Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1909-05-28
er. suffers in his business.
Others are Organized.

He cannot hold his own with these
huge corporations. They squeeze him
out whenever their interests clash
with his. The elements of a great
nation were flung into America, and
as chemical elements in a solution be-
gin to crystalize, so the great manu-
featuring. industries have crystalized,
combined and hardened. Something
was wanting in rural life, and the
atoms remained isolated; no crystali-
cation took place, and the farmer
feels helpless and defenseless.
Education.
One thing America did for its chill
dren everywhere-it educated them,
educated them for the towns. 1t
filled the minds of its children with
ambition. Everyone of them almost
has been taught to walk along that
imaginary road which leads on from
log cabin to White House, and they
all want to walk at least a little along
the way: Country life, with its dis
abilities, can not satisfy the higher
intellectual and social aspirations of
a people trained in this way. They
all want to climb to the top. Soon
America will get top heavy and weak
on its legs, and will collapse if some
thing is not done; and President
Roosevelt, who has no fear of being
called to account for his advice, has
told the American farmers plainly
that their most immediate need is or
ganizatiOn. "The great immediate
need of country life," he Says, sis
effective cooperation among farmers
to put them on a level with the organ
lied interests with which they do bus
mess" His commission tells him
that the life of the unattached man in
the farming industry is matter call
ing for the attention of the state.
The Trusts.
1t is the condition of the wayfarer
crushed under the chariot wheels of
reckless armies. He can not even
shout out his distress. The means of
making a public noise are more and
more in the hands of trusts. The
papers are getting syndicated and
amalgamated and trust controlled. II
is rapidly becoming a world where the
strong man, unattached to party OF
organization, will find life as perilous
as a pedestrian finds the highways
with ceaseless motor traffic.
New Kind Of Schools in the Country
The second thing Roosevelt advo-
Gates is new kind of schools in the
country which shall teach children as
much outdoors as indoors, and per-
haps more, so that they will prepare
for country life and not, as at pres
ent, mainly for life in town.. We
have in Ireland that kind of school
Roosevelt condemns, where the ideal
is to give the child a general kind Of
education which fits it for nothing in
particular. The theory of this kind
of education is to develop brain and
general capacity, so that brain car
afterward be applied to farm or fac
tory or shop or counting house. The
effect in practice is to stunt brair
and smother capacity, and to lead t.
general inefficiency IN anything
Irish school readers are the most COS
mOpOlitan cOnglOmeratiOns. We neve
yet came across an arithmetic whicI
was devised with a view to use of tn
art of calculation by farmers. Al
Irish arithmetic for use in rural dis
tricts should draw all its example
for the farmers business. Every cal
culation a farmer, a, creamery mana
ger, mill owner, country shOpkeer
er, would have to make in the ord
nary course of his business should b
illustrated by examples so as to max
them familiar and easy of use. W
offer this idea to any stray mathema
tician who wants to make money. !
will supply want which is all tn
worse because it has never been fell
We, too, in ireland want a new kin
of rural school, where before a boy
let loose on a farm he will at leas
come to his work mentally equippe
to meet its difficulties. and with
high idea of the Importance and dig
nifty of his calling.
Magnify the Occupation of Farmer