The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-08-31

luC tuai tE. health and vitality of our people are at least as well worth conserving as their forests. waters. lands and min erals and that in thlS great work the national government must bear most important part.
 Better Farming Conditions. I have spoken elsewhere also of the great task which lies before the farm CTS of the country to get for them selves and for their wives and chil- dren not only the benefits of better farming, but aIsolthose of better busi- ness methods. and better conditions of life on the farm The burden of this | great task will fall. as it should, main
 ly upon the great organizations of the farmers themselves.
 I am glad it will. for I believe they are well able to handle it. In particu- lar there are strong reasons why the departments of agriculture of the va riOus states, the United States depart ment of agriculture and the agricul- tural colleges and experiment. stations should extefd their work to cover all phases of life on the farm, instead of limiting themselves. as they have far too often limited themselves in the past, solely to the question of the pro- duction of crops.
 Nothing Is more true than that ex- cess of every kind is followed by re- action, fact which should be ponder 1 ed by reformer and reactionary alike. We are face to face with new concep- tions Of the relations of property to human welfare. chiefly because cer-
 tain advocates of the rights of proper ty as against the rights of men have
 been pushing their claiEas too far.s The man who wrongly holds that
 every human right is secondary to his | profit must npw give way to the ad- vocate of human welfare, who nightly maintains that every man holds his l property subject to the general right 1 of the community to regulate it's use to whatever degree the public welfare may require it. But I think we may | go stiU further.
 The right to regulate the use of wealth in the public interest is uni versally admitted Let us admit also | the right to regulate the terms and | conditions of labor. which is the chief element of wealth, directly in the in-
 terest of the common good The fun damental thing to do for every man is
 to give him the chance to reach place in which he will make the great
 est possible contribution to the public | welfare
 
 | No man can be good citizen unless | he has wage more than sufficient to
 cover the bare cost of living and hous | of labor short enough so that after his | days work is dope he will have time | and energy to bear his share in the | management of the community, to help in carrying the general load. 1 We keep countless men from being I good citizens by the conditions of life | with which we surround them. We need comprehensive workmen's com | pensation acts. both state and national
 laws to regulate child labor and the | work of women, and especially we | need in our common schools not mere | Iy education in book learning, but also | practical training for daily life and | work
 | We need to enforce better sanitary l conditions for our workers and to ex- | tend the use of safety appliances in industry and commerce both withiE and between the states.
 | Fight Mob Violence. I Also. friends. in the interest of tkx | workingman himself we need to set our faces like flint against mob vio- | fence just as against corporate greed | against violence and injustice and law l lessness by wageworkers just as mucn as against lawless cunning and greed
 and selfish arrogance of employers. | National efficiency has many factors I It is necessary result of the princi- | pie of conservation widely applied. Ia
 the end it will determine. our failure
 or success as a nation. National eff
 sfency has to do not only with natural
 resources and with men: it is equally
 concerned with institutions. | The state must be nsue efficient for
 the work which concerns only the peo- | pie of the state and the nation for
 that which concerns all the people.
 There must remain no neutral ground | to serve as a refuge for lawbreakers
 and especialiF for lawbreakers of great
 wealth who can hire the UIlpine legal
 cunning which will teach them how to
 avoid both jurisdictions.
 1t is a misfortune when the national | legislature f,iiis to do its duty in
 providing national remedy, so that
 the only na.ional artivity is the purely
 negative activity Of the judiciary in
 sorbidding the state to exercise power
 in the premises.
 I do not ask for overcentraliZation,
 but do ask that we work iD spirit of
 broad and farreaching nationalism
 when We work for what concerns our | people as whole.
 We are all Americans. Our common
 interests are as broad as the conti-