The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1904-10-21
FARMERS PROGRESS A
GREAT ADVANCEMENT
Since the War Nothing Has Been
Making Such Rapid Strides
as Agriculture,
THE DWARF BECOMES A GIANT
The Advantages Possessed by the
Farmer Today rs Compared
With Those Possessed
in 1860.

I1e farmer y ME ne udu lltlle COucSp-
ton of the real thing. lie knew nothing
OF the comforts that have come in these
latter days to ameliorate the lot of the
dweller in country a or of the many
appliances that were after his day to
give relief from the cares and burdens
which his countrymen so we'll realized.
There is more poetry in a sickle than In
q reaping machine, and in a fail than
in the full panoplied threshing machine,
but for convenience and utility there is
nc comparison-and that is the object
that the farmer considers. 1t is doubt
full IL the farmer of today realizes how
1mmeasurably superior is his lot to that
of the farmer of the middle ages or even
OF a century ago. Indeed it is not neces-
sary to go beck so far as that, for just
before the war will do very well. Then
the reaper was unknown to tie major
1y Of the agriculturists; the riding pillow
was unheard of and the self binder was
afar off. These are familiar examples.
but they are held to include the princl-
pal changes in the farmers life. In
deed, 1T is not unusual to find those who
think that there is nothing being done
now to make the farmers life easier.
They hold that all the good has been
done, and that the future holds nothing
that Will be of value. Yet it is doubtful
ST in any field there is more progress GO
ing on in the direction of Improvement
IN the lot of the people than in agricul-
ture and its art. The farmer is. per-
haps, because of his prominence in the
elections, an object of much solicitude
to the inventor and the politician. Any
thing that tends to make the farmer less
dissatisfied will make the plans of the
politician safer anything that will be
sAf renewal ha,ai+ IA tta flrD1aC will
make the inventor a fortune. for there
IS no class that reaches out more eager
1y after these things han the agricul-
tuy!st.
> A Study of the catalogues of the hard
ware and implement dealers is a revela>
tion to the uniformed. He will find
that there are every year added to the
list of machines many that are for pur-
poses CT which in his boyhood he never
knew. Then on the old irnplements are
Huch improvements as to make them
seem almost like pleasure carriages,
and to reduce the toll of the team and
mar to the lowest possible limit. In
seeding, cultivating and harvesting
times the farmer finds that his wants
have been anticipated, and there are
machines for every available use. The
wheat can be put in with or without
plOWlnS, Llt corn Cdu We Iidlilcd III
plowed ground or with a lister that does
away with the trouble; the hay can be
spread, scattered, raked and loaded all
without the touch Of a human hand to
rake or fork handle. Yes, more than
that-it can be unloaded from the was-
tSss sfddk: bsy' Tmiaauc1fffSTe1ry. AZ tbs man
has to do is to furnish the brains and
boss the work. The blacksmith has seen
no such Improvement. He still stands
at his forge or kneels over the horses
hoofs, as did the one who shod the
charger of Washington. The cooper still
drives the hoops. and the cobbler is still
ut the last, although the latter, instead
of being helped by the progress of at
fairs has been, to a great extent. driven
out of business by the machinery of the
shops.
There are other ways in which the
farmer has advanced. Out on the
plains is a number of farmers who are
progressive and belive in utilizing all
the good things of this life. They have
just completed after three years of ex-
pertinent and testing, a complete tel
ephone system that connects the farms
and ranches of the neighborhood. The
line starts from the depot of the little
\ VII VIZ kAAlt 80 w NAi@
farm houses e. the barbed Wire fences
that inclose the ranches. 1t was at nrst
feared that the elec5rictly would leak
down the posts, but by carefully welding
the ends of the wires there is no trouble
at all. The wires are carried over the
tops of the windmillS and across Me
roads over high poles, and there is no
break on the circuit. Tho ladies of the
households sit at the phone and have
long visits with one another every
morning. The men hay stock and
grain to sell, and they can ak TO !lfe
operator and find out what IS the mar
ket in the city without taking n half
day to drive to town. TIE wullen car
ask for the correct time If the clock
stops, and have the ;ate news talked 10
them every morning hefore otn mp
the dishes. Here is q chance for the
farmer to make a long step in advance.
The bane of the farm for the wonen
is the lonesom.neSs. But for that tnere
would be fewer cases II insanity among
tn settlers wives on tie prairics. The
man goes to town and sees his fellows.
The wife stays in the house and bakes
and washes until she is wild to escape
it. If she can go to the sitting room and
talk to the friend over on the other side
of the hill for a time, or can call up the
village dressmaker and see how the new
hat is being trimmed. she will be hap
pier. 1t will add one more feature OF
happiness to the lot of the farm and will
make the work lighter. 1t is not i'm
practicable. 1t can be used in many
of the sections of the west without any
change and little expense; in others
it will be necessary to buy the wire
The delivery of the mail to the farm
houses is but a matter of time. The ex.
periments carried on by the authorities
under the late administration We're all
very successful, and there was q wide,
spread delight in the sections where II
was used that will make it very popu.
lar. The farmer suffers more from soil.
tude thar from any. other source. He
is alone too much. and his family is g
sufferer more than he. His wife, wht
has shared the burdens of the struggle
IL Is standing by his side in the
lengthening shadows. is entitled to The
best there is. She will be helped by The
delivery of the mail more than in any