Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1899-01-30

grindstone Discuss in your mind what
the nineteenth century would be with
out the newspaper and give encouraging
words to all who are engaged in this
interest, from the chief of editorial de-
partment down to the boy that throws
the morning or evening newspaper into
your basement window.
Do Not Find Fault.
Encourage mechanics. They will
plumb the pipes, or they will calcimine
the ceilings, or they will put down the
carpets, or they will grain the doors, or
they will fashion the wardrobe Be not
among those who never say anything
to mechanic except to find fault. If
he has done job well, tell him it is
spIendidly done. The book is well
bound, the door is well grained, the
chandelier is well swung, the work is
grandly accomplished. Be not among
those employers who never say any
thing to their employees except to swear
at them. Do not be afraid you will
make that mechanic SO pulled up and
arrogant he will never again want to
sleeves for before the night comes of
that day when you praise him there
will be a lawsuit brought against him
because he did not finish his work as
soon as he promised it, forgetful of the
fact that his wife has been sick and two
of his children have died of scarlet fever
and he has had felon on finger of
the right hand. Denounced perhaps be-
cause the paint is so very faint in color,
not recognizing the fact that the me-
chanic himself has been cheated out of
the right ingredients, and that he did
not find out the trouble in time, or
scolded at because he seems to have
famed a horse by unskillful shOelng,
when the horse has for months had
SPAWN or ringbone or springhalt. You
feel you have the right to find fault
with a mechanic when he does i'll. Do
you ever praise a mechanic when he
does we'll?
Encourage the farmers. They come
into your stores, you meet them in the
city markets, you often associate with
them in the summer months. Office
seekers go through the land and they
stand on political platforms, and they
tell the farmers the story about the in
dependent life of a farmer, giving fat
terry where they ought to give sympa-
thy Independent of WHAT I was
brought up on a farm, I worked on
farm, I know all about it. I hardly
saw city until I was grown. and I
tell you that there are no class of peo-
pie in this country who have it harder
and who more need your sympathy than
farmers. Independent of whatf OF the
curculio that stings the peach trees, Of
the rust in the wheat, of the long rain
with the rye down? Independent Of the
grasshopper, Of the locust, of the army
worm, of the potato bug1 Independent
of the drought that burns up the har-
vest? Independent of the cow with the
hollow horn, or the sheep with the foot
rot, or the pet horse with a nail in his
hoof? Independent of the cold that
freezes out the winter grain2 Independ-
ent of the snow bank out Of which he
must shovel himsef9 Independent Of
the cold weather when he stands thrash
ing his numbed fingers around his body
to keep them from being frostedf INDIE
pendent of the frozen ears and the
frozen feet? Independent of what?
Fancy farmers who have made their
fortunes in the city and go out in the
country to build houses with all the
modern improvements and make farm
ing a luxury may not need any solace,
but the yeomanry who get their living
out of the soil and who that way have
to clothe their families and educate
their children and pay their taxes and
meet the interest on mortgaged farms
such men find a terrific struggle. I de-
mand that Office seekers and politicians
fold up their gaseous and imbecile
speeches about the Independent life of
farmer and substitute some word of
comfort drawn from the fact that they
are free from city conventionalities and
city epidemics and city temptations.
Need Sympathy, Not F1attery.
My most vivid remembrance of boy
hood is of my father coming in ON a
very hot day from the harvest field and
seating himself on the doorsi1 because
he was too faint to get into the house,
the perspiration streaming from fore
head and from chin, and my mother
trying to resuscitate him with cup of
cold water, which he was too faint to
hold to his own lips, while saying to US:
"Don't be frightened. There's nothing
the matter; little tired, that's all
little tired. Ever since that day, when
[ hear people talking about the indie
pendent life Of farmer I see through
the sham. Farmers want not your fat
teries, but your sympathies.
Encourage the doctors. You praise
the doctor when he brings you up from
an awful crisis of disease, but do you
praise the doctor when, through skill
full treatment of the incipient stages of
disease, he keeps you from sinking
down To the axuf11l n1.icic2 Thnro ic q