Thomas County cat., 1886-12-09
THE FARM HAND.
A Glass Of Iaborers Who Are Better on
Than They Might BE.

A Glass of I.abOrers Who Are Better On
Than They Might BE.
One of the best parts of the situa-
ton, to-day, for the farmer, is the fact
that he can truly say: Il have paid
my help better than 1 am paid" and
he is conscience-free of taking hand
at oppression. If he has partially let
the hired man alone, he has been
obliged to. The day hand, with the
usual pay, can get with weeks work
a barrel of flour, suit of working
clothes, including boots, and news
paper for year. Part of the year he
gets fraction less, while in grain
handling fraction more. A dozen
years ago he could not get better pay.
and he could not buy the same articles
with scarcely any less than two weeks
work. On by far the most 1O0-
acre farms, frst-class month
hand-and such one is seldom pro-
fcient in his avocation, equaling a
master in other callings-gets from
$50 to S3S 4 month, counting board.
ETC., at a low rate.
Anent this, mechanics, firemen and
engineers who receive $40 a month
would be glad to save out, or have cam
celed their boar'l and laundry bills.
which really cut their pay back to S22
and less. This month-hand's pay for
seven months takes one-quarter of the
sales of the farm, at average. If he
worked the farm and did all the
work, furnishing teams and tools, and
half of seeds, taxes. ETC., he would get
but half the net sales, with his fam
lily and team board. Surely the month
hand is getting fair deal, and this is
right. Let farm labor be well paid,
that good men may be retained de-
spite the low estimate wrongly put on
this following by other workers and
plebs urbana. But let no one say the
work is hard-''that tune must be
changed another age is ushered in.
The hired man is not asked to lug at
a cast-iron plow that never secured,
nor take up the role OF the ''sower
who went forth to sow and with
mule-pack style and main force, strid-
ing to and fro, broadcast the grain.
He NO more tires out with the dull
scythe. Then the mandrake, which
used to call for skill and long endur-
ance is almost bric-a-brac curiosity.
The sole ''horse power" required of the
man is ''hitching on"-and hay-load-
ers are claiming that situation. The
GRADER no longer challenges the binder
to test of cleverness and hardihood;
and the thistle patches have lost their
power to bring dread to the human
breast; the long grain boards and thistle
points can not get a chance to touch
the hands; and the sole relic of sickle
days remains in the corn harvest.
The custom is going fast which
looked on ''eight hours before dinner,
and eight AFTER as a days work. The
wondrous change is seen on ma2y
farm, and with the same never-quit-
work task-m4ater of former years at
the mead, where the men are not in the
lot at sunrise, and the teams are re-
turned andsthe chores are done before
sundown. To be sure, men are not
employed so constantly as formerly,
for farmers are bound to stay by
and not expend for labor
more than quarter OF net sales. or, as
well, half of net income. Yet the
laborer need work less than half the
year in the farmers pay and still live
far above want The house-renter has
allowances and opportunities which go
far to a living, and if neither waste.
the weed nor the shebeen. draw on
him, he will eventually own notch Of
the Republic. L. Dereredur, IN ~
+. Tribune.