The Adair County news., 1917-03-21
From Louisville.
March, s, 1917.
Editor News

here have found their way to the
waste basket, will again drop few
lines from the metropolis of the State
l arrived in Louisville on the Both Of
last December, and since that date
have not been out Of the city.
This has been the worst winter
have observed since the winter OF
1898 9. According to the weather bu.
reau there has been az inches of snow
in Louisville so far this winter. This
lis the heaviest snowfall recorded in
over 30 years, but the last snow-about
five inches, disappeared almost as sud-
denly as it came, and to-day the sun is
shining as brightly as though spring
has really put in herappearance. But
then the weather man says we still
have more winter in store.
the people out in the counary as a
rule think they have hard times and
long for an opportunity to go to the
city. But they really do not know
what hard times are. 1 have seen
more suffering on the part of the poor
during the two short months that 1
have been here than ever before wit
messed. 1 have seen old, gray headed
men and little children pick up apple
Feelings from the street and eat them.
Just the other morning saw child
of perhaps four or five years, come OUT
to dump barrel in front of the house
and look for food. Not finding any,
she turned to her mother, who was
standing in the door, and said;
mamma, touldn't fin, fng but pa
per, and Pm so hungry" The lady
burst into tears and turned away.
Now that is what I call real suffering,
and do not believe there is family
in Adair county that have been called
upon to suffer what that poor lady
mentioned above has had to suffer,
and this is not the only case of the
kind here. During that cold weather
in January, at one of the schools here
in the city, some little boys and girls
were seen fuSSing over the refuse
found in a garbage can, and upon in
vestigation it was learned that more
than twenty children had come to
school that day without so much as
mouthful of food to eat. The teacher
being resourceful, managed to supply
each of these children with bowl of
hot soup each day until some more
substantial relief could be secured.
Every thing in the way of food is
very high. Potatoes are selling at 81
per bushel, and yesterday hogs sold at
S15,05 on the open market. Eggs have
been selling at so to go cents per GOzen.
ever since have been here, and but
ter is still so cents per pound. Even
to the little white navy bean is selling
at Is cents per pound.
The people here do not seem to I'M
derstand the cause of the scarcity of
food, but l think the main thing is
that too many farmers have left their
farms and emigrated to the city ex-
pecting to find an easy time. But
friends they are sadly mistaken, and l
am sure that a laborer can save more
money by working at Is cents per day
back in old Adair, than he can here at
BIS per day. Labor is not being paid
as well now as few years ago, from
the fact that there are now about ten
men for each job, and each willing to-
wbrk for few cents less on the day
than his neighbor in order to hold the
job, and Louisville is no exception, in
fact, I've been told that times are bet
ter in Louisville, than they are in
many of the nearby cities I talked
with a man the other night who had
been in Detroit, and he said that
times were much better here than
there, and of course you all have read
of the food riots they have been hav-
ing in New York. So you see that
city people live hard as we'll as they do
in the country, q nd if many families
in the city only had the food that the
average country family wastes daily,
they would think they were we'll off.
The amount CT food that a good,
healthy farmer consumes at one meal,
would run city family all day, and
they would have a little left over.
There is another consideration usually
left out In the country when it
rains, SHOWS OF is stormy, you lay up
and rest, but not So the city, no mat
ter how hard it rains, or how deep the
snow gets, or how many degrees below
zero the mercury registers, you have
to work or give up your job.
1 have made this letter too long, but
will tell you more later.
R. L. Campbell.
= 20 n