The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1911-11-01

see good pictures. hear good lectures
and music and live in and enjoy the
song and story OF the race. For surely
has not the same God made both after
His own pattern. and does He not want
both to enjoy, to see and to hear the
things He has made and that his
chosen has made for the enjoyment Of
the children of men? Thus vaguely he
| will reason In his best moments; and
to the city, with or without the old
folks he viii go. Many times the whole
family go to provide for the inteiiectu-
al side. And thus poor schools and
/ poor teachers drive and urge the boy
/ from the farm to the city and town,
/ while school and teacher have failed
to fit for farm life, and still less for
city life.
Not only does he fail to secure a
| square deal in the matter OF physical
and intellectual kinds and amounts OF
play and work; but in late years his
moral life has been threatened, which
life has always been the browning
glory of the country boy wherever
found. Imported laborers from the
/ slums and dives of our great cities
! have appeared once each year to assist
In caring for the harvest; and. too
often they have brought with them
crude ideas and low ideals OF life and
| It's responsibilities These they have
only too often instilled into the ears
| of unsuspecting country youth. Sud
denly a life goes out in the commit
ting Of some heinous crime, or falls by
| the wayside, moral derelict. Then they
| have brought with them the snuff box.
| cigarette can and whisky flask. This
agency supplemented by the smoking,
| drinking teacher and the sporting
youth in the town has here and there
kindled flame that is surely blight
ing the future of many country boys
The country town too, is here and
there. but surely, undermining the
moral vfgor so common to the coun-
try boy
This is largely by way of the limo
cent looking public poolroom- next
door to the blind pig dive and worse
that you will always find occupying
place Of prominence in nearly every
town in this state. The country boy
must in marketing the grain spend
some time In town. There Is no room
in the hotel lobby, he Is sick and tired
Of the horse stable, he has not the
money or clothes to loiter in the candy
store, he has not learned the art of
settling the nations problems in the
country town store, and there Is no
reading room with room for games
of checkers, chess and indoor athletics.
The good people of the town are too
busy getting his money to even think
OF building or renting such place for
him and their own boys, but there is
poolroom, and to that he goes. Reek-
ing with all manner of filth including
tobacco smoke and foul over heated
air, he. In company with other boys
from the country town spend an hour
or two or more. There he must listen
to foul jest on womankind. obscenity,
profanity and blasphemy In his other
experiences in town he sees or hears
little that is ennobling,--just the COM
monplace and the mad scramble after
the almighty dollar" The SNUG, self
conferred business man sometimes
found in these towns, is usually clean
after a fashion, but his religion and
exemplary conduct are too often re-
served for Sunday. He feels at times
that 1t is criminal negligence on his
part to let that country Jake" as he
calls him, get out of town until he has
gotten his last cent by foul or fair
means, so long as Ii Is within his pro-
visions Of some unethicaI law that he
has made for this case r
Case Not Hopeless.
Now, picture to you this over
worked boy this boy deprived OF Eiisi
schooling and the sweet things OF life,
this boy assailed by immoral forces,
/ would not have you believe that his
case is hopeless, and that there are
not some bright spots in this hard life.
Too often therein lies another item
wherein we fail to give. the country
boy a square deal. In this hard man
ual work with little opportunity for
scholastic training. he learns some
things that are priceless. He learns
the valuable art of making a living,
even If it is a poor one and hard earn
ed. He acquires some inder andence
and degree Of initiative. lie has
learned to know what it means to earn
his bread in the sweat of his brow. He
has been close to nature and natures
God. From both he has unconsciously
learned much. The miracle of birth
and the mystery OF death. the sweep
and changes OF the seasons, and count
less other things have taught him that
God reigns forever and that order is
heavens first law So you rarely And
him in manhood an infidel, or an an
archist; for he knows that neither one
indicates freedom Of thought, but
rather the absence OF thought on the
fundamental things. He has been in
the open sky with plenty of sunshine
and air, and usually an abundance Of
wholesome food. His hands and face
are tanned q reddish brown, but this
Is surely 40 becoming as the prison
pallor Of his city cousin. His clothes
are probably second hand, factory
made garments but he has earned
them several times over. while his city
cousin may never have earned suffi-
Client to- pay for his necktie, to say
nothing Of his clothes, and further, the
country boys clothes may smell Of the
milk-pail or of new -mown hay; but
this is surely no more to be deplored
than when the clothes OF his town
friend smell Of dyes, paints or cigar
ettes
And just another item in this bill
To insist that all boys must stay. live,
and die upon the farm Is ground far
distant from that on which a square
deal rests. II is un- American. just
as fair and sensible Is 1t to insist that
the daughter Of q merchant shall
marry the son Of INGREDIENT. or that
the son OF professor shall also be
professor, as 1t Is to insist that the
son Of the farmer shall later become q
farmer. A square deal In this and
similar cases would provide that boy
on the farm be given that training In