davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
THE FARMERS DAY.

ID RETTI COMMONLY somebody claiming to speak for the
 farmer hoers for eight hour day. The farmer is his master he set his day he will except during tain seasonal periods mostly brief when nature demands that the crops be planted harvested penalty of losing hem
 Does the farmer, great group work than eight hour day? There when he works long hours and there seasons when he has little to do
 On many farms the practice let the hired go the crops gathered in the fall.
 The eight hour day is established the world day. by the Treaty of Peace It is the social work day founded in the public laws of the United States, and the several states. There is kicking against it.
 There will always be those who will work longer and who will work shorter seasonal There professions and epoymens which require effort at time, and permit another The eiSht-hour day will be the day of
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
LOOKING BACK 50 YEARS

From the Farmer Wednesday. October I5 1869.
 We some of Stone, Rosson Co.'S wagons in town this morning.
 Quite large crowd attended the Catholic Franklin Hall last part entertainment consisted of vocal music by several young which very well rendered.
 The first exhibition State Poultry So- 9th Poultry ancer throughout the generally making arrangements to exhibit their expected the show will be success
 The quince crop is reported to be excellent in quality unusually large in quantity They getting plenty in the market though we'll qunces command high price We know fruit that pays better than this variety of quinc which preferable any preserving. and others oppouny should plant trees this variety and with proper they always pay large profit
 marriage Maggie Moore of Trumbul and Rev. B. Bruce Beach of Brdgwaer, in Trinity church. Farms yesterday of the peasante that has occurred in the parish was beautifully decorated with flowers and evergreens bril- lianty ighted the seats all well filled with acquainance of the bride and the dispensed music suited to the The performed Rev Mr. Husband in graceful and emphatic manner hour spent in extending the customary congra- uation and the then started for Bridgeport as Washington.
 The East Brdgeporters rejoicing the completion of the foot bridge the vicinity of the old bridge
 thrown the public this and literally patronized It consists of stationary structure easerly of the bank of the channel and of floating ponoon bridge thence to the shore. Some such made allow the passage of vessels The bridge will bring activity to that portion of the city adjoining the river
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15

It all depends on what you are made of and your point of view, whether such times as the pres ent appear to you as the end of all opportunity or the beginning of the new years of surpassing openings for invention, initiative or just plain productive industry. There never was 8 better time to be young than just now. In spite of all the apparent upset and unrest and change, these times are richer in material for new combinations Of grit and power than any which this coun- try has seen during the past fifty years.
 It is when humanity is solidi- fled, and every process is hard ened by custom, and ways of do- ing things become set and fixed, that it is difficult for the young man to create omething of his own and get 8 new idea started on it's way.
 But in times like these, when nearly everything seems ready to take new forms, when so many problems are pressing for solu- lICIl, eve Douy lS 4IOoP4ldDlS lO new ideas, the times are kind to new enterprises, and people look with hopefuIness upon anything that promises relief and benefit.
 The pity is that there are not more good ideas to take advan- tage of these favorable circum- stances.
 It may not at once be clear to l. should be so propitious. But it can be made clear by a simple illustration. It is a common re- mark that opportunities were many when the country was new It means that before the life of the nation became limit ed 10 certain channels there was a certain freedom of initiative, there was a clear field to be laid out any way desired.
 We'll, in a better sense than ever before, the country, is again new
 In pioneer days the man with initiativ had almost nothing to work with. There were few peo- pie, little available material, limited fields for development. But what difference nowadays! Here are over 1O0,OO0,000 peo- pie. Here are rich stores of ma terials and inexhaustib1e re- sources, and there is no limit to expansion.
 The country is new again with every advantage ready to the hand of the man with vision enough and courage enough to go in and mould plastic condi- tions to his idea.
 There never was more to be done; there never was a warmer vnAleenaa for tho Doar; thsre
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
MIR. FORD'S OWN PAGE

never was so much backing ready waiting for the man with a serviceable idea The future of America is being made right now, and the shining names of the next half century will be names which today are wholly obscure.
 This does not mean that we are predicting the appearance of great men of genius in the coun- try. The need is not so much for genius as for vision and cour- age.
 There is a good deal of misun- derstanding about great men, anyway. Great men are only men who do great things, and it frequently occurs that they themselves are only ordinary men who have shown eNtraordt- nary devotion to their own idea and their own job.
 It isn't genius we want so much as ordinary ability used for all it is worth. Ordinary ability is all the world needs; the con- centration of ordinary ability on the problems awaiting solution.
 As to great men in the special sense, they are usually in wait ing before a national or world emergency. The emergency re- veals them. The recent war ere ated no great men, it only re- vealed them, called them forth.
 But with successful, useful men the case is different. They are the result of the reconstruc- tion period that follows an emer- gency. They are the men who take advantage of the new com binations of circumstances. With conditions to be rebuilt, they take the opportunity of getting in on the ground floor. And the ground floor was never so large, opportunities were never so numerous as they are now.
 This is not the time to preach success; this is the time to put into practice all the success doc Urine you have ever heard The present moment is supremely the moment of action.
 We need revival of old-fash- toned American ambition to get ahead.
 The gouging and gambling, the profiteering and plunging which characterize some of the business of today, do not spring from the American spirit of getting ahead They are destructive, illegitimate, false.
 American ambition is first to DO something, achieve some great and useful service, and 1-6
 We ought to return to the old fashioned system of encouraging boys to go out and make their mark, and to deserve well of their fellow men. In other days
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15

boys were instilIed with the con- fidence that nothing was too high for an American boy to as- pire toward. And it is just as true today as it was then, indeed. if one may say 50, It is truer, for where there was one path up- ward in those days there are Q hundred paths now. The young man of today is so much better off that it may be worth while to indicate it in detail. There was a time when the path to distinction and service in this country was almost exclusively a professional path. A boy could study law and graduate into poli- tics. Indeed, to wear ones hair a little longer than other mems, and to make speeches in the leg islature was once considered the height of success. And then through politics, he could branch into whaevere business happened to open up.
 There was little or no empha- sis laid on the industrial path. Few people ever thought of Work-plain work-as a path upward. No. It must be pro- fessional, genteel, dealing with the abstract ideas Of politics and government, or with some other science.
 Today, however, all that is changed. The first thing the majority of American boys think of as a successful career is not some statesman making a speech, but some artisan making useful commodity, and mak- ing it so well and in such quan- titles that everyone buys and uses it.
 Some people are inclined to say that this is a descent to ina terialisn"-this emphasis on making things.
 But anyone with his eyes open can see very clearly that the ma jor part of our trouble today is just a lack of this kind of ma terialism." If we had more houses for people to live in. If We had more railroad cars to carry them what they need, if we had more means of enabl- ing the farmer to farm more land with less help, if we had better and more productive sys- tems of mining coal and other raw materials-why, that would pretty nearly solve all the trou- bles that affhct us now.
 The world is full of ideas as to what ought to be done-but of what use are these ideas until a man comes along who will &C., f11a11v do inc thing and Saf if going?
 You don't have to be a states man to help the world. nor a philosopher, nor a poet; you have only to think out something
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15

perform something which will make it easier for the world to live.
 To take an illustration from the problem of the day:-the man who could multiply houses with rapidity would be world blessing just now. We make everything quickly but houses. We manufacture machinery in a new way, We fabricate ships differently than was ever done before, but we build houses in practically the way they have always been built.
 If, for example, someone should discover an art which would enable us to build a house out of the earth excavated for it's cellar, what a boon to humanity that would be! Nor is the idea so far-fetched as it may seem. One reason why the war-torn portions of France are being re- stored to the people so quickly is that the French dwelling is us ually constructed out of materi- aIs found on the premises. The French family's house is literally dug out of the earth.
 Go to the root of all the so- called capital and labor C:--i- cuFty' today and what do you find? Simply the lack of houses for people to live in, and the consequent high prices of such houses as there are. Or a lack of food, and high prices of such food as there is.
 All the difficulty, you will ob- serve, is due to the lack of pro- duction of such articles as man kind can produce. Houses are
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15

a product so is food, so is every other article man needs in his living.
 Well, then, the way to serve the world at this stage of it's trouble is not to enunciate new laws. nor give it a new art or literature, but simply give it the things it is suffering for houses, food and the various ar ttcles of use.
 We don't need statesmen to solve the difficulties of our coun- try at this time; we need work CTS. We need men who will tell us new and, better ways to pro duce what we. lack. We need fresh eyes to examine our old methods and cut them down where they are cumbersome and wasteful- We need men who are young enough and free enough to cut loose from the old and set tied ways, and break new paths for the worlds energy to use.
 This is the call that awaits ambitious young America. Times was when the utmost encourage ment you could give a boy was to say, You may be President some day?" But now we can say to him, You may be the man who is to discover the new way of housing the people," You may be the man who is to revo- lutionize the methods by which food is produced" ''You may be the man who will teach us how to make a pound of coal do the work of ten and still retain all of the coal for heating pur- poses-''
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
AFRAID BRITAIN WILL RULE.

TT THE Treaty of Peace there is interesting jecors who proclaim that Britain will rule, and demand that the United States refrain from ratification.
 The Treaty has been ratified by three of the Allied nations and lacks nothing but formal declaration to be in legal existence How will Great Britain be less power through Treaty. if the United States is out?
 There for instance the colonies Germany Austria, which to be administered by the under system of mandatories
 Britain powerful League the Unit ed States stays out?
 not the contrary rue that United States out Britain will be practically all powerful?
 is the matter of the 40 odd commissions through which the terms of the treaty will be administered
 lContnued in Last Two Columns)
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
The High Cost Of Living
 By H.

I believe that if we apply sys- temattcally, thoroughly and in a nationwide way the lessons open to us through the experience of other peoples during the war (and successfully praoticed also by our Army Salvage Depart ment in France) as to the in ability and value of materials heretofore considered more or less as waste, the effect in the reduction of the cost of living will be decidedly noticeable, and the addition to the national wealth will run into amazing figures.
 1 would suggest, therefore, the creation of a Federal Bureau of Salvage, the functions of which should be mainly infOrmatory and advisory.
 The Teaching of Thrift
 Observation appears to show that the thrift lessons of the war are being rapidly unlearned. And thrift consists not merely, or evenly mainly, in putting ones savings into the Savings Bank or War Saving Certificates or other sound investments.
 Indeed, the investing of sav- ings is really only the utilization of the product of thrift; it is not in itself what con properly be termed thrift"
 The essential thing in thrit is the continuous practice Of sane economy, of avoiding useless or wasteful expenditures, of care ful, individual, family and busi- ness housekeeping in every day life
 That is not as simple anl easy as it may seem. It requires teaching and guidance.
 A general exhorta'tion to be thrifty is not enough. Some qualified agency ought to exist not only to direct a persistent propa ganda to encourage say ing, but to indicate how, where and in what way to save.
 Some savings are more needed, and more effective than others.
 Some are wiser and more de- sirable than others.
 Numerous savings are practi- : privation at all.
 Thrift, as particularly the ex- ample of France has demonstrat- ed, is a national asset of the greatest value.
 It is astounding how great is the effect of a multiplicity of savings, and conversely, of 8 multiplicity of extravaganza. The effect upon prices is cumulative one way or the other.
 I would suggest, therefore, that the Federal Bureau of Sal wage, the establishment of which I have advocated above. be also charged with the function of promoting and teaching thrift. \ General Staff on Economics
 During the Readjustment
 Period
 May I quote the following from a speech which I made in Chicago in January of last year:
 Tt seems to ne that it would serve a useful purpose if out of the various commissions now dealing with economic affairs, or as a separate body suitably CO., ordinating with them, the Pres ident or the Secretary of the Treasury were to see fit to ap- point a Board of Economic and Financial Strategy-just as the Army and Navy have boards of experts to elaborate and deal with strategic problems.
 Ut would be the function of such a Board to study carefully tho eviren as bOT6 of OII7- i'm m A diate situation and of the condi-
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15

tions likely to confront us Af- ter the war.
 Tt would correlate activities now more or less scattered, and might, if so desired, act as a bureau to furnish to Congress centralized and systemized in formation on economic subjects.
 Tt would prepare a compre- hensiTe plan for the marshall ing and intensive utilization of our potential and actual re- sources, both during the war times and afterwards.
 Ut would scan the trade and commerce of the world, and might usefuIly place itself into communication with the various Reconstruction Committees and kindred bodies in the allied coun- tries.
 At present I know of no one governmentalIy appointed body here charged specifically with the task of studying and advis- ing on industrial and economic posc-bellum problems. England, France, Germany and Italy have such bodies at work.
 There is every expectation that we shall emerge from the war in 9, position of commanding economic potency and prestige.
 But in order to retain that position and fully to utilize it for our country's welfare, we must be ready to act along weli-pIan- ned lines and with suitable in s-ruments at our hands. It is none too soon to prepare
 It would seem to me that the appointment by the government Of one or more non-politicaI com missions, consisting of busi- ness men, workingmen, farmers and economists, for the purpose of making studies and recom- nendations on a non-partisan basis, would still be of great ad- vantage to the country st a time when grave economics, social and financial problems are press ing for solution and both the Executive Departments and Con- gross are greatly over-worked.
 Great Britain, for many years, by the appointment of Royal Commissions" so-caIIed, has employed with success this meth cd of obtaining Tight without heat" in respect of problems as to which the government and the people desired disinterested and competent information and sug- gestions, and in the great major ity Of cases such commissions, though composed of very diversi- fled elements, have arrived at a consensus of opinion
 It is simply inconceivable that either the President or Congress or the various Executive De- partments and Boards can give the necessary time and thorough ness of study to the variety of complex questions which call for consideration and action.
 The burden which both the House and the Senate place upon themselves in investigating and gathering facts and hearing wit hesses is staggering in it's claim upon the time and energies of our legislators.
 Much relief and good results could be obtained by placing part of that burden upon the shoulders of others.
 The men selected would inves- tigate, ascertain facts, collate views and, if desired, make re- commentators
 The best ability and ripest ex- perience of the country could be drafted for such purpose.
 The decision and responsibility as to legislation would, of course. rest no less than now with Con- gress and the President.
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
(Continued from Yesterday

(Continued from Yesterday
 l think the necessity, and with it the advisa bility of imposing taxes of extreme magnitude has gone by with the passing of the war, and that the dsiproportion- ate burdening of the present generation to enable unduly ra- pid extinction of our war debt. would be both an injustice and a mistake, but I am convinced that during the war it was wise and advantageous to resort to taxa tion to the extent that We did.
 My criticism is not of the mag nitude, but of the method of our tax measures.
 My point is that we have omit ted to impose certain easily borne, easily collected, greatly productive and well tested taxes, such as-to quote only one min or but characteristic instance a stamp tax on checks, and have grossly maladjUsted others, with the result that our revenue legis- lation has largely contributed to throw our economic equilibrium out of gear-to the detriment of everybody, and particularly to great cost and damage of the masses of the people.
 Public opinion has overwh elm ingIy decreed that we shall have a progressive income tax, but it ought certainly not to be any heavier than that of our chief competitor, Great Britain, in any part of its scale Git is now con- J,1 !, ;,, scale and fifty per cent. heavier in it's maximum scale.)
 If possible, it should be less heavy in it's scale, because that would aid us in our world trade; and it ought to be possible, for our population is twice as num- erous and our wealth much more than twice as great as that of Great Britain. and the financial war-burden which we have to take care of much less than that of Great Britain.
 It is an old maxim of taxation that an excessive inpost destroys it's own productivity. It attains that inevitable result in a variety Of ways, both actual and psycho- logical.
 Good intentions are not a suf- ficient qualification for the for midable task of devising a plan and methods of taxation to bal ance our vast expenditures.
 Exact and dispassionate think ing is required, technical capac- ity and adequate knowledge. Economics are stubborn things and will not permit themselves to be either disregarded or over ridden or dealt with emotionally.
 In England, a non-political committee of experts was recent ly appointed by the government to study the effects of the vari- ous kinds of taxes which have been in force during the past five years, and to make recomm enda.- tions to Parliament based upon such study.
 My first suggestion is that in this country a, similar commit tee for the like purpose be ap- pointed by the government
 \ Federal Bureau of Salvage
 When I was in England in the spring of 1918, I was authorita- lively informed that the Depart mert of the Director General of Supplies, through it's system of salvage, had saved to the nation in the course of three years the sum Of $5OO,0Oc,0OO.
 "Created'' would really be a better word to employ than saved" for that sum represents wealth created out of things, which formerly went into the scrap heap.
The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-10-15
Continued from First Two Co1umns)

(Coninued from First Two Co1umns)
 How will anybody be better off, Britain weaker, if there Americans that commission? Will it promote just just administration of treaty agreements with the United States outside?
 n Ireland forward ob- ainng freedom rather than by rule of humanity and 
 How Ireland be helped by league in which Britain is member, but the United States not member?