Year: 1877

as Artemus Ward would say, "highly tick
led" laughed, was pleased. Like those
old Bible characters who had angel visitors
who told them they should shortly have
additions to their families, Twas astonished
and pleased. Here probably all similarity
with old Abraham or Zqchariah and the sub
scriber would cease.


A second thought occurred to me, Why
should 1 write paper am not a farmer.
l can say with the circuit rider.


''No foot OF land do possess,


Ny home Is in the wilderness"


and here probably all similarity with the
circuit rider would terminate. But again
] remembered my boyhood days on the
farm, grew.


The experiment / then tried-the deep
rooted feality l have for tho soil, the
hopes and "air castles" of some day owning
small farm,-rememberin these, and
remembering further q channel of thought
and observation that had often occupied
my attention during the score of years since
l left the farm, q subject had often con-
templated. 1t occurred to me that per.
haps l could say something that would for
a moment arrest the attention, aud possibly
cause thought, chose for my sub
ject,


1.-THE FARMERS BODY"


Shortly after leaving the farm | received
an initiation into the mysteries of physi-
ology and the workings Of the human sys-
TEN. l always had great respect for mus
Gle. My respect widened and deepened as
l learned more of its "modus operandi."
Experimentally | knew the value of mus
n % in childhood MI baH -
"big brother" to the younger and emaller
fry of our large family; experlmentally |
knew its value in after years as carried
my ewarth through the the heavy swsle
grass between IL and 12 o'clock on hot
August forenoon, and l knew its value in
the afternoon as pitched bay over the
''big BEAM" But when left the medical
college as l said before my respect for mus
Gle had grown with my studies and felt
deep love for the human system, as God
made it and as God intended it should be.
Knowing then what the "farmer's body"
should be, 1t was natural that | should as
l daily rode among the farms, notice the
farmer. And tell you for nearly score
of years l have groaned inwardly, as
have seen the wretched substitutes of far
mers that are tilling your soil, and have
seen their work. / think | can eafely say
that have noted gradual deterioration in
the farms aud in the farmer. The farms
are growing up to weeds, and bushes.
Buildings aud fences are going 10 decay,
meadows are running out pastures are
bound out. Everywhere the want of the
plow, the spade, the bush axe, in a word,
the want of the farmers muscle is felt,-
is seen everywhere. And the farmer, he
too


is GROWING UP TO BUSHES.


They don't all wear long whiskers and
hair and part their hair in the middle, but
to me they generally appear like "temples
OF rum" "sickly plants that grow in the
shade"


Old men Contrast the weazened, spin
die shanks that hold the plow to-day, with
the sturdy farmer of you younger days.
Where do you find the brawny arms and
broad shoulder, your were wont to zee.
Not in our American born farmers of to-
day.


Another feature that view with alarm
is what l will for this occasion term the
"burglaries of the foreigners" Every year
l zee stalwart Irishmen and Dutchmen
walking into our farmers homes, and cay
ing--not in the Dick Turpin style, "your
money or your life"


That machinery is taking the place of
drudgery machinery We have too much
of that work. We want the drudging
we want to develop and use the machinery
that plays each side the human elbow. The
elbow grease believe it has been called.


One picture more In this doleful scene.
While have limited that the farmers should
have strong, healthy, muscular frame,
holding a noble and generous soul, a strong
arm and cunning hand. He should also
have his counterpart in the farmers wife,
to go by his side. A woman that should
stand forth in the beauty and loveliness,
the majesty and the symetery Of her being.
That should go with him, hand in hand TO
produce the food for the world to-day and
the farmers for the day that is to come.
How is it This long haired slim sallow to-
bacco chewing, tobacco smoking, fabby
muscled son of better man than him
self finds exactly his counterpart in the
drizzhng, novel reading, wasp wasted flat
chested, hump-back creature by his side.
Hand in hand they go to early obstruction.
After them you need expect nothing. But
l will carry this picture no further. Every
one present knows that 1t is as true as the
Bible.


Let us look for a moment at some RENE.
dy. A remedy for this condition OF things.
Now gentlemen l am going TO make some
suggestions in form of a prescription. While
you are ct liberty to take the medicine or
not, l hope 1t will be like some doctors of
whom l wot where it is saidl "He never
will do any hurt" If he don't help any
one he will never give anything to hurt a
body. hope shall do no hurt l trust
to do good. To remedy these things We
must begin clear back in life. Farmers
hninn Will, thair chtlHran
First-Continue to have chIldren-make
that popular; then see to it that they are
properly fed and clothed. AS they grow
up, let them out, encourage all kinds of
athletic sports aud labors. Let your boys
wrestle and your girls romp; don't be afraid
of their getting hurt. Better a thousand
times an occasional broken leg OF a aspraiped
joint, than an early death or premature de-
cay. But we won't have broken limbs, or
spTained joints. Under better system Of
feeding and training, bone will not be 80
tender and brittle, and joints will not sprain.
Revive all those olden time "bees." If we
can't have logging bees, we still can have
our husking bees and apple pairing. Yes
we can institute others. We can have
moving and hoeing and harvesting bees,
where the young may meet In noble strife
aud emulation Of struggle aud skill.


Farmers nowadays only meet at funer-
ais, where they shiver solemnily around the
remains of some early victim OF non-action,
and as they hug closer about them their
waning vitality, they hopelessly and
helplessly wonder how soon their time will
come. Change all this change the whole
plan Of our annual fairs. Let committees
be appointed year before hand to stand
over and report progress. After your pre-
MUM list, put your highest premium upon
man, and not on machine. A premium
upon the man of certain weight who will
hold out the greatest weight upon his strong
right arm premium on lining, on rum
ming, on jumping, etc. Not give a pre-
MUM to simpering miss who has baked
loaf of bread under the close inspection of
some spectacled old aunt. but upon the