The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-06-03
THE OTHER SIDE OF DAY
LIGHT SAVING.
The Farmers Case Intelligently Pre-
scented to the City Dweller by the
Editor Of an Agricultural Publication.

be made for the so-called daylight saw
ing law. II 10. however, entirely n one
sided argument. and In the most con-
vineing evidence have seen yet OF the
utter inability Of the city man to under
stand the conditions under which n
farmer must live and work.
Twenty-Five years ago nine out OF ten
city people understood at least some
thing Of the language and thought Of
the American farmer. To-day my esti-
mate would be that barely Is per cent
of the people In New York city can
appreciate or understand what this new
law means to the average farmer on
the average farm. To those who say
that this average farmer Is not worth
considering l will point out that the
world is fed and clothed and provided
for by this same average man.
The scientific farmer, the business
man who plays with agriculture and
the so-called expert are not providing
the worlds necessities. although they
get most OF the advertising and practi-
caly all Of the ilmelight The world
Ia fed and clothed, as II ever will be,
by the plain people. who are obliged to
live a natural life. And there Is just
the reason why 1t Is entirely useless to
attempt to present the farmers argu-
ment on this question before a city
audience.
The farmer has always lived what I
may call a natural life. His lie condi-
tions and his habits OF thought and
work are based on natural laws, TIE sun,
the seasons and the weather.
1 haa
come to live an artificial or an un-
natural life, anu his habits OF life and
work are less and less dictated by nat
ural laws but more and more by
human ruler. For instance a city man
starts to his work over an entirely dry
pavement, and puts In his days duty
under shelter. protected from the ele-
ments. How Is It possible for such a
man TO realize what 1t means for
farmer to get out into dew soaked grass
or attempt to cultivate crops which are
as wet as a sponge until the sun rises
to dry OFF the dew?
number OF people have presented
the farmers argument on this subject
fairly in the columns of THE Sun. /
know from my own farm experience
that these arguments we're conclusive
and unanswerable. yet they have APP
parently produced no effect whatever
upon the city mind. They might just
as we'll be printed in the Japanese Ian
guage, since the present day city man
seems incapable of understanding the
language Of the farmer.
For example, Mr.. Marks speaks Of
the vast amount Of coal which has
| do ax-{p
Personally 7 doubt the figures generally
given on this subject know that In
my own case on the farm daylight saw
ing has compelled us to use more oil
and more electricity in providing arti-
fcial light.
Most farmers are obliged to go to bed
early. Suppose. for example, that the
farmers put through a national law
which made 1t necessary for city lights
to be out at 10 o'clock at night 30 that
all citiIens must go to bed Here would
be a saving IN coal through tho saving
in light and heat, which would amount
to several hundred times as much as
anything claimed by Mr.. Marks through
daylight saving. and who will say that
such a law would not add TO the health.
the comfort and the thrift of the people
OF New York city: yet what an outcry
there would be il farmers put such a
law through against the understanding
of our city friends! And yet 1t would
be no more unnatural than the attempt
to fasten the daylight saving proposition
upon the life sf thousands of our coun-
try people.
On my own farm the most careful
| that fhia new
daylight saving law has cut down the
efficiency Of our help by at least IL per
Gent. This is because of our inability
to do satisfactory work in the field until
the sun has dried off the dew, and also
owing to the fact that under this new
time our men work In the hottest hour
OF the day, when under the old time they
took this hour for their noon of.
shall OF course be told how easy 1t
is to adjust such things by changing
the hours. This advice. will largely be
given by city men who never In their
lives knew what II was TO work a sea-
son through on n farm. There may be
some farmers who have been able TO
adjust these things, but after very
careful canvass among thousands OF
farmers in our Eastern States I am
satisfied that IS per cent of them are
opposed to the new law and that they
can prove a loss through It.
For the last several years every et-
fort has been made TO spur the farmer
up to extra production. We were told
that food must win tho war and that
ever effort must pc made to increase
the production of food. The great ma
tority of our farmers answered tho call
and produced the food. l think per
sonally that there Is a greater need OF
increased production this year than ever
before. Regardless of the optimistic
report regarding the crops l feel sure
that owing to tho bad season and the
difficulty in obtaining help this years
production will be considerably under
that OF former years. and no small
part OF this reduction will he due to
the operations OF this daylight saving
p law. for without question 1t is weaken
ing the efficiency of the farmer and
preventing him from working his help
full time and full force.
wish 1t were possible for the aver
age city man to understand these things
and appreciate the circumstances under
which our farmers are now obliged 10
work, realize, however. the futility
/, OF irving to discuss an important matter
Of this sort In a foreign language.
H. w. CoLLINGwooD.
Editor of the Rural NsU-Yorker.
I,tn