Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1909-12-02

RATE WE LIVE At DANGEROUS

RATE We LIVE At DANGEROUS
Believes It Will Destroy Whole Moral
Fabric of the Nation-Too Many
Consumers. Wants More Producers.
Says Money Should Be Spent on
Farms. Not Guns.
james J. Hill. the ! oneer of the
northwest and one OF the most con.
spicuOus railroad men of the world.
believes that the United States must
recede from its extravaganza. the Lu.
cullian way of living, and get back to
the old way Of hog, hOminy and milk
or else go to destruction
MOT only America. but Europe" he
said recently To an interviewer mt his
Office in New York. lis afflicted with
the germ of rpcklessucSS. our ma
tional legislature sets the pace.
We are spending millions on top of
millions for The army. fer the navy,
when we need neither For congress
TO appropriate ne several hundred
millions annually. is it does. tor tie
guns of the shil Is encouragement Ior
the iudiyidual to talk about warfare
when there isn't any war cloud appar-
cnt anywhere.
Commercial War Needed.
Grant said. Let Us have peace
But rs Napoleon desired forAlis time
and his reign. this country %erms to
wish war And why and for What?
What reason have we to combat. cX.
cept commercially. any foreign power:
And yet, speaking soberly, | will say
that we must do something quickly
toward regaining our trade with other
countries.
Germany. England and France are
advancing aud pre-empting territory
that naturally belongs TO us. We eau
recover that trade only by eucourag
ing shipping Industries. by more mark.
ed methods of inviting trade. by sys
TENS OF reciprocity. by competition
the latter. after all. being the real key
note OF commerce.
Were in control OF the finances ol
this government | should spend more
for the development of the farm and
less for the Euencss of firearms.
should have agricultural stations sit
uated in all parts OF the nation where
one might come to be taught how to
grow TWO blades OF grass where but
one grew before
Have Too Few Producers.
Think Of the congestion in the cities
How long can this nation survive an.
der present conditions? We have few
producers, a multitude Of consumers
| have forgotten the figures. but some.
where have read that 20 per cent OF
the people live in city houses. steam
heated fats, in homes unsuited foI
health. unequipped for the sturdness
necessary for the development of our
manhood. ! should like to see the gov.
Nrnmeut spend millions in tAghrucour
agemcnt OF men and women sCIug ia
the country, there to live as Gol in.
tended they should live--to raise ,hi!.
dren, produce grain. meat and milk
We must get out OF the notion that
We are living for the present II is 4
bad system Of society that prompts the
well being OF today. caring nothing foT
tomorrow. for those who come after.
People Should Go to Farms
millions upon millions OF acres liz
1ndisturbed in the west. in the south
and even in the east. You have pov.
erty stricken people Ia your great cit.
les. children who are denied the privi.
legPs OF education. mothers who must
go through life with tear stained eyes
husbands and fathers with burden,
they can i'll afford TO carry. And why!
Because OF their nonproductiveness.
This country as government ulti.
mately must go backward unless wa
induce the people TO go TO the farms
out in the country where health may
be obtained. where a man may make
q living. where the boys and girls may
so hopfooting it over hill and valley,
gaining strength with every step.
The desire seems 10 be for the
young to get TO the city. That desire
must be circumvented. dissipated by
some sort of method. We must make
the country life as attractive 10 the
young as the city is. We must teach
them that where the city AFFORDS dol.
lar the rural communities will contrib
ute 50. And that Is true unless one Is
a genius.
You nsk about the prosperity of the
nation. 1t was never better Crops
have been good, mortgages have been
wiped away by the millions. new fields
have been opened. new cities built, new
railroads constructed. others planned.
Peace reigns. can see no black spot
anywhere. There will be no central
bank. The country will not stand for
1t.
let congress and the various state
legislatures take more catholic view
OF the railroad situation. Let them re-
member that the railroad investor has
his money at stake. that he has con
tributed something toward the deve-
Opment of the country, that he is uei-
ther thief nor robber. as some
would have his countrymeu believe.
and then we will have more homo
geneous nation. less trouble. more -four
and bacon sides in our pantries fewer
suicides, greater bank accounts in our
savings institutions. better mrra
I'VE must learn to be less 20.
giant. We must be taugh,
stand that at the rate our Ist re