The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1907-05-31

must be considered In our country
life there must be social and intel
iectual advantages as, well as a fair
standard Of physical comfort. There
i must be in the country, as in the
town, d multiplication of movements
for intellectual advancement and So
cial betterment. We must try to raise
the average OF farm life, and we must
also try to develop 1t so that Ii shall
offer exceptional chances. for the ex-
ceptional man.
"of course. the essential things.
after all, are those which concern ali
Of US as men and women, no matter
lwhether we live in the town or the
country, and no matter what our oc-
cupations may be- The root problems
are much the same for all of us.
i widely though they may differ In OUT
ward manifestation. The most inn
portant conditions that tell for hap
piness within the home are the same
for the town and the country: and
the relations between employer and
temploye are not always satisfactory
on the farm any more than In the fac
tory All over the country there IS a
constant complaint Of paucity Of farm
labor Without attempting to go into
all the features OF this question, /
/ would like to point out that you can
never get the right kind, the best.
kind, of labor IL you offer employment
only for a few months, for no man
worth anything will permanently ac-
F., cept system which leaves him in
tdleness for half the year And most
! important of all, / want to say a spe-
cial word on behalf of the one who is
TOO often the very hardest worked
laborer on the farm-~the farmers
!; wife, Reform, like charity, while IL
should not end at home, should GER
| tatniy begin there: and the man.
whether he lives on a farm or In a
town, who Is anxious TO see better
social and economic conditions pre-
vail through the country at large,
should be exceedingly careful that
they prevail first as regards his own
womankind. emphatically believe
that for the great majority OF women
the really Indispensable industry iri
which they should engage is the in
dustry of the home. There are ex-
ceptions of course; but exactly as
the first duty of the normal man fs
the duty of being the home maker.
SO the first duty OF the normal woman
Is to be the home keeper: and exactly
as no other learning is as important
Tor the average man as the learning
which win teach him how TO make
his livelihood, so no other learning IS
as important for the average woman
as the learning which win make her
q good housewife and mother. But
this does not mean that she should
be an overworked drudge. I have
hearty sympathy with the movement
TO better the condition OF the average
tiller Of the soil, Of the average wage
worker, and / have an even heartier
sympathy and applause for the move
nent which Is to better the condition
of their respective wives. There ii
plenty that Is hard and rough and dis
agreeable in the necessary work of
actual life; and under the best cir
cumstances, and no matter how TEN
DER and considerate the husband, TN:
wife will have at least her full share
OF work and worry and anxiety; bat
II the man is worth his salt he will
try 70 take as much as possible OF the
burden off the shoulders OF his help
mate. There is nothing Utopian In
The movement; all that Is necessary
~ TO strive toward raising the aver
age, both Of men and women, to the
level On which the highest type OF
faniily now stands, among American
farmers, among American skilled me-
chanicS among American citizens gem
erally;f for In all the world there rs no
better and healthier home life, no
finer factory of individual character.
nothing more representative OF what
Is best and most Characteristic In
American life than that which exists
IN the higher type Of American family:
and this higher type Of fAHnEiy Is to
be found everywhere among us, and
Is the property OF no special group
of citizens.
The best crop Is. The crop Of chill
dren; the best products of the farm
are the men and women raised there-
on; and the most instructive and prac~
tical treatise on farming, necessary
though tney may be, are no more nec-
essary than the books which teach lis
our duty to our neighbor. and above
all 70 the neighbor who ls of our own
household You young men and women
Of the agricultural and Industrial coll
leges and sehooIsand, for that mat
ter. you who so To any college or
school--fnust have some time for light
and there IN some light read
ms quite as useful ais heavy reading.
provided of course that you do not
read IN a spirit Of mere vacuity. Aside
from the great classics. and thinking
only Of the many healthy and stiFln-
ating books of the day. It ii easy 10
pick out many which can really serve
as tracts, because they possess what
many AVnwed tracts ayaH treaKaknS a.