The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1934-02-22
Howe About:
War and Debt
Temperance Plea
Farming Situation
By ED HOWE
q. Bell OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Services.

either as TO myself or others. once
they kept war going on thirty yenrs-
You may say we have more
sense than that now. | am not 30
sure of 1t. Our last war WAS conduct
| ed on SO magnificent scale tnat the
world became bankrupt In four years, |
and we had to quit; whereas 1t Is re-
lated Frederick the Great paid for his
wars as he went along When he quit,
he didn't owe q penny. and had no
pensioners to move on his capital, anu
threaten to take 1t. Boys coming on
soon supplied Frederick with more
farmers: food was produced again I'D
: vear. But war debt con-
stantly increasing and drawing inter
est, will ruin anybody.
I have noted that many people VINO
annoy me, occasionally turn out TO
have good deal of sense. One man
sent me pamphlets daily for weeks,
but finally the pamphlets were made
into a book called Toward Liquor
Control" | have read the book. II
was written by a number OF rather
notable men employed by the KoeRe
TELLER foundation to look Thoroughly
into the problem OF liquor control, and
make a report about II.
The book Is one Of the best written,
most sensible and importanfs ! nave
ever read. 1t includes review or our
general American shiftiessness In pup
lie affairs, and which has finally al
most bankrupted us morally as well as
financially. I recommend the DOCK 10
everyone who believes little In com
mon sense and decency. and In pre-
serving the little civilization we have
managed TO achieve.
The book is plea for temperance
not only as to intoxicating liquors. but
In everything else. We are very In
temperate In our eating In sex mat
ters: In aIl-t.Aases of public affairs. In
education. religion we must become
ashamed of our intenperanee. or we
shall be Inundated before the world
more than we have been lately.
Not less than IS per cent Of our IN
dustrial workers are hampered by I'm
nroner diet of all money spent by their
families on food. IS per cent Is mis-
spent, either on improper or too costly
or otherwise uneconnmlc dletaries-
This dsgracefu percentage holds ID
everything else we do.
Americans became so rich We
reached the Coal OIL Johnny stage IN
extravaganza and shiftlessness, anf
we must do better. as Coal oil John
nv did In the poor house.
Although he said poor-house die
would kill him. after living SO long Oh
terrapin and turkey, II actually result
ed In better health; actually assisted
In restoring him to sanity and INDUS
try.
when was 4 boy. and my fathe
" farmed and preached the old gospe
re we occasionally had d horror onc
ri 1 farmer drove Into Pole creek afte
a rain. and was drowned His horse
drowned with him.
4 II was terrible. but we didn't nav
l. excitement often. Once man ma
nose-beed for days. and CONSTANT
grew weaker, as nothing could De don
70 stop It. We all went over TO 100
nj him; everyone was excited. ono
a man was bitten on the thumb by
rattlesnake He had cut down nici
ory tree, to get the nuts. and the a.
cident happened while he was pickln
them up The man put his thunn
his mouth. and sucked the poison on
We talked about that for DAYS A.
other time a farmer came home FRO
town drunk and everybody ran oV'
TO his house to suggest remedy. vi
woman suggested that he drink pf
OF milk. she Ind ltveh tn town
Indiana, where we all came from, OF
knew about such things: and the mi
got well
The Civil war was going on the
and an occasional soldier came nor
on furlough with tall tales to tell, Q
20 had no such terrors as hear
every morning and evening now. Wh
- 7 get the papers Somewhere the OF
er day the members Of family We
eating supper when an airplane Y
on their house. The house and sew
- persons were burned up. with !
- neighbors looking on; all they COZ
81 do was to save the house next door
~ In my day, farmers were at lei
steady men: now they are rioting'
81 thing | never heard Of even town u
doing until was man grown.
we we're poor people. but alw'
had plenty. Now farmers say q
s are starving. Millions OF them actl
I ~ have starved In Russia, hera'
s town men take what the farmers ra
ss@ In nv boyhood we hardly ever say
IA town man: specially they didn't co
~ out carrying guns. and tell us "
- mart OF our corn we could Keep,
sgN what part they wanted to support
I governments N. A. p. D.. which me
a new and better deal.
I have long observed that when
ont of condition, I can get prompt
YkH - -. nn+{pr Iacc nv missing n