Mower County transcript., 1902-12-31

FARMER BEN'S COLUMN.
I I see some more of the archdukes
and crown princesses Of Europe are 10
trouble and are regarded weak IN the |
upper story and mentally dilapidated.
I don't wonder little bit at it., The
facti is that the so called royal blood is
about as defective and weak as you
could findif you hunted for a thousand
years and it all comes of inbreedin:.
The royal galoots are awful perticular
about lettin' in anythin' outside of the
royal line and so they inbred until the
race vitality gets good-for-nothilln':: Y !:
Why, my wife changes roosters every
spring SOS not to get too close relation
ships. There amt breeder from Tom
Rough to Joe Pollock that would use
the same masculine quadruped on his
stock year in and year out. The trouble
with some of our breeds today that
makes 'em so tender and weak and
unprocre~ tive is that they are crossed
too close in the family instead of goin'
to expense Of gettin' new and unrelated
stock. l tell you there amt any differ
in breedin' humans from breedin
animals unhuman. You inbreed and
you get fools and cripples and lunies
and all that! If the royal families
were half so brightj about breedla' as
Farmer Ben is they would be lookln'
all the time to marry into outside
bloods SOS to get fresh vigor and
strength. The English blood is sup
erior because it was mixture OF Anglo
and Saxon and Norman and [ don't
know what and Americas vlrlllty
comes from there bein' the blood OF
Europe, Asia and Africa mixed up all
together in our veins. l reckon the
royal blood would be wonderfully
toned up by gettin' little common
Irish or Dutch mixed in for change.
Now what do you think about
Farmer Ben's fears that the scholars OF
today are degeneratin' from the high
standards..of their fathers and mothers?
I see that the Minneapolis president OF
the school board sent out lists OF words
to be spelled in punches of twenty
words each to try pupils that had at
tended high school two or three years
and what did he find? Out of the whole
collection Of 400 words sent out and
out of the whole Lbunch of lists only
two were spelled correctly and in some
of the lists as many as twelve or four
teen words sout of twenty were mis-
spelled. Now if this amt backin' up
Farmer Ben's fears, I'd like to know
what would. I tell you, say what you
please, the youngsters of today aln''
gettin' drill enough in spellin' and the
common branches. It's no use to say
spellin' don't amount to much. 1t does
amount to much and there never was
time since Moses graduated III Egypt
when correct spellin' was more esentla
than now. You take all the tpyeWrlters
and such and 1 tell you poor spellln
shows up plain and noticeable. There
amt any doubt among scholars bu1
what spellin' is key to the meanln
and roots and derivation and correct
idee of words. You've got to spell 'en
right to hav the rite hang of 'em. III
put my gal Sarah or my sister doW1
east up against the whole shootin
match on 'correct spelhn' and [ tel
you it's an accomplishment above lot
of the fads that are distractin' tn
young ones: minds, nowadays.
[ for one am sorry that senator Sabl1
is dead. There alwurs was lots to klcl
him that want half so smart but to M
notion he:was one of the most usefu
congressman we everahad. He WASH
a highblood: and arlstocrat and n
would know you the day after electio
same as the day before. He served hi
country in.wartime and had big hear
for thelold soldier. He did more fo
lake navigation improvement and th
500 canal and:the Mississippi than biz
ten others and he was big enough t
preside over the Chicago conventio
that nominated Jim Blaine. He didn
train much with the aristocrat polltlc
ans but when it comes to nprigh
downright political friendship an
honor I bet Sabin had more to th
square inch than some that fought am
abused him had to the square mile.
know what they told about him a.
o.I 11nnv bo ui1loin O0n