Norwich bulletin., 1913-06-14
ON THE FARM RESULTS ARE FIRST-APPEAR-
 ANCES SECONDARY

I 'srrim up the shrubbery in the front yard"
 Get down your pea brush"
 Wash the carriage and give It
 fresh coat of varnish."
 1 Et cetera, and so forth, and so on. 1 Now imagine the average working 1 farmer reading a column of that sort l of stuff Very likely each item has something to be said in it's behalf But-the weather is catchy and un- certain; there is more blowing to do than there are days to do it in; there is a mile or so of fence which must
 be repaired before the stock can be
 turned out; the barn roof must be put into shape; the tent caterpillars
 are eating up his apple-trees; half-a-
 dozen clogged ditches must be clean
 ed out or his best meadow will never
 dry up; he has got to go to town and
 haul fencing and feed and fertilizer
 and other supplies; one horse is
 half sick and can't do full work; the
 tool parts ordered last winter haven't come yet, and he must go to the black smiths shop and have temporary re- pairs made to tide over till they do arrive; he can't get any help for love or money and must do all that is done between rains of the too short days.
 And the advice given him is to sharpen the lawn mower" and war nish the carriage!"
 It isn't to be doubted that a sharp lawn mower will cut better than a dull one, or that a newly vanished carriage is more shiny than a dirty one But a lawn mower is hardly the tool to do a big having with; and the manure -spreader is much more to the purpose than any top buggy in the hurry of spring work.
 How to do the pressing work in less time;-or how to do two mems work with one pair of hands; s;-suggesti along these and similar lines might prove helpful.
 Instead he is advised to trim up the lilac bushes or go to digging dande- lions out of the lawn and wild carrots out of the hill pasturesI
 l don't wonder that so many real farmers despise what they cali ''book farmers, in view of the SluShy stuff which is printed about agriculture in so many books and farm papers. In truth, real farming isn't a matter of lawns and floral parterres and land scape gardening. It is mighty strenuous work in very common soil and upon very dirty clods A farm isn't a country estate" nor is a farm house a villa Looks count for a good deal,-if you're trying to sell the place and get out of farming. But they're of Second-rate importance to farmers who are interested in getting returns from their work,
 Of course, the ideal farm would he one that would look as fine as possi- bIe and produce as laVishly as poSSi- ble. But ideal farming hasn't arrived, yet, any more than ideal doetoring or ideal lawyering, Most of us have limitations of strength and capacity. We can't do more than one thing at time and do it we'll Also, most of us have to think of the flour barrel before the jardiniere. Perhaps, in some future age, the practical and the beautiful will walk hand in hand and each will be the other, in essence. But, l at present, the practical comes first. 1 The average farmer has got to think more about potatoes and hay for next winter than about lawn mowers and carriage varnish, this spring.
 When we go to face New England weather, substantial and serviceable garments are rather more important than fringes and frills, however much the latter may add to the appearance.
 When the farmer has brought his farm up to it's highest productivity, 1 has made it do it's utmost, has amply provided for all the fundamental needs of life, then he may wear ostrich 1 feathers in his hat and tie his Oxfords with pink ribbons and ride a gasoline driven lawn mower at his leisure-if 1 his tastes run those ways. But these things come later and afterwards. The l farmers first business is to farm his | farm, and to clean up his back-yar l when he has time, if he ever has. Sub- | stance is before show in his business 1
 Toe, much of the advice that is l shoveIled and pitch -forRed at him l comes from people who, I verily be- lieVe, couldn't tell a pitch-folk from l hole in the ground, if shown the two, | side by side. The tendency is towards | display rather than accomplishments | towards making q big show out of | small materials: towards putting up i 8 front rather than towards building | a real success.
 Mind you, am not here excusing | sloVenlIness: l am simply trying to |