Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1921-06-17
WHAT is THE MATTER WITH
THE FARMER?"

Ever so often somebody comes for
ward and asks, "what is the matter
with the farmer" There is nothing
Mt all the matter with the farmer.
He is, as usual, carrying ON, doing
the best he can in spite of the hand
leaps placed in his way by folks out
side. He is raising fine crops, fine
children, and sometimes raises lit
tie cain, but forging ahead. working
twelve, sometimes fourteen, hours
day, sleeps like baby Zone of the
good kind of babics), all night, lives
ON his own bread and meat. sorghum
molasses, buckwheat cakes. spare ribs
and sausage. Nothing the matter,
thank you with the farmer. lie is
not among the crowd that tolls not
nor spins, who lives from the sweat of
somebody clsc's face-not him. He
is the bone and sincw of the land"
He supplies the bread and meat for
the world and does it chccrfully.
The millions of city, mine and fac
itory dwellers, the famine stricken
across the seas. arc all supplied from
his granary, bins and smoke houses.
He grumblcs sometimes when his
back aches and the cut worms and
grasshoppcrs destroy his crops. but
goes on to the end of the row and
turns around and goes back again,
Keeping one eye on the sun and his
ears cooked for the sound of the din
ner horn. hut FORCES ahead, in faith
trusting i'll his own strong arm and
Providence. Nothing the matter with
the "hay seeds" of this great coun-
try.
The trouble is ON the outside. There
are lot Of gangstcrs and trick
STEERS or ignoramuscs or politicians or
something, who are Fostering the
farmer, and stealing the fruits of hl>
labor, and it seems difficult to locate
them. AT one time they appear to he
III Washington where the great man.
ipulators and politicians swarm. max,
speeches., raise taxes and collect
salaries they do not earn, but eat
three square meals dav of farm
products for which they pay the
hotels big prices.
And some say the gang hangs out
IN Wall Street where the financial
sharks pull the wires. Some say Chi
cago is the rendezvous of the con-
troiiers OF grain and stock prices:
others say the railroads are to blame
Inc coal operators are under suspic
ION, others say, and so il gors. The
question, what is the matter with
the farmer?" is easily answered bur
the inquiry, what is the matter with
the country" generally is AS diff
cult as the question, chow old was
Ann Z" No one will dispute that there
IS somethlng-and Il big something
too' wrong somewhere, when business
Is ut stand still and worse. in n
great country like this.
"A number of remedies, much nd.
wee has been suggested and offered
10 set things straight. In the mean
tune strikes increase and tie wheels
OF industry slow down. The country
mas not gotten back to "normalcv /"
but "abnormalcy" continues. This
Scribe does not presume to work ont
problem which has bailled and nor.
pleXed the wlsest. The truth is there
Is hothing the matter with the farm
er. Millions of bushels of grain are
piled up in his bins from last yong
crops, and he is CARRYING on with .
PROSPECT now OF larger crop than
ever before to pile on top of the 9TH
81 one Like the man in the Bible,
inc farmer will not know where to
store his goods, but will have to pull
uo"n ms barns and build greater. No
the seat or seats of the trouble must
De sought outside the farmers.