The Garland globe. [volume] (Garland, Utah) 1906-191?, 1909-02-20
ON COUNTRY LIFE
SPECIAL MESSAGE FROM WHITE
HOUSE TO CONGRESS.
President Suggests Social and euse
ness improvements for the sene'
fits OF the Dweller in Agri-
cultural Communities.

the president sent a special message
10 congress, substantially as follows:
To the Senate and House of Represent
etiyes; / transmit herewith the report
of the commission on country nte' AT
the outset | desire to point out that not
A dollar of the public money has been
Maid TO any commissioner for his work
on the commission 49,,
THO report shows the general condition
| Of farming life In the open country, and
points out its larger problemsi u lndl-
| Gates ways In which the government, ma
| tional and state, may show the people
| how TO solve some OF these problems; and
| Il suggests a continuance OF the work
which the commission began.
Tho object Of the commission on coun-
| try life. therefore, Is not to help tne
farmer raise better crops. but 10 can ms
attention to the opportunities Tor better
| business and better living on the farm.
| II country life IL to become what IL
| should be- and what believe 1t ultimate
| w will bc-one OF the most dignihed, ue-
| srable, and sought-after ways OF earn
! n living-the farmer must take adVan-
| tage not only of the agricultural KNOW
edge which is at his disposal but OF the
| methods which have raised and continue
| TO raise the standards OF living ana IN
| telligence In other callinRs.
| Those engaged In all other industrlaf
and commercial callings have found II
| ditlons to organize themselves for mu-
' t,ial advantage and for the protection OF
| their own particulaf interests in rela-
ton TO other interests.
Now, whatever the state may do to-
| ward improving the practice OF agri-
| culture, II is not within the sphere or
| any government to reorganize the farm
| ers' business or reconstruct the sOclaI
| life OF farming communities. IL is how
| ever. quite within Its power to use It's
| ~. ola nj mn
| which II can control for calling public at
| tention to the needs OF the facts. For ex-
! ample II is the obvious duty OF the gov
| eminent to call the attention or farmers
! TO the growing monopolization OF water
power. The farmers. above all, should
| have that power, on reasonable terms. for
| cheap transportation. for lighting their
| homes and for innumerable uses In the
| daily tasks of the farm.
Necessity for Cooperation.
| The cooperative plan is the best plan
| OF organization wherever men have the
right spirit to carry 1t out Under this
| pIan any business undertaking Is man.
| aged by a committee; every man has
| one vote and only one vote and every
| one gets profits according to what he
| sells or buys or supplies II develops In
| dividual responsibility and has moral
| as well as financial value over any
| other plan.
| I desire only to take counsel with the
farmers as fellow-citizens. II is not the
| problem of the farmers alone that / am
| discussing with them, but problem
which affects every city as well as every
| farm I'm the country. IL Is problem
which the working farmers will have to
solve for themselves; but 1t Is a problem
| which also affects In only less degree all
| the rest OF us, and therefore IL we can
render any help toward Its solution, II Is
not only our duty but our interest to do
| so.
From all that has been done and
learned three great general and immedi-
ate needs OF country life stand out:
First, effective cooperation among
farmers. to put them on level with the
organized interests with whtch they do
| business.
Second, n new kind OF schools In the
country. which shah teach the children
as much outdoors as indoors and per-
haps more. so that they will prepare for
| country life, and not as at present, main
| ly for life In town
| Third, better means of communication,
including good roads and n parcels post.
| which the country people are everywhere.
and rightly unanimous In demanding.
To these may well be added better san
taton; for easily preventable diseases
| hold several million country people In the
slavery Of continuous III health.
To Develop Country Community.
To improve our system OF agriculture
seems to me the most urgent of the tasks
which lie before us. But II cannot, In
| my judgment, be effected by measures
which touch only the material and tech
niCal side of the subject the whole busl-
ness and life OF the farmer must also
| be taken into account Such consldera-
lions led me to appoint the commission
on country life. our object should be
| to help develop In the country commu-
nifty the great ideals of the community
Ifa ~ Ntan n al oh lar
of the most important adjuncts to this
end must be the country church, and
| invite your attention to what the com
mission says OF the country church and
OF the need OF an extension of such work
as that Of the Young Mems Christian as
ISOLATION In country communities. Let
me lay special emphasis upon what the
commission says at the very end OF Its
report on personal ideas and local leader
ship, Everything resolves itself In the
! end into the question OF personality
| Neither society nor government can do
much for country life unless there Is vol
untary response In the personal ideals
OF the men and women who live In the
country In the development OF charac-
ter, the home should be more important
than the school. or than society at large.
When once the basic material needs have
been met, high ideals may be quite In
dependent OF income; but they cannot be
realized without sufficient income TO pro-
vide adequate foundation; and where the
community at large In not financially
prosperous II Is impossible TO develop a
high average personal and community
Ideal In short, the fundamental facts
OF human nature apply to men and WON
en- who live In the country Just as they
apply TO men and women who live In the
towns Given sufficient foundation or
material well being, the influence OF the
farmers wives on their children be-
comes the factor of first Importance In
determining the attitude OF the next gen
GRAFTON toward farm life. The farmer
should realize that the person who most
needs consideration on the farm Is his
wife. do not In the least mean that she
should purchase ease at the expense OF
duty. Neither man nor woman Is really
happy or really useful save on condition
OF doing his or her duty II the wom-
an shirks her duty as housewife, as
nome keeper, as the mother whose prime
function Is TO bear and rear sufficient
number OF healthy children, then she Is
not entitled to our regard. But II she
does her duty she Ii more entitled TO our
regard even than the man who does