St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1888-02-04
LIFE ON THE FARM.
The Inevitable Results of Turning Ou"
Rural Population Into Cities.

The Inevitable Results of Turning ouS
Rural Population Into Cities.
Almost every day we are more deep
ly impressed with the solemn duty OF
urging the boys to stick to the farm.
When we contemplate the fact that
the rural districts of such q grand
agricultural State as Illinois are los
ing population, and that the cities are
constantly gaining, the ultimate re-
suit of continuance of such a state OF
things is nothing less than de-
plorable. Every avenue OF business
life is crowded in the city, Those who
make success must sacrifice much,
and comparatively few care to pay
the prices for success. OF all the
thousands employed in a great city,
those who have toiled hard and long
to achieve success, and by reason OF
their toll and painstaking care, COM
mand such confidence that their serv-
ices are almost indispensably valua-
BILE, are comparatively few: The great
mass is composed of nobodies. They
are employed, if employed at all be-
cause positions must be filled. even if
imperfectIy filled. But day after day
they go TO their work, commanding
but little more regard than machine.
and entirely uncertain whether
through the whim or real dissatis-
faction of their employer, they will
have work tomorrow, OF be thrown
out of employment. They live from
hand to mouth. in a very unpleasant
strict sense of the term. In the pro-
LESSONS there is no room except for
those who have signal ability and an
industry that will prompt them to
work themselves literally to death.
Indeed. there is a most dismal pros
pect for even a brilliant young man
in the professions. A few weeks ago
a young doctor was arrested for steal
ing books, and it was shown that he
committed the crime to get money te
keep him from starving. His arrest
and conviction prompted several
young doctors to write letters to the
press, and they all united
in saying that the young
doctor, however we'll quail
fed, could not command a living
practice. In conversation with three
lawyers a'few days since. two of them
united in the opinion that Chicago had
hundreds of lawyers who were either
starving or gaining a living through
unprofessional practice. The clerks
in our dry goods stores are overwork-
ed. In our grocery stores they are on
their feet from seven in the morning
until six, seven. and sometimes ten
o clock at night, and the pay is poor.
The trades are full. Every thing is
crowded. and still there is q steady
stream from the country to the city.
1t ought not to be difficult for the
young man who at least gets enough
to eat and wear and has a good bed
to sleep on, on the farm, TO see that
the chances of success in the city are
too few to warrant him in ,unning the
risk. We know what the discourage
ment in farming is. We know how
poorly it has paid of late years.
But this is not because of any
thing in farming itself. 1t is the re-
suit of unjust and oppressive systems,
and these can be reformed if the farmer
is true to his own interests; and we be-
lieve that they will be reformed. The
people of this country do not propose
to be wholly eaten mp by greedy
monopolies. Farming will come tc
the front as a paying business. We
can not think that the people of this
country will stand idly by and see
their Republic crumble and our gen.
eral prosperity ruined; and these are
the inevitable results of depopulatine
our farms and turning our population
into our cities. 1t is our duty as
patriotic citizens to make our farms
pay. by relieving them of all unjust
burdens. We will relieve them. too;
and then there will be nothing to dc
but to impress the youth on our farms
that the useful prosperous farmer is
more honorable man than well
dressed or poorly dressed city idler.-
Western Rural