The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1902-02-12
BOYS BBOl) S AM ID III &, 4 Rh Rly[ f
A Contemp porary "A. Advises Young Men n ct
to Quit the Harm. +, 1
q ~ .. : a .'s---..- 4

The South has missed many Of lite
boys during the past lafteen or. twenty
years. They habe Idrifted TO other
parts Of the county, principally 70
cities, and in their suocesses have
contributed to the upbuilding Of conn
munities far away from their homes.
It is time for this program to be
changed. The South is offering great
er and greater opportunities &c its
Young men. But the change will not
lake place unless the leaders Of public
opinion in TIE South induce the boye
to take the right view Of the situa-
ton. The newspapers Of the South
are beginning to agitate the matter,
and an interesting contribution to the
discussion is the following from the
San Antonio Gazette: - /
"a contemporary advises young
men not to quit the farm, but to stay
there and reap the reward Of fruitful
industry. Advice Of chat sort comes
with better grace from one who has
demonstrated his preference for tho
farm by devoting himself to agricul-
ture than from one who sits in stuffy
Office in the oity and writes Of the de.
lights OF the country life more from
imagination than from actual expert
l.. a. y D. .
rienoe. II Z 3.
''The young man who has aspira-
lions for something higher and better
than mere plodding may be ever SO
much attached to childhood's happy
home down on the farm and all the
scenes and associations by which it is
endeared to him, but he has no sooner
quit school than the allurement Of the
city create G longing so11 ths w:aeT
field Of effort and the quicker returns
for labor which he is persuaded the
city offers.
"The humdrum life Of. the farm is
too dull and prosaic for the young man
Of mettle and spirit to plod through
when he contemplates the hustle and
activity, the oeaseless round Of gaiety
and the dazzling opportunities for ac-
cumulating wealth and for rising in
the scale Of business and social dis
tinction which the city is supposed to
afford. Is
"After the farmers boy has been
educated he begins to look upon farm
labor as beneath his dignity and fer
less renumerative than the gentel em-
ployment Of whatever sort to be found
in the city. And so when he strikes
out for himself, the farmer 5 boy who
has ambition seeks the busy haunts Of
industry to become q lawyer, q doctor,
clerk or anything else that will ena-
BILE him to live in. she city and enjoy
life. OF course it is all mistake, rs
many a farmers boy has learned from
sad experience in the city, where
labor is oongested and where the strng-
gle for existence imposes hard oondi-
tions, unknown in the country. The
temptation to vice and immortality
may be escaped, but the temptation TO
extravaganza is not SO apt to be. The
larger wages mag come tc the city
boy, but the greater saving is with the
farmer. and at the end of the year the
latter has the most to show for his in
dustry. Isl sss :,stt9ls ,l..S Z,
Nearly all the great men Of the
country in literature and sin statecraft
have come from the farm, and the
country air seems to have q specialfi fit
ness for developing the stronger intel
lect, as well as the higher virtues.
But proper efforts have not been made
to render farm life ideal. Bad roads
make the distances too long between
neighbors, and there is not sufficient
effort to form attractive social circles,
The farmer boy might have his bicy-
Gle and his pleasure vehicle, bill the
roads are 90 nearly. imp passable during
great part Of the year thatitis no
pleasure 20 travel over them. SO the
chances are chat he keeps Mother q
bicycle nor g buggy, and though he
lives only . Few. miles fssn town, he
would hardly think of driving In and
ont for an evening 8 5enjoyment in
town, which he might easily do under
more favorable circumstances.
:.It Id easy 70 SEQ how sasmsiifs
might be made far more attractive
than il nov 10; hove neighbors might
be brought closer together aud social
circles formed by improving the facili-
ties fos travel which virtually eliminate
distance. Rapid transit has built up
the saburbs of the cities, and may dio
as much Cor, the most remote country