Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1908-06-18

| enough OF any staple 10 export. Part
| Of Maine and Vermont afford the ex-
ceptions. Whereas the western and
southern farmer is principally con-
cerned in raising staples, and ships
| almost all he raises, accordingly be-
| ing independent Of the complacence
of the local storekeeper, the poor New
England farmer has to find his mar
ket in the village stores and take
what he can get and in barter, too.
How He is Punched.
The honest farmer is not so myth
cal as the basilsk and grimm, bul
Uhere are those who believe not with
UuL some reason that he belongs with
the fabulous monsters. But the New
iEIgIand farmer DOGS not often get d
cnance 10 try any agricultural wires,
and when Ia does, 1t is the worm
turning. You can hardly say the
BAN Doozling of the New England far
mer is punishment for his bamboozl-
ing Of others. He can seldom be the
aggressor because he seldom has the
cnance. A western man, accustomed
TO the Iordly agriculturist Of that re
gion, more and more man Of affairs
and education, beholds with amazemenI
the way tie New England farmer is
knocked GOWN and dragged out
Everybody takes a Whack at him. A
system Of squeeZes hardly less raml-
fed than that Of China, prevails. YOI
h
A cord Of wood is not a cord, but
has to have several inches knocked
off The cut down" the saw mills III
fict upon the farmer would constitute
a respectable yearly cut for respect
able mill. The farmers speak in awe
Of old man sO-and-so who cuts down
more than any man in the country.
In Indiana, they would hang him up
after a few Of his cut downs. If you
send sixteen cords Of some sort of
pulp wood, or several thousand feet
OF lumber, they will throw out from
an eighth to a quaTter-on the state
ment rendered. Try 10 recover this
rejected wood, try to have it shipped
back or to get possession Of it to sell
for cord wood in the town Of its re-
ceipt, and they ignore you. Not a
single tender word can you get out
Of them. Thieves! With due recogni-
ton Of the fact that they are pillars Of
the church and loud voiced in town
meeting, | repeat the word. Thieves.
The New England farmer brOOds over
his wrongs and his rebuffs. He medi-
tates raising potatoes and remembers
how they squeezed him at the store.
What's the use? He thinks of going
into his wood lot and cutting a quaint
ity Of timber and is deferred by the
recollection of how he was cheated on
the last consignment he sold. What's
the use? He reads in the paper how
the latest request Of the farmers was
denied by the legislature. Out west,
even unreasonable and unjust de-
mands by the farmers are granted.
The tact is, New England, for all its
talk of concern over its agriculture,
doesn't care whether it has any far
mers or not. Indeed, it is ashamed OF
its agriculture. Everything else in
New England holds a conceded emin.
.ence, New England manufactures, edu-
cation, penal systems, New England
city governments and city beautiica-
ton, and New England pie, there is
nothing like them elsewhere. New
England agriculture is the one weak
point. Just as a business concern will
sometimes close a branch because of
its poor showing, a branch which while
not causing a peCuniaTy loss, hurts the
concerns prestige, so New England
would be resigned if all of its far
mers We're doing well in Kansas. The
farmer is Of use to the ruling classes
merely as a provider of a summer
boarding house. That's all they need
of him, and for years taking summer
boarders has seemed the brightest
promise Of New England agriculture.
But He is Not A Degenerate.
Then too, the belief that the popula.
ton Of rural New England has not
merely deteriorated, but degenerated.
seems to afford comfort even to New
Englanders and is very relishfuI- to
the foreigner We have had a good
many hysteriCaI squeals from persons,
who finding badness in New England,
missed the fact that it was in
cident to humanity in general
For every New England derelction. the
western settlements of one continental
nationality will show five. and of a
second nationality, ten. 1t isn't sheer
depravity, for in the matter Of lying,
for instance. the chaste Irish are very
bad compared with the Continentals,
and in a horse trade, please give me a
Continental instead of a Yankee.
When I have read urid tales of New
England depravity, have sometimes
been moved to tabulate the criminal
record of some typical European com
munities of my former State, cookbook
ing wellpainted towns surrounded by
rich farming csunrry and let New Eng
land see how good her worst is. Theft.
violence. there would be not many in
stances Of these, but oh, the instances
LOT sexual remissness. Much of the
belief in a deterioration here. is dine
ito the miserable, cruel gossip of a
lsmall town
Not The Dregs.
Many persons get satisfaction from
icharacterizing the New England rus
tics as the "dregs" left by the with
drawal Of the best blood" to the cities