The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1894-08-25
FARMER AND PLANTER.
THEN AND NOW.
Did Methods Ne LONGER Practicable
Southern Agfie6ttnfe;


bid Methods Ne LONGER Practicable In
Southern Agriculture;
:. The writer can remember when, n
Eexas and throughout the south, a
farmer could nske an abundant living
and not half try. This caused Y high de-
gree of negligence to prevail, and farm
ers worked when they felt like it, or
visited. or hunted, or fshed, or frol-
licked, SO that when they went into the
field, as they occasionally did; ~ WAS
merely for recreation. The soil was
prolific, the prices were good, and
wants were few, SO that at the end OF
every merrily spent year the farmer
fodhd himself richer by the natural
increment Of his estate. Few
considered great wealth worth
the labor and worry to obtain
1t. Their motto was "dum viva
mus vivamus;" and their aim to get
through life with as little physical and
mental friction as possible. They had
not then learned to worship the golden
image stamped upon the coins Of the
realm, but thankfully received the
blessings of Providence. day by day, and
lived as near as possible up to their
privileges. But times have changed;
there is no longer any place for the
sluggard, except on the outskirts of the
procession. Population has increased;
civilization has invented innumerable
wants and the opportunities for gratifi-
cation, though they have not de-
creased, have wonderfully Increased in
difficulty OF attainment. Whereas d
man could farm with his hands
while occupying his head and
heart with the amenities and
pleasures OF life, now he
must struggle for existence with every
attribute with which he is endowed.
Behold, old things have passed away
and all things have become new" and
man must adapt himself to the new
order, or get out of the way of the To-
connective of progress when the bell
rings. Life, under the conditions of
the past, may be lilSened to a we'll
stored sailing vessel on a placid sea,
lacking with every change of the wind,
only requiring that the helm and
halyards be properly handled, and the
port and harbor was reached at
last, with certainty, safety and
little cost. Now it is like the stately
steamer that must have all the
appliances of art and science; the boil
ers must hiss and strain at every joint;
the ponderous engines groan with every
stroke of the piston; the man at the
helm and the man at the pinnacle must
be vigilant and sleepless; all previous
records must be broken or the ship must
sink. The first may be the more pleasant
voyage, but we are passengers at sea
on the latter craft, and can not go
ashore if we would. Life is real, life
is earnest" and as it now exists, we
must exert ourselves. Old methods are
good no longer; the battle of life
calls for the improved weapons
of warfare. 1t may be dear
price to pay for worldly sue
cess, but it can not be purchased cheap
er. The great armies of idlers are
those who refuse to pay the price.
Agriculture is especially blessed at this
time, if we take things as we find them.
Success was never SO perfectly assured,
nor its rewards SO great as now, if we
only accept the conditions which re-
quire that every faculty be engaged;
that we strive with diligence according
to the lights before us. There were
never more prosperous farmers than at
present, there was never a brighter
prospect than is now before them, no
matter what croakers say. : Texas
Farm and Ranch