The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1910-06-15
EAsM LIEE EAsT AND ssEsENI

When Dir. Roossyelts informal
Commission on Country Life gaii
down 10 The work 81 Investigating
farm lie it viii be sirncs with The
contrast belween ihe iarIn III the
pgsssiit and tlat d tie past Wltasl
81 d generation I'll genera eoatl ticit
ot atiaits 81 rural homes has teeE5|
fefoiatlpnized In Tie days gpt
erahaiath theirs the country family wis
remote Isolated lonely Life then
Nas npnot on6ns. Existence was
dtiidgerys Labor was continuous
Bitheaities were all but insnperableI
soeIabtiity5 was an Unknown auahtis
III Bad roads made travel ptactiCalr
" out Of the question. They made
crop moving prodlgions thing,
scarcely less prodiglous, It appeared
10 the crop mover. than the moving
OF the world. At first there we're no
railroads, and when The railroads
came they had to be reached some-
how and 1t was an. event to 60 ITO
town. To be at home was to be en-
ttrely out Of touch With a neighbor
miles distant. The mail service eith-
err did not exist or else it was meag-
err. Lack of adequate machinery
made the task OF handling the crops
one Of enormous difficulty. House
comforts were few. Water had to bel
carried from the spring or well. Gas
was unknown.
Not all the farmers Of the present
have taken advantage Of the possible
ties Of farm life. They have not ex-
pended their earnings on all the con-
yeniences and comforts which they
might have, and have cheaply. But,
nevertheless. the average farm home
of today is so different from that Of
the ether days as. to seem of total
ly different world. The telephone ta
to be found in almost every rural
house, and this instrument puts
neighbor in communication with
neIghhor and with the outside world
every minute of the day and night
Good roads are expanding in all dt-
rectIona, and SO travel Is easier and
crop-moying simpler. The railroads
have extended more generally and
their trains run more frequently, and
the trolley here is one of the most
important of the agencies that have
wrought the revolutlon-h brought
country into close proximity to the
city. Free rural delivery brings the
farmer his mail. including his daily
newspaper, regularly Invention has
produced machinery that makes tho
labor Of farming less burdensome.
Even the automobile has invaded
farm life and given swiftness OF loco
motion as well as pleasure to the
rural lnhabitant There is no longer
the need of carrying water from the
spring, for it Rows through pipes in
the house. The smoky oil lamp is
not as prevalent as It. used to be. for
a simple system has been devised for
placing gas in the home All these
things have softened the life on the
farm. The farmer aldl family arc
now IN the world. and lot out of It.
they Have d different outlook from
the isrfdS view OF tic BSgone times
Comfy dAdghtsfs have IL social life
which their grandmothers did not
have. Country sons are up!to-date
young fellows we speak OF the
change that has come over the aver
age farmer and his family; not over
all--who rub elbows with up-to-date
people.
This Is the contrast which the COM
mission will note. While there are
yet millions of farmers who do not
live right, the general conditions Of
the present are so much better than
former ones that there Is reason for
rejoicing. 1t is to arouse the back
ward, apparently, that President
Roosevelt undertakes his campaign.
He cannot overcome this backyard
ness by legislation. Even II he
could, such Legislation would be
vicious In It's paternallstlc and cen
tralistlc drift. But any influence he
or anyone else might exert in the
direction Of further improving the
conditions Of country living for the
sake Of the happiness OF the rural
inhabitants themselves, as well as.
for the economic value Of attractive
farm life, is certainly to be:Selcomed.
One Of the principal harushlps Of
the farmer in recent years has been
the scarcity Of labor, When harvest
time rolls around he lacks sufficient
hands to do the work, BY making
rural life inviting this hardship ought
10 be reduced. The lure Of the cities
has been the great drawback. The
youth has been drawn away from the
farm. Instead Of carrying on the
work Of the parent he seeks the
chances Of the city. In most in
stances lie would have been more
prosperous and more successful and
therefore, happier had he stayed OH
the farm.
One Of the noteworthy aspects Of
kh