Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1915-03-25
EDUCATION. oRGANzATIoNAN COOPERATION.
Editor Of western Carolina Democrat, at Balfour
ur Graded School Commencement on night of March IS

l nave e talking mostly to the
men tonight, for their welfare always
anects that Of the women, but now !
want TO talk to you ladies about your
important part in this new rural life.
81 am glad to be able to tell you rhat
the government, which has heretofore
been directing its attention mainly 10
the needs of the men, is now looking
sfter your interests, and with the
view to as~certaining how it NAV
render more direct service to the
farm women in the way of PRACTICAL
demonstration in household econom-
l1cs, home making and domestic mar
~ufacturing, the secretary of. agricul-
Eture more than a scar ago directed
$4,000 letters t. farn. Momen asking
them to make suggestions for improy
ing their home and community con-
ditions. The governments report EN-
bracing these replies will be made
public this month.
What the Women Want
This report will show that the
women are abreast Of the times and
are calling for cooperative methods
which should mean as much to them
as cooperation means to the farmers
Among the many interesting and in
IteIltgent replies were Inquiries as to
the feasibility of operating co-opera-
tive laundries whereby the women on
the farms would be relieved of one OF
their greatest drudgeries at a rea-
sonable cost. Others wanted to know
II a cooperative community Matching
plant for supplying ready Matched
chickens, bakeries where many pre-
parations of the kitchen could be pur-
: chased at about the same cost it would
require to prepare them at home. and
cooperative canneries could be con-
Quoted successfully. Others inquired
as to the cost and feasibility of oper.
atlng a cooperative electric power
plant for furnishing light and power
for the home and power for the farm
machinery of the neighborhood, in
Guiding the canneries, laundries and
other cooperative enterprises.
Yes, dear ladies, your day is COM
ing. The time is rapidly approaching;
when you will be given the benefits of
a more cultured, social rural life
You are entitled to all that can be
given you and you should stand firmly
for a corresponding share of the
| IA ~ Al
Cooperation in Catawba County.
L The cooperative spirit is like the
little leaven which spreads until it
~leavens the whole lump. Experience
has shown that a successful co-opera-
tive enterprise not only leads to the
establishment Of similar ones in
nearby communities, but often puts
new life into the whole. community
and gives the farmers entirely new
conceptions OF their own capacities
and possibilities. We don't have to
lgo any further than Catawba county
to find a most striking example IL
this truth. Only about FIVE years ago
1.-THE cooperative germ developed there
sufficiently to justify the establish
ment OF a cooperative creamery This
enterprise which also handled eggs
as a side line soon proved a financial
success, then shortly afterwards the
Sweet Potato Growers association
was organized. Having seen the
practical operation and. results of the
cooperative methods in the sale of
butter, eggs and sweet potatoes, the
farmers turned their attention to the
purchasing side of the. farm problem
and organized the Catawba County
Farmers Union Warehouse company,
which was followed by the Catawba
Rural Credit association.
Eye Must be Born Again.
1t all sounds simple enough, doesn't
it? 1t is simple! While I have pic.
tured an Utopian idea, ii. is all prac-
tical through community co-opera-
ton, but there must he that getting
together" before you will be able to
accomplish anything.
And this leads up to the question of
how to get together. The a is
clear to some of us but it may be as
confounding and p%erplexing to others
as the teaching Of regeneration or be-
ing born again was to Nicodemus.
This message comes across the CEN
turtles with equal force and truth to
you Mr.. Farmer and Mrs. Housewife.
we must be born again" You will
have to forget your old s~elf-centere6
self and be filed with the spirit of
unselfishness toward your neighbor
You must learn to take as we'll as give
advice. and submit to majority rule?
You must see something in your COM
munity larger than the tempting dol
lar. You must catch the vision of the
future and strive to leave your COM
munity in a better condition thar
you found it. You must not hang out,
but join all movements for good in
our community and contribute of your
time and means to the u%pbuilding of
the neighborhood. Don't hang on
the outside and like a tick. or some
other parasite suck strong and long
upon the cumulative effort of your
neighbors.
When once the majority of the peo-
pie of Balfour r regenerated or
born again into the new community
spirit then you will be prepared for
action, which leads up to the educa-
tiona1 phase of my subject.
The Necessary Education.