The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1905-11-16

and means wherewith to CHECK the
constant movement of the young men
toward the cities. Yet we hear little
of plans to keep the girls on the farm.
With the ever-increasing list Of oppor-
tunities open to women in the business
and professional world, the rural COM
munities are being as swiftly drained
of the best of their young women as Of
their young men. Where one remains
at home to take an active interest in
farm lfe ten so forth to swell the
army of teachers, stenographers, book
keepers, clerks and factory hands-the
living tribute money yearly demanded
by the great centres of civilization.
One great factor in producing this
movement is that the girl on the farm
too often has no money Of her own,
but is dependent upon her parents for
clothes and spending money until she
marries. Many girls leave home for
hard and often uncongenia work in
an office or factory simply because it
offers them a chance of having money
Of their own
There is, however, an opening for
girls upon the farms, which. to those
who have taste for out of door life,
should prove more healthy, more at
tractiye, equally remunerative and less
combining than many professions COM
monty adopted by women. Some Of
the lines which appeal particularly to
women and along which women are
mi 70;
try-keeping, Bookkeeping, pigeon-rais-
ing, either fancy breeds or SQUADS:
fower-grOwing, either out Of doors or
green house work; forcing of early
vegetables, orcharding and the raising
of aromatic or medicinal herbs. There
is no reason, also, why women should
not own and operate successful grain,
dairy or fruit farms.
Within my own circle of acquaint-
ances three women have gone extern
siVely into poultry keeping, another is
successfully managing a fair sized
greenhouse, and another runs a small
fruit farm, with straw berries as it prin--
cipal crop. A girl just graduated from
college is going into partnership with
her brother in large fruit raising VEN
ture. Three of the women have been
successful teachers, and several are COL
lege educated. One girl the daughter
of a prominent New York business
man, became interested in a wornout
Vermont farm, which, was classed as
a losing number in the list OF the fam
ily's goods and chattels, since both
father and son had tried their hands
at managing it. She took course at
an agricultural college, begged and re-
ceived the farm from her father, and
within two years it was giving fair
dividends to its new manager.
Not all girls, of course, care for the
farm or for farm life, but give those
who do a chance. Let them have some
thing of their own, of which they bear
all the expense Of running, and from
which they receive all the income. If
they are interested in crops or vege-
tables let them have a plot of ground,
teach them how to till it, help them
secure labor and show them how to
market the produce to advantage If
they like poultry give them a flock of
two hundred or three hundred hens.
Make your girls take an interest in
farm life by giving them something to
be interested in, ard there will be few
er permaturely old women coming
home to rest, broken down by the ner-
vous strain of the schooroom, or the
long hours and close confinement of the
office-Philena B. Fletcher, in the New
York Tribune.