10—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 28,1978 COMMENTS B y dieter krieg, editor We salute the truckers My hat is off to the truckers who keep agriculture on the move even when the worst combination of snow, ice and floods grips the countryside Having lived on a dairy farm for many years, I can vividly remember -the worrying over milk that couldn't be stored or a dwindling feed supply. We got into some pretty tight situations, but we never lost much More often than not, we didn’t lose a drop. The men behind the wheels of the trucks were always doing their best. Truckers have to be among the most dedicated and highly responsible men to be found in any profession Considering the snow drifts, ice, long fiours, and downright uncomfortable situations they’re faced with during bad weather, they have a monumental task before them In comparison, those frozen water pipes and broken barn cleaners are small problems. Many a trucker has been stranded somehwere on a lonely road Some have been unable to go home to their families for days due to either being stranded or the demands of their work I know of a number of drivers who have worked around the clock They consistently do all they can to get to the farmer's milk tank, feed bin, egg cooler or what have you These drivers sacrifice a lot of their personal and family life durmg these THE SILENT VOICES Lesson for January 29,1978 In one of the plays about Joan of Arc there is a scene in which Joan and the TO TRANSFER SILAGE Silage producers who have had surplus corn or grass silage stored in temporary structures should be giving some thought of moving it into the upright silos when weather permits. This practice is quite common amoung dairy and cattle feeders in order to utilize a maximum amount of the crops in the form of silage. RURAL ROUTE By Tom Armstrong WHAT 'S ALL THE COMMOTION OVER IN THAT WATER BOWL % wmtry days Granted, they’re compensated, and we could say that they’re only doing what they're being paid to do But that doesn't make their job any easier or lessen their responsibility What’s more, they're really not making all that much According to one milk truck driver, freight haulers make $4 more per hour than he does But that’s not the point of this tribute to truck drivers. The point is that truckers are very dedicated men who have to put up with some very negative and even dangerous situations Just think of the ice and snow around your farm. Tnen multiply that times dozens of other farms - some of them with sloping, twisty, ice covered lanes -- and you have a little idea of what truckers are faced with Add 100 or even 200 miles of roads that are drifted shut in places and slick as grease in between Consider the risk of life and property involved and the hours of frustration Consider, too, the trucker’s wife and children at home No doubt it takes something away from their comfort to know that Daddy is out there someplace in a treacherous storm Add it all up, and you can’t help but be thankful to the very dedicated men who keep your products moving We salute those drivers and congratulate them for the fine work they do “voices” which Joan hears at tunes. “Why don’t the voices come to me?” the Dauphin demands. “I am the king.” “They do come to you, Sire,” Joan answers, “but you do not take the tune to hear them.” Joan’s response to the Dauphin might easily apply to many of us; there are sights and sounds all about us through which God would speak to us, but often we do not take the time to either see or hear. A number of years ago I took a group of church youths on a four-day bicycle camping tr> When this job is done m cold weather, there will be less danger of heating and spoilage of the silage. When the job is started, it should be completed as quickly as possible. Many producers need to move this extra silage in order to feed it through their mechanical feeders. Don’t wait until hot weather to make this move. thought was familiar to me. I had driven over its roads many times. Yet, as we pedaled through this countryside it seemed that I was seeing it for the first time. Always before I had - sped by in my car, but now I was going slow enough to really see. The Psalmist tells us that there are many voices in nature that tell of the glory of God the Creator. But they are voices, for the most part, without sounds: “There is no speech, nor are there words: their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out throi TO PLAN CROPS FOR THE YEAR With all the snow that has been on the ground for the past week, it seems untimely to be thinking about the crops that are needed this year; however, in another eight weeks the 1978 crop ping season will be getting started and no doubt some early items may be in the ground. This means that plans should be made soon Only a couple days remain before the U.S. Senate will act on one of the most dangerous labor bills to come across their desks in a long time. It’s Senate Bill 1883, allegedly a “labor reform” package, but in reality a Big Labor gimmick to force workers into unions. S. 1883 is being opposed by numerous farm groups, including the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Poultry and Egg Institute of America. Opponents of the bill say the measure will force employers to deliver their workers into union hands. Big Labor, despite its muscle and loud voice, is having a tough time of it, believe it or not. Union mem bership has been going down, and only about 20 per cent of this nation’s work force belongs to unions. Fellows like George Meany are worried about it and have therefore devised a plan to reverse the the trend Says the National Right to Work Committee, an organization which is dedicated to an individual’s right to work; “Should the full Senate knuckle to the end of the world” (Psalms 19:3,4). The creation about us can speak to us without words or sounds and still reach the depths of our hearts. Stand out under a star filled sky some night and “Listen” to what that twinkling host is saying to you. There will be no sounds issuing forth from the inky depths of space, but there is a message for the person who is receptive, who will take the tune to open his or her life to it. Stand and look over a vast prairie carpeted with in and there will be for the supplies needed and get them ordered. Livestock and dairy producers should not overlook the value of growing and using maximum amounts of roughages in their rations. Silage and hay are low-cost feed nutrients and maximum production should be planned. In addition, straw is a very scarce and expensive farm commodity, we all like to know that the AMIMALS in <JOR (3ARMS ARE COMFOHTASc . . BUT THIS IS Rl DICULOUS ■ Help defeat S. 1883 the mnder depths of our being. More than gold The writer of Psalms 19 heard other voices as well. When he considered the law of God, the moral goodness and order which God had given to Israel,' he heard another kind of voice or voices. Whereas the voices of nature spoke of God the Creator, he found the voices of law speaking of God the Good and Holy. Speaking of God’s laws, the psalmist exalts; “More to be desired are they than gold, even much finer gold; sweeter and no doubt worthy of careful harvesting. ROOF CONSTRUCTION The recent heavy snowfall placed special stress of all roofs and I’m sure that a good many folks were concerned about the safety of their buildings. The recent snowfall was the most that we have had in recent years, but still was not a record amount. I can recall a SO Today, Jan, 28 Blue Mountain Young Farmers hold barn dance, 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30 York County Horticulture Club meets at the 4-H Center near Bair, 7 p.m Speaker is Ralph Schneider, “the gourd man ” Farm Management Workshop in Hunterdon County, N.J. at the Ex- under and allow the so-called labor “reform” bill to be railroaded through, union organizers would be handed a variety of new legal weapons with which to blackmail employers into delivering employees into compulsory unionism.” Farmers know what unions have done to this country’s economy, and to their own efforts of trying to make ends meet. It’s therefore imperative that we do our share in preventing union bosses to spread their already too immense powers It’s generally acknowledged that if S 1883 is passed, Big Labor will attack Right to Work laws Such laws give workers the right to employment without having to join a union Removal of that law, known as Section 14b of the Taft-Hartley Act, will make union membership mandatory Workers will no longer have a choice in the matter Such erosion of personal rights must be stopped The Senate will likely axt on the matter within the next couple of days Your letter to your congressman and senators can help to defeat this evil plan of Big Labor TO EVA! AJ ATE Farm Calendar pings ot the honeycomb” (19:10). People need to listen to both kinds of voices, not just one or the other. We need to listen to the voices of nature and feel that sense of grandeur and might that are reflected in creation. But we need also to listen to the voices of God’s will and law so that we might experience anew the sense of security that comes in encountering and worshipping a God of moral perfection. Are you listening? inch snow in early March a number of years ago that was a very wet snow and was extremely hard on roofs and wires. If this should occur again, I’m wondering how some of the more recently built buildings will stand up. (Turn to Page 22) tension Center, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Annual meeting of the Martic Hills Watershed Association, 7:30 p.m. in the Martic Township Elementary School, Martic Heights Drive, Rawhnsville. Pesticide certification program begins at Lampeter - Strasburg High School, 7:30 p.m. (Turn to Page 27)
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers