The Idaho Republican., 1912-08-09
SUMMER CLOTHES FOR FARMERS

The following artlcle tdhen hoA
the Farm and Farmer will not be en-
dorsed BY everybody who reads It.
but there is in it considerable food fol-
thought, and good suggestions for
having more comfort with less WORK
and expense.
Papers and magazines are full OF
styles and fashions for girls and wo-
men, yet not much space is devoted to
cuts or discussions of wearing appar-
ell for men. The farmer has long
been termed a "hayseed," and the
average person outside of the farm
generally supposes that the man who
works with the soil, plants and ami
mails wears any old thing that will
hang on his back, and that he would
not know and appreciate a good suit
of clothes if he saw them.
Style of clothing for farmers is not
q term found in any of the books,
which might mean that the farmer
does not care how his clothing looks
or how he feels when wearing his
coarse overalls and cowhide shoes.
Country merchants, however, appre-
ciate thet farmers, especially boy
farmers, are very wide awake to the
relative merits of cheap and good
clothing, since of late years some of
their best sales of suits, hats, shoes,
shirts, ties, gloves and other wear
ing goods have been made to young
men of the farm, who incidentally
have the cold coin wherewith to pay
for clothing of quality. The young
man of to-day on the farm, and this
means every one of them, wears as
good and as stylish clothing as the
best town and city bred boys. They
secure the best and latest if they
have to travel to city more than
100 miles away to secure what they
want. And it is fact that any city
or country person will readily admit
that farm boys in their Sunday clo-
thes loog and feel as free and hand
some as the healthiest and best-man-
nered boys in the land. Why should
they not?
Kipling, I believe, says, "All men
ere the same under the hide" Simply
because a man is farmer does not
mean that he has no personal pride,
or does not enjoy the comforts of
clean and well-madc clothing. AL
most all men, women, boys and girls
would wear better clothing if they
could afford them. A few in all
walks of life are stingy and indiffer-
ent, but these are counted out as
being unworthy members of urban or
rural society.
Gradually with the development of
the country, better educational advan-
tages, more travel and mixing with
cosmopolitan people, and with better
times in general farmers are taking
more interest in their daily personal
appearance and the comforts and con-
veniences of cleaner living. There are
yet some farmers with their boys and
hired hands who wear any kind or
cheap and coarse clothing from the
beginning to the end of each week
without a change, rolling into bed
at night with the same sweaty shirt
which they wore during the day.
The farmer is Woodworking man
physically, all will admit, and his
clothing should be in keeping with
the work in hand. Yet there is no
sane reason why a farmer, who can
afford good working clothes, should
wear ones that are cheap and ugly.
The man who lives to see ntce-Iook
ing stock and fine crops will take in
terest in his own personal appearance
both in the field and in the farm home
IL Is not wise to 90 shabby and dirty
even In moderate circumstances.
AS to the most comfort on hots
days with ruch work in summer, per-
sonally, have found that rather
heavy uDderclothing will give more
comfort than lighter weights. With
out any undcrshirt, or only a very
thin one when the sun comes down
not and the day is sultry will result
In quick heating of the skin with pro-
portionately sudden cooling when in
the shade On coming to the house
for dinner at noon with the shirts all
wet with perspiration, always re-
move both shirts and hang them out
IN the sun to dry, placing on a roomy
white cotton shirt to be worn during
the incoming spell. When the time
comes for returning to the field the