Middletown transcript., 1909-01-09
FARM NEWS AND VIEWS

Il
The way to make thrifty farmers and
housokeepers is to begin with the children
as soon as they are old enough to carry an.
egg or pick up chip. / have never yet
seen family become bankrupt where al
were iDdustriously working for family
prosperity.
The jealous Rpirit that sometimes gets
among children. and each is afraid the
other is getting too many favors, or that
the parents are not doing enough ior them,
has been the means Of scattering genuine
thrift from many household, diahearten.
ing the parents, and inviting poverty to
their door. Jealously is but self love, that
finds it more blessed to receive than to
give; but il bas never yet built up family
credit and prosperity. Children who are
not kind and helpful to their parents are
firebrands in the family, and do not
deserve the blessing that is promised to
those who honor their father and sheir
mother.
In these prodigal days, no doubt, it Is
much harder for a farmer to pay his
debts, and something over, than ii was
when simplicity indoors and out was the
order Of the day. OF course he wants his
family to be as well dressed and housed
as any other mans family. And why
shouldn't he? But the principle is as old
as the everlasting hills, that "a man can
not eat his cake and have it toon-he
must deny himself.
There are those who seem content il
they can pay their interest or rent, using
little or no effort to lessen the principal
sum Of their Indebtedness. They will buy
all they want first, and if there is any
remainder, save that. But there mostly
is no remainder-the only way that
remainders are obtained is by doing with-
out great deal that it would seem right
to buy; for who is better entitled to the
comforts and conveniences of life than
the farmer who feeds the nation? Il is
not his fault that people are so lavish
with money, for wasteful. luxurious
examples are handed down through pub
lie officials, churches, schools, society,
even the dead cannot be buried now in
the plain way Of former days; but il is his
fault if he does not do the best be can,
under adverse conditions, to stem the
tide of folly, and bring up his children TO
deny themselves and live soberly aud
righteously, that they may not swell the
ranks that are increasing in the land,
and filling up public institutions which
the taxpayers must support.
There is large contingency OF men in
every state who are not taxable, and an
other equally large one from whom taxes
can not be collected, so that thrifty men
have to carry the burdens of the thrift
less; and for the betterment of tire
country, it behooves every one so TO live
and bring up his children that they may
be self-supporting, and in this way try to
diminish poverty aud yagabondism from
the land
The farmer can realize lair prices for
bis products nov; but while labor is so
scarce and dear, mechanics wages soaring
almost out of reach, and everything that
he has to buy so high priced, the conun-
drum that confronts him is how to get his
work done, his property kept in repair,
and live without greater outlay OF money
than his crops will furnish.
He needs bright mind and tireess i'm S
duslrl --he must be q close observer of
causes and effects; he must not work at
random but settle in his mind what his
land will best produce, and what he wants
to do that he can do, and then set his
sails in that direction, and keep them set
and not be yeered about by every wind
that blows. A farmer who tries every
new thing is never proficient in any. He
is like ''the rolling stone that gathers no
moss"
II you think that you have Thousand
and one things TO do, drop the thousand
and attend strictly to the one; then, at
least one thing will be done in time and
be done thoroughly, and all the others
are likely to be, 10 turn.
There may be a few farmers daughters
who have had lodged in their brains the
notion that doing housework is not lady
like. For their benefit let us quote the
words Of Philadelphia woman, leader
of society: II have trained my daughters
as | was trained, to the performances Of
every detail of homework, not only that
they may know how inteliigently TO
direct servants, but also that they may
be able to meet every domestic exigency
that may arise" There's not word in
that about cooking or dish-washing or
bedmaking being degrading.