The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-05-09
CHEAP" HANDS THR DEAREST.

The farm hand of to day, that is the
cheap man, is a shiftless fellow, who
works on the farm because there is
the only place a man of his habits and
ability can get job. He cares little
for his employers interests, does moth
ing he can avoid, his sole object in life
seeming to be to do as little as he can
to hold his job and draw his pay, and
he seems to enjoy being on the perilous
brink. Nothing gives him more salts
faction than cheating the ''oId man"
out of an hours work, says the Ma,
tional Stockman.
He would count it almost disgrace
to take the lead and do an honest days
work without the eye of his employer
on him. He never sees anything to do
until it is pointed out to him, He has
the sagacity of the Indian when it
comes to telling the noon hour and
quitting time, 1t is point of honor
with him to break a pitchfork handle.
AK helves too must suffer. Tools are
misused and lost. The farmer does
not dare trust him to look after the
stock.
The money paid for such help is
worse than lost, and sooner or later
the farmer must be brought to recog
nizs that fact. He will be forced to
limit his business to scale correspond
ing to his own work ing ability, or in
the end find himself worse eff for his
folly.
The cause of all this lies with the
farmer himself. Through a mistaken
idea of economy he will not materially
recognize the value of the good man
over the poor one. There are other
more lucrative positions for honest,
trusty men, and they cannot afford to
work as a farm laborer. A poor hand
gets the same wages a good man is
paid 80 there is little inducement held
out to man to put forth an effort.
But we cannot afford to pay high
wsges," farmers say. That may be.
We do not debate the point. We do
maintain, howe YER, that if it pays to
hire at all it pays to add few dollars
paid to the cheap hand and secure a
goo0 man. Cheap labor is not cheap
in the long run For an illustration:
A few years ego two young men
came to farmer here to hire out. One
set his price and the other underbid,
and after half an hours dickering,
took service at So less per month than
the other young man, who stuck to
his price, saying he felt he could earn
that much. At the end of tha first
two weeks an account kept with the
cheap" hand would have stood some
thing like this:
Two weeks wages. es...............T 50
Pitchfork handle and axe helve. %
Broken whifh stree. 8 90
Broken pump handle. ..... rs
Saw sharpened, hammer bought l.. so
Total. ................... .S14 OO
Besides the financial part of the
story the team had been spoiled for
the spring and summer work by allow
ing their shoulders to get sore, the
milch COWS had become almost I'm
manageable and the feed for cattle,
horses and hogs wasted. Did IL pay7
Let facts speak for themselves.
The remedy is, don't hire cheap
labor. If it is necessary to ecc nom:ze
by hiring a cheap man, dispose of
your stock, keeping only what can see
to yourself. II your farm is more than
you can manage rent part OF it, seed
it down or let it rest, but don't try to
make it with a cheap man
There are other causes Of failure
than the hired man, but this is one of
the greatest leaks. Labor should be
purchased with the same forethought
as to worth as are the other requisites. |
Any man who is making his lite bur
den by worrying himself with
''cheap" man, will do we'll to take an
idle hour and think as to whether it
pays. Should he be unable to solve |
the problem let him silence his eco
nomical ecruples for once and get a |
good hand for next season, just as an |
He will never regret the
price Of the venture.