give
my man three-quarters OF an hour at
noon, unless the hogs git out, or cattle
break in, or a shower is coming up.
After man has worked right along for
eight or nine hours his system wants at
least half an hour to brace up in. They
don't quit work on some farms till 8
o'clock, but I'm no such slave-driver. As
half past tell my man to knock of.
All he has to do after that is to feed the
stock, cut little wood, NOV 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. never 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 look at the hired man OF
to day he wears white shirts and col-
lars. He won't eat with knife. He
wants napkins when he eats, and if we
don't hang up clean towel once week
lie wipes on his handkerchief. Call him
at and he gets up at 6. He wants 3
whole hour at noon, and after supper he
trots off to singing school or sits down
to a newspaper. Fifteen years ago il
my hired man was sick half day L
could dock him. II he died l could
take out months wages for the trouble.
He was glad to get store-orders for his
pay, and would wash in the rain barrel
and wipe on the clothes-line. There's
been u change, sir-an awful change,
| and if reaction don't set in pretty
soon you viii witness the downfall Of
! agriculture in this country"
"Then you won't hire another?"
"Wall, l can't just say. Work is
/ powerfully pressing, but I'm going slow.
Before I hire him I want to know
whether he's man who'll pass his plate
! for more meat and taters, and whether
we've got to use starch in doing up his
shirts. The last man I had took me to
/ task for not holding family prayers
twice day, and, after | had done SO for
| three months, found it wss only a
| game Of his to beat me out Of half an
hour day. He thought he had pretty
soft thing, and he looked mighty lone
some when cut '.Old Hundred" down to
two lines, and got through with the
Lords prayer in forty seconds. Free
1 Press.