The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-01-18
continued Frotn page Nine.

WA NJ SO " AA@I41 GAG hE& al AC(CAA2(~
from everybody toll, with much more
ease, for to go from n place to an
other where the farms are so large,
she must drive. The roads If kept
open insure her the satisfaction of
the daily benefits Of the rural III
route, by which she receives the daily
paper, her greatest blessing. which
keeps her In touch with the outside
husband prosperous, she enjoys the
advantages of an automobile and n
that case distance from the city Is as
nothing and that means much to the
farm Instances were cited
which proved conclusively that good
roads r very necessary to the hap
piness of the farm m
Mrs. c. v. Amidon.
The last address of the day was one
of the most practical and interesting
of the programme. 1t vas given by
Mrs. C. f. Amidon who said:
Mrs. Amidon said: I wish to preface
my short remarks with the assurance
that / am not In the attitude OF the
outsider preaching to the farmer, or
his wife. / am a farmer myself, u
know whereof / speak.
The methods of our much advised
class are bad enough in many cases;
but IL the high cost of living Is n
sign, so are. the methods Of the dis
tributors; and nobody advises them.
If Brandeis is any authority (and we
think he Isl, no less foolish and waste
full are the business methods of the
trust system. We may crtticise the
methods Of the trusts, and limit their
activities, but we do not try to teach
them the details OF their business. Just
why the poor farmer and his wife
should come in for the lions share OF
suggestion and advice is ins~crutable;
unless possibly It can be explained upon
the theory that the farmer is consider
ed intelligent enough to learn. while
the others are hopeless. Nor do take
this opportunity to plead with you to
turn your houses out of doors, espec-
tally your kitchen and bedroom; to
persuade you to work on your back
porch from May till November; to
sleep on your front porch all the year
round.
I believe in this way Of living--I
| could almost be said to do 1t myself
1 DuL LhdL 10 AAt0NAAC4 SLOAS bONhSb 6A1
another time.
Our subject has nothing to do with
houses, but calls US away from them
out of doors. And the reason for such
a call is that the farm woman cannot
| afford to stay in the house; cannot at
ford It on the ground OF economy, the
economy of life force and the economy
of dollars and cents.
I make my appeal to such farm
women as I see before me today; the
| intelligent quantity; the half pint dip
per is q negligible quantity. If she be-
longs anywhere she belongs In town
where living is easy, and where she
can supplement her own stupidity by
the intelligence within her reach. II
she makes the mistake Of marrying. a
farmer, she will probably have to take
the awful consequences, poor soul, OF
a miserable existence and an early
grave.
An intelligent farm woman, / repeat
cannot afford to devote all her time to
Iher house. Her first step outside is
naturally the door yard. This little
plot, as much a part Of home rs the
house itself, is logically in the woman's
keeping. / do not mean that she should
do the hard work Of planting and tend
ing the door yard; but it is her re-
sponsibility to see that 1t is well kept
and beautiful. Few men u~nencourag-
ed, beauty their surroundings. II
must be for the wife to inspire, tc
plan, to secure a soft, thick lawn, wei
set cluster Of shrubs, trees for shade
and protection, borders Of flowers.
These things demand the spending
Of much thought and care rather thar
much money; they can be gotten by
any woman who wants them, and whC
takes the trouble to keep on the gooC
side of her men folks.
Such a setting to a farm house Il
not only q constant joy to its dwellers
it is an education greater than coulC
be secured from an artists master
piece upon the walls; and 1t add!
hundreds Of dollars to the real value
the actual selling price Of the farm
No ear afford to stay in tn
house to the neglect Of her door yard
Leaving this peculiarly woman's do
main, the next step is the garden. Blu
I promised to keep out of the gardei
today-it isn't a good day for it any
way--and there is certainly no nee
after the mastery treatment the sub
ject has already received.
What a woman can do for her pleas
ure and profit Sin orchard and chicke
yard is SC long a story that it too mus
be left for another time and speakeI
House. door yard and orchard; thes
highly specialized places are recog
nized on most farms as the specis
care of women; beyond them, too ofte
she Is an alien. But a sensible farm
er's wife does not stop at these. Sh
will extend her interests to the barr
, and outbuildings, and their surround
: ings. Here, too, she Is naturally !
her element as this phase Of farm iii
is one sort Of housekeeping; a wor
in which woman is experienced.
/ contend that a wise woman wi
open her eyes and walk into ever
farm building every day. She can d
1t in fifteen minutes and the annus
saving to the average farm win be,
venture to say, more than the yearl
salary Of the best district school teach
er in the state.
In the barn the openeyed woma
may see a good set OF lines cut fc
straps, shortening their use and dc
creasing their value. "a pair OF line
costs from So to SIS. She ma,
see a 81 halter orsweatban
trampled under foot, q 40 cent pee
measure or q rs cent comb or brus
!, W T@0~n 4