The Republican journal., 1908-11-26
An Indiana Farm Hand
Writes an Interesting Letter About Cour-
try Life.

try Life.
WASHINGTON, D. c., November %.
An Indiana farm hand has written let
ter to President Roosevelt about the
work which the Country Life Commission
is carrying on. The President has turn
ed the letter over to the Country Life
Commission, and the Commission has
asked the farm hand to write some more.
81 have been a farm hand just
long enough" says the Presidents cor
respondent, ito learn the cause of so
many sons and daughters and well-mean-
ing, reliable farm hands leaving the
beautiful farm and country and going to
the city. A lack of order and system on
the farm and too long hours for day is
what is driving the best minds from the
farm to the city and shop. What can we
expect of a hand, or the farmers wife
and her posterity, in the way of intel
lectual development, when they get out
of their beds at $50 in the morning and
work from that time until CT Up. m. :?
And no attention paid to the sanitary
conditions Of the home, and necessary
.conveniences on the farm for doing the
farm work with the least labor and
time
This man has given the Country Life
Commission some very interesting first
hand information about rural conditions
and recommendations, based on a long
experience in farm work and farm life.
He has worked for all kinds Of farmers,
good and bad, he says, ard he has always
had his eyes open to detect the causes of
their success or failure. He has drawn
his own conclusions and sets them forth
in downright, straightforward fashion.
Education pays in farming, he says.
The farmer who plans out his work and
carries it through in a systematic, bust
ness-like manner, just as the city man
does. will be able to shorten the hours of
labor. $50 many farmers measure
everything on the farm from the stand
point of muscle, he continues, "and are
VNtl Stl4t III StltlS SloCh III Olll-
ers. l decided several years ago that
life is too short to work for Peter Tum-
bledown farmers
Now, Mr.. President" ''you can take,
this for what it is worth. | have not
given you half Of my experience The
Country Life Commission has written
him that his suggestions are so useful
that they hope he will send more.
Compel the farmer to be business
man," he says-"Go into the homes of
some of the farmers and the so-called
farmers and ascertain how they live and
learn of their methods of doing the bust
ness in which they are engaged. And
you will be surprised what a variety you
will find. Ascertain what they read, and
what stress they put on the literature
that comes into their homes Gf any comes)
bearing on the business they are en-
gagged in. See what per cent study their
business.
Give me the educated farmer as
boss and the educated farmland as a
hand, When l come in contact with
hand or farmer that studies his business
find him advancing, and it is pleasure
to work for such men.
The majority of the farmers are
eight-hour men, that is, eight hours in
the forenoon and eight in the afternoon
Eight or ten hours on the farm cannot
well be adopted in all cases, but it need
not be from fourteen to sixteen hours.
If the family arise every morning at S
clock and the wife and daughters at
tend to the household duties, and the
farmhands and sons attend to the chores
and go to the field at o'clock and work
until II or IL 80, and go to the field again
at l and keep at it until O. clock, and go
to the house and eat the supper and then
do the evening chores, they have done a
farm days work. Regular hours for
work, and regular hours for meals, and
regular hours for sleep, and regular
hours for rest and recreation, with plenty
of standard papers and books, including
the best agricultural papers and books,
and full faith in God, and good grub, is
wanted.
The family should rise at o'clock on
Sunday morning as we'll as on week days,
and do the necessary Sunday morning
chores, and then go to church and show
the business man in the city that Sun
day on the farm does not consist in
changing the stock from one field to
another, or sailing it, or unloading load
of hay that was brought in on Saturday
evening.
Coming to the meals at the meal
hour makes it easy on the wife so she
can arrange her household duties in Or
der, as can also the husband his farm
work.
''Men of worth and standing in the shop
and city tell me that if order and system
were used on the farm they would go
back to the farm. If the farmer wants
to keep his sons and daughters on the
farm he must not lengthen the hours for
a days work at both ends. Limit the
hours of work on the farm to twelve or