The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-07-30
The Average Farmer and "Marsarge.' >

be "marsarge." all intended for Mas
ter Hodge"
lie was reared on farm, Marsarge
was, but since his maior.'''-he now
mas several grown childrenA has
lived in town engaged in railroadng,
merchandise and insurance, but new
er having so much as truck patch,
II you except his garden. Recently
he came into possession of some val
liable lands, lot Of it badly abused
in one or another way so he con-
cluded to turn his attention to farm
ing. OF course he was without
equipment, not having so much as a
rake or an axe. He had no money
to throw away, few If any spare dol
lars, but when he went to equip that
farm, he bought just what he really
needed, as closely as possible, and
began at once to put it, as needed,
into use. In doing this he did not
call In Mr.. Tom, Dick and Harry,
but gave it his own personal over
sight, allowing no Inconvenience to
interfere. 1t Is true he began late
to prepare his ground, but that was
really the best that could be done
and though always in a hurry he did
nothing hurriedly, but all the way
through was painstaking, careful,
thorough as though far ahead in his
work. when in fact it was the re-
verse.
l have omitted to notice his lack Of
experience, his ignorance as to what
was best Already it has been said he
was thorough, but how so, when he
was inexperienced and ignorant?
In the first place he called to his
aid a farm demonstration agent, not
any sort Of a fellow but a man who
knew, Mr.. Williams, took him over
the ground and from his own mouth
got specific directions concerning
preparation, fertilization. etc. Next
he subscribed for live farm journal
which he read closely and he got 9TH
Ell up-to-date literature on the sub
ject.
Some Of his land was q bit stumpy,
other was in need of drainage, all
this was looked after though it cost
him considerable. Nor was this all,
he wired in for cattle and hogs con-
siderable land as pasture, planting
part In rye, vetch, ETC., then bought
some fine brood sows and a thorough
bred boar. or course he could have
gotten scrub stock for much less
money. AS result of buying good
stock he is able to eat hog and hon.
my OF his own raising. The land he
planted in vetch was very thin, so he
used FarmOgerm on vetch, also on
peas, planted in corn. The laborer is
worthy of his reward, which is sure
to come to those who wait. One field
Of corn has present promise of
fifty or more bushels and smaller
one hundred per acre. His harvest,
the better part the enjoyment of
seeing real results, is coming in now
Contrast with him the average
farmer and wha.
You see his farm SO poorly equip
ped that he must be continually bor-
rowing from his neighbors and is
never able to do his work as it ought
to be done. Niggardly in his expen-
ditures, he expects something for
nothing for he allows unsightly
hedges to occupy his best lands until
the bitches, if they happened to be
there, are quite filled and the land is
abandoned as undesirable and un-
productive.
Moreover the farmer becomes un-
healthy because of the numerous
brooderies for mosquitoes, and he
must go to the mountains or else
where to recuperate, or else grin and
endure 1T, the latter pr eferablly, all
because he was too stingy to spend
few dingy dollars in drainage. For
the same reason all his ideas and
methods are antiquated because he
has persistently refused to take up
to-date farming journals. to invest in
literature on the subject. or if he
does he is too lazy or Indifferent to
read them.
Everything about the place shows
the blighting touch of this mean,
stinginess. The hogs are pinerootcrs
and razor backs and the COWS look
lean and lousy for lack of care and
pasturage. This is the man who finds
farming a dull, Improbable business
for the above named and other rca
sons.
Possibly in the outset he saw fail
urc in it and never had any heart or
willing cash to go that way. Then too
he grew puny and pcvish because
of hookworm and malaria and left