The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-01-01
CULTIVATE YOUR MORAL NATURE.

CULTIVATE YOUR MORAL NATURE,
A very learned jurist, in u talk re-
Gently to the students IN one of our
great law schools, urged them to cul-
tivate their moral natures, to which
every outsider, be he farmer, bust
ness man, preacher, or what-nOt, will
say "Amen, You lawyers certainly
need it, and unless you commence
when you are young you will never
do much cultivating."
Hold on d bit. Don't farmers need
to cultivate their moral natures also?
Is the farmer so thoroughly imbued
with an influence from a better
world, SO thoroughly free from the
atmosphere of duplicity, c~owardice,
or moral slOth that he does not need
to perform a little tillage in this
direction with whatever implement
seems best suited to the purpose?
Are farmers always honest with
each other, or with the world at
large? Is there any popularity in
the law of gravitatiOn on the farm
by which the big apples get to the
top of the barrel, as they have been
in every barrel of apples we have
bought lately? Do the large pOta-
toes gravitate upwards? Do the
lighter clover seeds and dirt always
blow back into the machine? Has
something gone wrong with the wind
as it Ome from the huller? Are
cattle as between farmers, or farm
ers and shippers, always weighed on
honor? Are farmers compelled to
have two eyes in dealing with each
other, one of which beams forth
kindness, love, and affection, and
the other, as Burns, says, ''peeking
through every other man with criti-
cal Inspection" Is the cream al
ways sent sweet to the creamery?
Are there no germs, or bacteria, or
yellow streakS in the seams of the
cans? 1t is not necessary to do a
41Ib1C OI4U NdO1Oh VI q L4O1d al d1lu W
such an extent hat we can always
realize hat we can live and act as
though under oath?
Is it not necessary to go a little
further back than this and get d firm
and everlasting grip on the everlast-
ing truth that it pays to live accord
ing to the highest moral standard
that the preacher can give US, which
was in fact uttered about nineteen
hundred years ago by a young car
penter from a little country town
called Nazareth, not in a negative
form, as it was by COnfucius five
hundred years before but in the posi-
tive, direct, and absolute form, in
these words Whatsoever ye would
that men should do to you, do ye
even so to them for this is the law
and the prophets?"
Men may be skeptical as to whether
after all this is so, and mOre's the
pity, but we wish to say in all seri-
BUSINESS to the young man now grow
ing up on the farms that there is
scarcely a bank, shop, railroad office
lawyers office, or any other office in
which men are employed, and especi,
ally in high positions, that is not
looking after young men that grow
big crops Of morals, character, and
live on a high plane, for the men
who achieve permanent success IN
life, whose money stays with them
as though it grew out of them, are
the men who have the highest stand
ard OF honor. Go into any bank In
any city and you will find that
money is given most readily not to
the richest man but to the man who
combines a high moral character
with first class ability, while the
man with first class ability and no
character finds that the bank has no
money to lend. A high moral char
acter alone will not make Il man
worthy Of credit, nor will it make
him rich in money, but the two COM
bined are worth nor than all for
tunes that were ever bestowed by
rich parents on their children
Wallace'S Farmer }