The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1921-05-26

nous crops of alfalfa, cereals, sugar beets,
potatoes and fruits. One would imagine
that these irrigation farmers would have
comparatively easy time of it since their
water is brought to them, but such is not
the case. These farmers contract with
the irrigation companies, whether govern
ment or privately operated, for a given
amount of water to be delivered upon a
certain date. This water is turned into
the farmers sluices upon that date whether
he is prepared for it or not. AS the water
is turned into his bitches and sluices you
see him with pair of rubber boots and
spade very busy among his numerous
laterals, opening one here, daming one
there, taking care to see that the water
penetrates to all parts of his fields. AT
this operation he often works continuously
for twenty-four hours scarcely stopping
long enough to eat his meals for he must
make use of the water while it is in his
bitches or lose it.
With all the wonderful Improvements,
made for, and by the farmer, very little
has been done to improve his own living
conditions. There are upon the market
electric lighting plants, it is true, but these
are so expensive to operate that the aver
age farmer is unable to have anything to
do with them. He still has to depend
upon the candle or the oil lamp for his
light. Nothing is offered in the line of a
sanitary sewerage system. Bathing facili-
ties are very poor and in many cases lack
ing altogether. His domestic water sup
ply is often an open well, unguarded,
liable to contamination, while the water
is quite often very poor, full of some dis
tasteful minerals, as alkali, or some other.
His mail is irregular, on account of in
clement weather or bad roads; while the
opportunity of giving his children a
thorough education is sadly lacking and
the numerous labor saving devices that
benefit the city wife are denied his wife
for lack of power to operate them. In
time these obstacles will be overcome as
others that seemed just as difficult were
overcome.
Although there are many drawbacks
there are number of advantages in favor
of his children that are denied their city
cousins. Think of the good wholesome
pleasure afforded them during the haying
and harvesting seasons, at threshing time,
or silo filling time, the fun enjoyed in the
fields, meadows and woodlot and in some
localities sugar making, and berry picking,
as well as host of other happy and edu-
eating undertakings. What big advan-
tage they have in learning natural science,
in getting acquainted with and knowing
the birds, animals, trees, flowers, crops,
and other things. Boys and girls clubs
offer them splendid opportunities since
members of these clubs are actually en-
gagged in growing crops and taking care
of the domestic animals. These clubs are
often responsible for introducing new
crops into their localities, the boys and
SiliS WOlh vi OdSlS, TIC prize
being scholarship at one of the various
educational institutions usually.
AS to the benefits of cooperative buying
and marketing organizations l shall not
touch since this was before the class at
one of our recent meetings.
To what extent has the American far
mer or the nation benefited by these ex-
periments and Improvements, in methods,
and machinery? In spite of the fact that
the spring of 1920 was a wet, late one, in
many cases preventing the work of pre-
pairing the soil and planting the seeds,
the farmers raised the largest crops in the
history of American agriculture, to quote
Ex-Secretary of Agriculture E. T. Meredith.
Nor was the weather conditions the only
drawback help was scarce hard to get,
and in a good many instances demanding
wages that many of the farmers could
nof afford to nav Th.r. 80 On. cd Go,