The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1904-03-29

FREDERICKSBURG, Va, TUESDAY, MARCH 20. 1904

VINO are not present.
II the first man referred To who made
over $4,000 on hay had not had the
courage 10 write few letters he never
could have done what he did. With our
cheap postage, our free rural delivery
routes and our telephone systems all
over the country, there Is no way. OF pre-
venting the practically educated farmer
from doing business with ~ great dis
patch and in a. systematic way as Is
practical in other occupations | am
speaking of the art OF writing and not OF
penmanship The man who can express
his IDEAS clearly, pJintedly aud forcibly
on paper has an education az his com
mand that can be made invaluable TO
him
Professor Harmon. OF pittsburg, says
The experience Of handling from 200
10 800 letters per day from farmers
leads ME 20 believe that this statement
il true. Very few, even among those
classed AZ highly educated, know how
TO write "A good letter. The business
among rural residents could be increased
many fold if all farmers were inclined TO
write more, and would take more in
terest in this method OF doing business.
A proper education along this line will
provide for each man writing material
that will command respect and atten-
tiOn. Printed letter-heads and envelopes
are requisi "a in this direction.
Prot Harmon also says:
Well do | remember how the first
farmers letter head. which in bold let
ters read John Doe, iarmer, Dayton,
Ohio impressed me. Although it came
in a bu1eh of 80 or 100 Of other letters
IL was carefully laid aside and preserved
Inquiry disclosed that this man was one
OF the most successful, broad minded men
in the county 10 which he lived. He was
proud Of his profession, and was not
ashamed to let the world know his bust
ness. A man with supply ofstationery
of this kind at hand il more apt To keep
no his correspondence than one who
hasn't. let II man go into any kind oil
manufacturing or merchandising. inYOly-
ing a capital ui $500 or : 0OJ or more,
and the first thing be does il TO have bis
printed letter heads, blll-heads, enTelopes,
etc, etc. lt il business to do so, because
II il an al advertisement and recommend
alton combined. Probably 30 per cent
of the business Of this country is done
/ by correspondence Why should not the
/ farmer do bis share
/ A farmer should not only use bis knowl-
edge for the purpose OF 'pondence.
/ ln his daily labors he Ia working out Sc
rious problems that bear on future sue.
eesses or failures. Careful notes should
be made Of each They may save doing
the same things over next year The
man with the notebook il the man that
avoids many costly mistakes. Keep a
yearly history OF what you do, your sue
cesses and dissppointments in sowing
and reaping. The matter OF book-keep
ing enters into the success OF farming
more than many imagine. Every man
with tL1 capacity of caring or spending
a collar ought 10 be u boOk-keeper. he
ought TO keep a record OF every dollar
both going out and coming IN. he
should know the full meaning OF debit
and credit" and what goes under each
He ought TO be able 20 balance his book:
at the end OF the year, and thus know
whether be il gaining or losing. hi'
success depends upon tb.s as much as II
does on his planning and scheming. This
ia not all. A snAn who can express him
self we'll Cd paper can be great bene
factor TO ais fellow laborers. Suppose
he experiments on certain lines and dis
covers some truth that is worth money
90 him. He is misery indeed If he is not
willing 10 impart this knowledge to bis
strugeEng neighbor. Let him write II
out and publish il to the world and
thousands may be benefited, and he ID
mot injured. This is education, praetica
education, that stands for something
Arithmetic, while last is by no means
least in the make up of the farmers edu
cation Look out for the man thai
"figgers." He's going 10 get there with
both feet. A stub of lead pencil, proper
Iy used. is worth more on the farm thar
ayoke OF oxen. Do you anticipate some
thing new? Sit down and figure II ouI
and see where you are going to land. Il
NAV aid you in avoiding more trouble,
and dissppointments than you eyel
dreamed Of. When manufacturers con
template new scheme they first hgur'
ont the cost. They call in architects e
get ND plans. They get estimates on th'
outlay. They know where they are go
ing TO land before they jump. Why can
not this course be pursued In farming
oneratious or business enterprises con
nected with them? One OF the most sue
eessful farmers know has q cOmplet'
survey OF his farm. Each field Il
measured. mapped and numbered. Thil
cost him something, ,butit has been worti
every cent il cost each year since It hai
been done. Besides this he has figured
ont inst what rotations are best to keel
40 the fertility OF his farm and produe'
the best crops. II field No. had gooC
coat of manure last year No. gets il
this wear. II No. 3 has recuperated undei
a good coat OF grass for three or foul
wears IL goes into corn, and No. takes
the rest cure. His rotations are figured
out definitely, recorded carefully, and
carried out to a nicely. With him Il Il
corn. oats, wheat, aud grass, with
enough live stock on the place to con.
sume it all and keep all the fertility, and
there isn't a manufacturer or merchant
In the United States that is making d
larger per cent on capital invested thar
this man, and none OF them a.e having d
happier, pleasanter life.
Illustrations showing how figures on
the farm pay we'll might be carried or
indefinitely.
The fact cannot be overlooked that the
great majority of the farmers OF thi,
grand old Commonwealth do not attend
such meetings as these. They believe
that to make success at farming they
must "liye like hermit and work like q
horse" Farmers institutes are doioe
most excellent work, but the audiences
attending these meeting are made up BY
men who are wide awake and often dc
not need the knowledge impaired. The
AGRICULTURAL press Of the country Is DO
ing its full share to help spread the COS
peI of better methods, bot the papers ial
into the hands OF the better and more
enlightened classes. Ii is the mediocr'
and lower classes that need the he lp
When the problem Of reaching the strug
Cling masses who are striving to better
their condition and do not know how j
il solyed, when the latent spirits OF th'