The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1912-06-01
BEST CLASS TO BELONG TO
"standoatters" and "Progressives"
Among Farmers as Well as Poll
ticians, Says Barrett.
To the officers and Members OF the

To the officers and Members OIL the
Farmers Union:
We hear much today about the
"standpatters" and "progressives' IN
the two great political parties, not to
mention the socialists and three or
four other more or less important
groups.
There are "standpatters" and pro
gressives'' among farmers as We'll as
politicians, and I am pinning my faltn
and the future of the farmer in Amer
lea to the latter class every time.
The standpat farmer believes ne
has learned everything about his busl-
ness and that no one can show MIN
any new tricks or any better methods.
Generally, he is the fellow who IN
herited his calling from his 1ather'
and who has made no effort to I'M
prove upon the system handed down
from sire to son.
He ridicules scientific agriculture.
instead of subscribing for papers ana
magazines that will keep him abreast
of what the laboratory and the ex-
perimenter are doing for him, ne is
content to go on planting and reaping
| by the way the moon happens to SIT
! in the heavens How he can save
money by seed selection and rotation,
how he can get the most out OF hls
soil. doesn't seem to interest him.
His main concern is in rocking along
from year to year in the old rut, con-
tent If he skimps through the season
or gets an extension on the mortgage
| that is pretty apt to roost on his roof.
Standpatter in his business, ne Is
apt to be in his union, in his attitude
toward public affairs and toward MS
own family. He is not often found
Joining whole-heartsdly in movements
to better the community. 1t doesn't
seem to occur to him that by making
the county better place to live IN,
he enhances his own happiness and
prosperity as well as that OF MS
neighfor and does more to keep his
son and daughter on the farm than all
the preaching under the sun.
The progressive farmer, on the
other hand, doesn't let his mind stop
expanding when he reaches the vot
} ing age. He goes to school every day
in the year, and his school teachers
} are many and varied. They may be
} agricultural Journals, daily neWspa
pers, close observation Of the causes
which explain the success OF his pros
porous neighbor or taking warning
by the manner in which the broker
promises of politicians or hand-shak
r ers have kept the farmer from com
ing into his own.
Visit any agricultural community IL
! America, and you will find the nn'
drawn with folerable sharpness be
tween these two classes of farmers
You are also pretty apt to find tina
the progressive farmer is the pros
7 porous farmer, and the standpa
s.f farmer the man who ia complaints
s about his hard luck and laying tn
: blame for his ragged children or hi
9 overworked wife upon every sourc
/ but the right one.
& BY this I don't mean that there !
s. not a great deal in old establishe
o methods and Id inherited custom
n worthy of adoption. Nor do advis
e the farmer to follow every brand-ne'
e notion coined BY Missionaries or tn
y peddlers Of free counsel as to how I
4 operate his affairs.
o There is. always a middle course
IL between these two extremes and tn
% wise farmer seeks it out and keel
e his feet in 1t. But as between tn
y two classes-the standpat or the PRE-
gressive-I should gamble every tim
u. on the prospects of the latter.
" Do a little soul-searching and Sc
re what class you belong to. The ansWt
le may help to explain why you haven
O. as much Of this worlds store as 20.
n neighbor, and while hard luck seen
OF to knock at your door every day, 0
n portunity literally dogs his footstep
ur CHARLES S. BARRETT.
pc Union City, Ga.