The daily silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1903-1907, 1904-11-26
MAKE LIVING FROM
AN ACRE
Geo. II. Maxwell Urges Every
Wage Earner 10 Cultitate
q Home Acre

Great Falls. Mont. Nov. 2L--The wage
earners of the country and those woo
would ameliorate the hard conditions Of
the aboring man and see him establish.
ed In comfort In home of his own w II
find some interest and profit in the cam
paign and lecture tour which is berg
made throughout the west by George ii.
Maxwell. executive chair man of the Ma
tional Irrigation Associat on. Mr.. Max
well has spoken at the principal cities in
Montana and his program takes him also
through Washington, Colorado, New
Mexico. Arizona. Texas. North Dakota,
besides large eastern centers.
The lamp of hope which he held cut
to the west and to the country at la ge
In a speech at Great Falls was that the
idea should be fosiered that any strong
man can from one acre of good ground
get a good living for himself and his
family.
Get an acre and I've on It," he said
get an acre and live on 1t! | wish
could burn that thought into the heart
of every work k.ngman In America. In
the west 1 would say, get an irrig glted
acre"
Mr.. Maxwell declared that IL every
man who now works eight hours day
four hours a day in the factory and four
hours day on his own acre of irrigated
land he would double his income and he
would insure himself. his wife ard his
children against want when the days
wage should sop.
"Rut we must have different system
OF national education from the preseat
one" he said. which trains our ch iaref
away from the land. THIS idea is gain
ing ground We have manual tran,
and domestic science taught In some of
our schools. That IS eett ng bas k TO
the true system of education where, In
steao of the old folks remaining at home
to die alone while the boys go to the
cites with the Idea of becoming million
aires. but to end as counter jumpers and
clerks, the making and keeping of
home Is taught.
zone more thing should pe courle1 10
the school system. Every chi d should
be made a gardener and a horticulture
list. The winter term should be devoted
half to books and half to work on tn.
benches. and a summer term shouc be
devoted to agricul ure. The boys woulu
learn to build home and the girls TO
care for them as wives and mothers
''The evil of our life is not that the
rich are getting richer or the poor are
getting poorer. but II Is the lack of cu-
tivation OF the soil. No man can oppre $
sturdy race of farmers that own and
till the land
THE movement is already begun TO
establish farm acre colonies where men
in the east who have a little money can
come out onto an acre OF lard and live
there for a year or two years and be
taught how to farm. Then they will be
coonist farmers worth having and this
will relieve. too the congested cente~s
Of the east. There are thousands and
hundreds of thousands of such men in
the east. and every live community in
the west should plant such a farm In
struction colony. The work has been be-
gun In Arizona and when its good results
are seen the plan will be adopted by
every western section, for II will appeal
TO all classes. 1t VII appeal to every
western man who desires to see his
country settled by thrifty citizens II
will appeal to the merchant 1t will APP
peal to the man who has land to sell.
'If man. intent upon accomplishing
the most with a large tract of lard, had
one milton acres, and 1t were possible
for him TO have a prosperous family y,
every five acres. would he divide It in'o
farms OF square mile or of a quarter
section? with small farms come good
reads The dreaded isolation of the old
farm life gives way to ne'ghbors every
few hundred yards. and all the comforts
OF modern civil zation become poss'bc.
"The land Is the greatest resource of
nation. Our public lands shoud be Sc
curely held for the real home makers.
There are men In the west who have ac-
quired. as was never intended by con-
gress. great tracts of Thousands OF acres
OF land without settlement and without
the building OF single home.
These laws are still upon the statute
books. Moreover. the great livestock
interests and the spectators are intent
upon keeping them there and even upon
attempting to secure new land specu'