New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-05-27
IN THE COUNTRY.

The purchasing power
Of money. however. must
be taken into considera-
ton. What avail are high
wages when expenses in
crease proportionately?
Instead OF looking at the
wages paid, see whether
the beefsteaks. potatoes
and pumpkin pies are
scarcer on the rural
table. Even admitting
more pork than steak.
there is the item OF fresh
eggs and garden vege-
tables. Further. the un-
skilled laborer, or farm
hand, is better off than a
street sweeper or sweat
shop slave.
The fewer hours mean
a swifter pace and great
er strain. Ten hours in
the open air with a leis-
urelY incoming and snacks
between meals is not so
bad as eight hours in a
foully ventilated shop
a m i d perilous, nerve
racking machinery. All
inside work in the coun-
try goes at an easy gait.
A rainy day is a holiday
and winter means a long
vacation for the farmer.
Unionism is little needed
by the country worker.
Instead OF being part OF
a machine. he enjoys a
friendly relation with his
employer. The farmland
is proverbially one Of the
family.
! How many Of those who
start out TO make a city
career succeed What a
I chance has a small mer-
chant against the great
business houses. backed
by millions Of capital? A
/ crossroads storekeeper is
more apt 10 gain a COM
/ potency and is in less
danger of becoming abso-
lutely bankrupt. Heads
OF departments and chiefs
of police are rare COM
! pared to the majority. It
sounds nice 20 be a mid
/ dleman and take the main
profits, but that, too, is a
gamble.
The extent Of oppCr-
tunity is largely an illu-
! sion. To most people a
/ variety OF occupations
means a waste of time
and energy. A little
/ cIerking, canvassing. sign
painting and what not
may qualify for a jack
I of-all-trades, but does
not usually lead 10 an
eminent height. Every
/ city is full of these vain
ly versatile persons. The
average mechanic, on the
| other hand, has no ability
I. to shift even from one de-
j partrnent of his trade to
another. A cou ntry
print carpenter or
! plumber has a wider
knowledge than the spe-
ciaIized tradesman of the
town. The country printer
may become an employer
editor. the carpenter a
house builder; not so the
urban typesetter and mar
rowly trained cabinet
maker. If big law firms
employ young attorneys
il is often TO the latter's
detriment, who are COM
PEELED 10 perform a mar
row task in lieu of the
beneficial general work
they would have in a
country squire's Office.
A doctor is compensated
I for fame and fortune
with q comfortable home,
the great respect and es-
I TEEN OF his community.
Like the lawyer and the
clergyman, he is one of
I the leading lights. Fees
are small, but there is no
great expense for medi-
cines and equipments.
Temptation TO drug taxi
ing through overwork and
illegal operations through
/ financial need is not his.
Art may not be produced
for rustics. yet the coun-
try is its inspiration.
Painter. poet and musi-
clan find their principal
subjects in nature.
Women have plenty Of
occupation IN the country.
Is II not better to teach
q district school than be
a poorly paid shOpgirl or
a typewriter living in a
hall bedroom? Music
teaching. d c Or q I ! We
painting, fancy sewing,
chicken raising, market
gardening and fruit pre-
serving are other activi-
ties of the country wom-
an that may serve for pin
money or as a regular
means of livelihood. And,
unlike her urban sister.
when she has once gained
a husband she knows how
10 manage the home.
The quick rise OF the
city is enticing, but the
swift and profound falls
must be also noted. Mill
ifonaire to-day and beggar
tomorrow does not dis
turb the rural balance.
Nobody starves in the