8
EVENING HEDGER PHILADELPHIA', THtTBSPAY, 'APRIL1 22, 1916?
- - - ' . , i i i . i . i 1 1 i '
I uenhtg Sml& ttttytt
I'tJBLlG LEDGER COMPANY
rtnffl . K cuitTie, rtiB."T.
, ChaHet II. i.jainatoA,Vlce.PMmdntiJelin C, Martin,
ftrreui-y pnrt Trmmirer; FMHp 8. Cellini, John B.
Wl!lljim. IJIrrftorii
KDitonTAii no Ann t"
ftcn H. K. CcTi, Chairman.
T. rf WMAMlr Eiecullve Miter
JOJuTc MAnTIN iCJeneral Diulneet Mnitf
lfttlhed dally t rcMO UNU Bulldln,
Independence Square, Philadelphia
t,rrnmC'lSTt...,,,,(,.. Broad and Chestnut Street
AtuKtic CiTt ,,,..... ....rrets-Vnlan Bulldlnc
Mtn Tour i 170.A, Metropolitan Toner
Itttcian st" Horn tnnufance Building-
tCON 8 Waterloo Place, rail Mali, 8. TV.
NKWB BUnBAUSI
XVi-stNATO! TlonfAD. .,.. The Poet Hulldinn
Nrw York nocAD , , .. .... . .Th rimn Hiilldln-
n-iiv Unfn ........ ...no FrledrlohstraMa
toMs nidiAC....... 2 Pali Mall ni. H. TV.
riH3ciUAU. ... ....... . . .32 Hue Louis Is urand
5unscnipTio.NTr.nMs
Ilr carrier. DutLT OM.T, lx cent", nt mall. polpal1
r'UIld 6f Philadelphia, except whcf fnrflxn pootate
required, Dailt Oit.T, on monlh. twenty-Ate centi
DA(t.r Only, one ar, three dollan All malt ub
eriptlon parable In advance
BFJ.t 9600 WALNUT KnSlONF. M UN 3000
ej Atdrvia all roinmuiilcolloni lo JTifnln
Lerffffr, tnitptntenrt Squarf. Philadelphia
, -j, ; !
-MMtD at Tilt rHit.irjri.rntA roAtorf tea a rces.
CUM MAIL MITTF.R.
g-- ' ' '
rillLAUMJIllA, TllllllSDW. API1II. 22. 1913.
The tcamy tide of llfr is In disrepute only be
cause the teams nre not ucll made.
Put a White Feather In Respectability's
Cap
THERE are many gentlemen of undoubted
respectability who resent the action of
the Houae yesterday In rejecting local op
tion. But these sumo gentlemen last fall
swelled the liquor slush fund by contribu
tions of their own and In November marched
to the polls and voted a straight ticket.
They wnnt good government, but they al
ways vote against it.
Let not some poor lickspittles, kicked into
otnee by the Organization, be blamed too
much for dolus what their patrons had
agreed they should do. .Many of them were
etected by the nod of "leaders." They feel
that they represent these "leaders," not tho
people. They are our American serfs, act
In? as serfs always act, pitiable rawns,
basking for a moment in local publicity and
soon passim- Into oblivion. What do they
know of statesmanship, or public duty, or
anything except orders?
But let the Industrial leaders, the social
leaders, the religious leaders of Pennsyl
vania shiver under the lash of their own
consciences. They are tho ones who de
feated local option. On their shoulders
rents tho blamo for the completion of the
contract entered Into by Republican leaders
last fall. They knew all about the con
spiracy then. They knew that the Legis
lature had been sold for a slush fund. They
were fully acquainted with tho nefarious
agreement. Yet they inarched to the polls
and voted for the guilty men. What did
they expect? Virtue from .rapacity? Truth
from the deceitful? Honest service from
those who boaBted of' dishonesty?
Vi'e may pity even the "lenders," thoso
men of stunted conscience, trained In n dis
reputable school, enamored of vicious pro
cedure by long acquaintance with It, prac
tical politicians skilled in the tricks of the
trade, adept in padding voting lists, "slick"
In promoting Irregular registrations, fat and
pudgy from long feeding at the public
trough, veterans from old campaigns of pil
lage and plunder, trade and counter-trade,
citizens of the Catnllnlnn type, ready at any
time to drive a dagger (deep Into American
institutions for an ofilce or a share In the
spoils. Aye, they are deserving of pity, for
they, perhaps, arc unable longer to differ
entiate between good and bad.
But for gentlemen untainted, of moral
training, with apt ethical perceptions, theie
is nc- excuse. Bad government is their child
Just as certainly as it they had legally adopt
ed It. They are our civic mollycoddles, sweet
talkers, perfumed knights of decency, ready
enough to tight when there la no fight,
champions of righteousness In the off season,
who never hesitate, to lock the stable after
tho horse Is gono.
They had tho chance of a lifetime last
year. Boldly Doctor Brumbaugh refused
to be a beneficiary of tho slush fund.
Courageously he backed local option. Had
gentlemen proved their Republicanism and
respectability by standing squarely for him
apd Just as squarely against other leading
candidates who were wanton conspirators,
they would have put such power In the Gov
ernor's hands that nothing could have pre
vented local option. But they did not. They
supported Brumbaugh, but they supported
the conspirators, too. By so doing they
shackled him and set him to a Herculean
task -with his hands tied. They Invited the
debacleof yesterday, made it a moral cer
tainty, and all the yelling and howling they
may now do will not lift from their shoulders
one scruple of responsibility.
Jt la clear that the liquor interests have
made a fatal blunder. They have nourished
tnn fanaticism which they should have
sought to avoid. Particularly have the brew
era erred in tying up their Interests to those
of the distillers. Beer, as a unit, could never
be driven out of Pennsylvania; strong drink
isj becoming more and more generally re-
Bgarded as a common enemy.
Vet the shame of yesterday, which was not
the defeat of local option but tho method
of it defeat, may be the beginning of a new
era in this State, even of a new leadership
in the Republican party. It may be doubted
M mtn with large interests at stake will be
u willing longer to have the great economic
IMdleiM) of government confused and Im
periled by conspiracies of this sort. They
n.ut see the utter folly of tfucb procedure.
For them intelligent direction of the party is
wsmry and leadership that Jeopardises
iia tJrupects Is distasteful. The resentment
which is sure- to follow yesterday's affair may
teach them the peril of their late adventure
and open their eyes. If It does, so much the
belter for Pennsylvania. The Stale has been
loo long the prey of apathe.Uo cllUonry.
But let theso honorable gentlemen remem
ber that they got yesterday what they bal
loted for. The fault Is theirs. They voted
their party Into the mlro and sunk It there
so deep that not even the brilliancy, the re
sourcefulness, the earnestness and tho states
manshlp of the Governor could extricate It.
It was a great day for "practical politicians,"
Hie Way of the Hoss
CDI.ONEI, ROOSEVELT told the Jury in
Hjracuso that after he was elected Gov
ernor of New York, Senator riatt, tho Htalo
Republican boss, called on him at Oyster
Bay and told him that If he wanted the Leg
islature to pass any bill to which tho Stato
Organization objected ho would bo disap
pointed, for tho Organization controlled tho
Legislature.
This cleared the gtound most completely
and let tho Colonel understand that ho was
to bo merely a figurehead In Albany, while
the Organization worked Its will. But the
Colonel had Ideas of his own, and mnde him
self so troublesome that tho Organization
unloaded him on tho National Republican
Convention to get rid ot him.
And tho rest irt History, ot which tho
Colonel might say, with Virgil's hero, "Pars
magna ful!"
The bosses have a way of telling Gover
nors what they may and may not do. Now
and then thero Is a Governor who has a way
of doing what he pleases, bosses or no
bosses. And when tho bosses try to kick
him downstairs things happen. Th point
of the remark Ilea in the application thereof.
A Two-edged Rebuke
THE firmness and dignity with which the
President rebukes Germany, through Am
bassador Bernstorff, for her latest nofe on
the shipment of Arms are worthy of the best
traditions of American dlplomncy. Indeed,
tho diplomacy of tin great Power ever pro
duced a more skilfully worded note. It
covers every point with thoroughness and
leaves neither Ambassador Bcrnstorft nor
Germany, nor any of tho Allies In doubt as
to tho position of tho United States. It Is a
rebuke which cannot be misunderstood.
The Riddle AVcddlnp Invitations
W2
HAT Is a postofllce for, it not to deliver
eddlng Invitations? This is not a flip
pant question, but one which deserves seri
ous consideration by those who occupy the
scats of the mighty. A wedding invitation
Is not a mero commercial noto dealing with
the transfer of cold cash or so many bales
ot cotton or so many pounds ot codfish. It
is a formal notice ot membership In a cer
tain social circle or a recognition of the ex
istence of a membership previously estab
lished. When, therefore, those persons en
titled by all social usage to receive Invita
tions to a large wedding fall to receive them
through the negligence of the pntofTlce an
affront has been ortrred. The fact that the
affront wa not Intended does not mitlg.ite
the slight. Tho family of the bride is charged
with all sorts of social offenses because of
It, and tho Tostmaster General himself could
not exonerate them, though possibly the
President might he able to.
Real Heroes Arc Heroines
WOMAN 1h neither an idler nor a para
site. Sho works sldo by sid with her
husband and her sons, and when they am
called away she docs the work which they
have left behind. Tho truth of this fact was
illustrated yesterday In New Hampshire,
where the women went out with the men to
light forest fires to save their homes. And It
has been Illustrated In Europe ever since the
war began. Although women work In tho
fields there more than In the United States,
and do what we regard as men's work In
mines and mills, women not accustomed to
manual labor are now engaged In It. If they
do not tnke up the work ot the men In the
nrmles their families will have to go with
out the necessities of life. Tho photographs
of women lnliorcrs which appeared in the
Illustrated section of the Evenjno LKDOnn
last night show some of the occupations In
which they are now employed.
Woman is really nian'a partner, his Indus
trial as well as his social partner. Her In
terests are wrapped tip In hlB and his In
terests cannot be considered apart from hers.
They build the home together and 'rear the
children together, and when the woman has
foresight and economy and thrift they nc
qulre a competency together. No man fa
miliar with what women nre doing In thou
sands of homes will ever make the mistake
of calling them members of the weaker sex.
There ate women In this town at tho present
moment doing work enough every day to
break down two men. Tho heroes of the
battle of life are. heroines nfter all.
The Colonel has not had such a bully time
since he charged up San Juan Hill.
General Joffre In descended from a cooper,
hut he has not yet succeeded In barreling up
the Germans.
Whoever thinks that the ladles do not
know how to play politics ought to read the
reports of a D. A. R. convention.
As the sane suffragists read the arguments
offered In support of votes for women by
some of Its advocates they may well pray
to be delivered from their fool friends.
The British laureate, w,ho has Joined the
Volunteer Training Corps for Homo Defense,
would soon be a captain if he could transfer
to military affairs his Bklll In making words
march to time.
Four thousand hogs are to be killed in
South Philadelphia by order of tho Live
Stock Sanitary Board, but unfortunately the
board does not have Jurisdiction oyer all the
hogs In the cltx
Tea dealers, in view of the decreased con
sumption of alcoholic drinks brought about
by war decrees, are planning to bull the tea
market so that the cup which cheers may
soon cost more than usual. But It will never
cost so much as a glass of beer, however
high they push the price.
While the Russians are pounding on tho
German east front the French and English
are sending troops to the Dardanelles to
assist in taking Constantinople for the bene
fit of Russia. It is fortunate for tho Allies
that this is not happening In the Unltsd
States, for some on would surely bring suit
to dissolve the alliance on the ground that
it is a conspiracy in rtstramt of German
trade.
NEUTRAL MEXICANS
WITHOUT A COUNTRY
The "New Serfdom" for Refugees.
Europcnn War Rcjjnrdcd ns De
lightfully Glorious Compared
With tho Anarchy in Mexico.
-.W.-'" li Ul ""n't "' two editorial arllftfa
r.J iJ' ,by.fll1 Enwmo Lsmntn ataff eorr
fS .....".. wh1,JYM nt t the Melcn bordr
lo Miidy conditions 1
rnHERE is no place In Mexico today for
-J-the Intelligent neutral Mexican with con
nttuctlvo Ideas. Tho peace-loving, fair
minded Mexicans havo been driven Inlo
exile. In hundreds of cases separated from
their families nnd compelled to haunt tho
border, hoping against hopo that their wives
and children havo falten Into the hands of
at least eome seml-clvlllzed bandit leader.
They are a pitiable lot, these neutral exiles,
nnd It Is no wonder that when you meet
thorn they wring their hands and pray for
tho time when somo strong hand will Inter
vene and savo their people from the ever-
Increasing devastation and desolation,
Nor Is It any wonder thnt so many ot them
comment so bltiorly upon tho "cowardlco"
and "selilah aloofness" of the American peo
ple. During tho last year or two tho Idea
has pervaded all Mexico thnj this Govern
ment hns kept out ot Mexico chiefly through
fear. Tho attitude of nil tho revolutionary
bands has become distinctly an attitude of
sneering insolence, and It lias been a simple
mntter for the leaders In nil the Innumer
able separate little achievements ot piracy
nnd plllago that havo been dignified with
tho namo of warfare to lmbuo tho bulk of
the population with the notion that we have
kept out of Mexico mom through fear of
tho Mexicans than for any other cause.
"Pusillnnhnous Retirement"
Tho episode at Vera Cruz did not In the
least lend to dispel this carefully nurtured
popular viewpoint. Tho withdrawal of our
troops was proclaimed In every province ns
a "puilllnnlinotiM retirement nf lily-livered
grlngops." This Impreslson has heen strength
ened every time the waning tribes of rev
olutionists havo met upon our border anil
carried on their opera bnurte warfare within
view of American troops, who scarcely more
than raised their hands in protest when
fusillades of bullets crossed the nio Grando
River and wounded American citizens.
Interview our regular troops on the sub
ject and you will see somo lino examples ot
"raging Impotence." Very naturally army
men nre not In sympathy with grapejulco
policies or with tho "paiitalctto efficiency"
ot our Navy Department. When officers and
agents of the various parties In temporary
power cross over tho lino nnd derldo them
becnuse of their Inability to Interfere this
does not tend to put them in any better
humor.
Our border patrols havo seen the situa
tion grow from bad to worse; thoy havo seen
the ceaseless tide of refugees flow over fho
line and vanish Into the vostness of the
Texas lowlands to seek shelter and food as
they can often, when they come into tho
hands of unscrupulous employers, selling
themselves Into a new condition ot peonage.
There Is not so much of "new serfdom" un
der our flag for the Mexican refugees ns
many are led lo believe, for the people of
South Texan havo learned within tho last
few years to value tho cheap labor of the
exiled peasantry ot Mexico for what It Is
worth In a raw land that has been held
back from the development of immense re
sources simply because of tho high cost of
labor. In tho vast majority ot cases they
aro treated humanely and ns generously ns
the law of supply and demand dictates.
The Submersed Eight-tenths
Tho crime of non-intervention seems
greater to our border people when they see
how little restraint it is necessary to Impose
upon the "submerged So per cent." of Mex
icans, to maintain them prosperously In sim
ple acts of husbandry. They have given
even passible evidence thnt they do not
require quite a ruthless hand to control
them, and it is no wonder that the Idea
has become so prevalent that our Admin
istration in Washington could if It would
establish a bloodless protectorate In Mexico
that would give telgn to swift processes of
reconstruction.
The task, ot course, will seem insuperable
ho long as we accept the exaggerated view ot
certain crafty Mexican politicians that to in
tervene wo must give battlo to armed hosts
greater than our own regular forces. But
these armed hosts are Bhowlng every day
moro and more of their hopolesi inefficiency.
There Is no longer anything that resembles
a cause to weld them together. Tho prelim
inaries to a battlo aro harder upon the officers
ot these so-called revolutionary armies than
the actual battle Itself, for the reason that
they never know how many of their troops
will desert lo the other sldo, or else tako It
Into their heads to branch out for themselves
into separate marauding forces. Just one
battle recently resulted In tho breaking up of
the forces of one sldo Into flvo distinct bands
that vanished somewhere in tho mesquite to
carry on Independent robberies and outrages.
It has been patent for a long while that the
only Inducements that will now serve to hold
any of these groups of "little bad men" to
gether aro the same Inducements that pre
vailed when the Goths and Huns swept away
the beginnings of civilization In Europe. Tho
difference In Mexico Is that they are sweeping
away the remnants of a beginning civilization
in a country that Is unbelievably rich in nat
ural resources. It Is because of the wealth
NOISE INCREASES
A PEW years ago in a gathering at Phila
delphia a number of women tollers from
neighboring tenements were asked what they
considered the greatest evil of their lives. Their
answer was not liquor, or unsuitable dwell
ings, or any of the other numerous burdens at
tendant on poverty, but noise, "Noise," said
one of the women acting as apokeiman, "Is
killing us. It never atop. No one can sleep
until midnight, and the nolsa begins again at 5,"
A writer In the National Municipal Review
maintains that the view of the women of the
slums la based on the soundest (dentine
grounds, and that the health of the nation Is
tlng aertouily undermined by constant and
ever-increasing city noise. There can be no
doubt of the direct effect of nolae on t)Uh.
Dr. Clarence Blake, of Boston, an eminent
auriat, saya that diseases of the ear are 10-
creasing with the Increase of noise and that It
the noise Is to continue wfc shall be a deaf race.
He holds that the ear needs periods of ab
solute rest to insure its healthfulnesi. Just as
the eye needa periods ol darkness.
The Journal of Pediatrics, sa long ajo as 1WT,
aueetd that much of the startllnr inereu
"NOT THAT I
of these resources that a condition of chaos
and nnnrchy may endure Indefinitely for a
decade or moio unless some stronger civiliza
tion Interferes definitely and firmly. The at
tempt of Carranza lo lay tilbuto upon tho
great sisal Industry of Yucatan is just ono
indication of how tho warring factions will
continue, to wear down and drain every last
drop of Rtistennnco tho country contains.
Great hopes had been built upon tho efforts
of tho A. B. C. mediators, but this effort of
constructive got-togolher Intervention proved
as abortive as every other phase of tho watch
ful waiting policy. It did not leave bohlnd It
a shred of fabric to tie 'to, and whllo there
may bo some endless, dreary report ot tho
comments and findings of tho mediators
tucked away In our national archives, tho
Incident Itself has vanished Into an envelop
ing dimness, like some long-forgotten episode
in the decline and fall of Home.
Europe a Pleasure Resort
The present enduring facts, however, pro
sent themselves on every sldo to the Investi
gator in Mexico nnd they present as appalling
a condition to shock the Imagination us almost
anything you will find in Belgium or Poland.
To many Mexicans the situation seems even
moro hopeless than In the war-stricken
regions of Europo. When the war ends In
Europe there will bo strong governments lo
manage the reconstruction, there will be a
social pchenie ot things based upon rigid
laws; rights in property and possessions at
least will lie maintained.
But in Mexico there is not even this to look
forward to. The comic opera combination of
Napoleon and Garibaldi Villa is down to
day, hut ho may bo on top tomorrow. The
Huertista agency may manage some shifty
llttlo coup while the Carranzlstas nro holding
festival to celebrate their victory. General
Obregon Is likely to suffer an nttack of mega
lomania and hitch his destiny to somo pri
vately conducted little comet. Mexico City
Is nt last consldeied .so unsafe that Washing
ton reports the organization of a special train
to carry out American refugees.
Fattening tho Buzznrds
The Mexican cattlo Industry has been all
but completely demolished. The remnant
heids that remain in the northern provinces
are regarded as the free-for-all spoils of any
little group of armed adventurers who care
to drive them to the border for sale, or
slaughter for their own provcnd&r, leaving
the hastily carved carcasses on tho trail for
the buzzards. As the herds of cattle have
diminished the swarms of carrion-devouring
birds havo Increased. Always plentiful, they
Stavo grown to great swarmB, and they fol
low all tho divers and various' llttlu "armies"
and detached "squadrons" of robbers with
unflinching loyalty. The buzzards alone ot all
creatures In Mexico aro fattening upon the
watchful waiting policy, and to innumerable
forlorn Mexicans havo become emblematic
of that policy.
Mightier world problems may havo come to
vex our diplomats and smother for the time
the Mexican situation, but this cannot long
continue as nn excuse for seemingly neglect
ing a patent obligation to a distressed and
anarchy-ridden people who aro our next door
neighbors. Tho best intelligence In Mexico,
as well as tho best Intelligence you may find
among exiled Mexicans, Is now fairly yearn
ing for somo sort of American Intervention.
Will their appeal go unheeded, to find no
listening ear or sympathy in Washington,
nnd must they wait so long that they will be
compelled to direct this appeal to some other
Power more vigorous In ItB policy or more
cunning in its designs upon the tremendous
resources of Mexico?
THE SICK RATE
of insanity was due to continuous nolae Inas
much as the ear Is the shortest avenue to the
brain. The American Journal of Publls
Hygiene, in WA, held that nolae was harmful
even to healthy persons, first, because It In
terfered with the neceasary amount of sleep,
and, aecpnd, because It necessitated concentrated
attention, thereby Increasing nervous fatigue.
Ordinary attention, It la held, la a normal
functioning ot the brain, but when noise Inter
feres an Intense concentration la required which
produces nervous fatltue In exact proportion to
tho amount of concentration, and this fatigue
continued day after day leads Indubitably to
neurasthenia.
The Philadelphia Medical Journal advises all
physicians and educated peraons to wage an
Incessant war against unnecessary nolae, which,
It aay, Is "Increasing the sick rt by murder
ing sleep," increasing the death rate by de
stroying the vital and recuperative powers of
the sick and dulling and brutalizing the ner
vous system of those who have to withstand
Its pathological Influence. The weight ot opin
ion among physicians seems to be that solas
directly affects health.
LOVED CAESAR LESS, BUT RUM MORE!"
STRING BEANS AND SOCIAL CULTURE;
Farms and Suburban Gardens Are Different and the Discovery u
of Neighbors Does Not Always Follow the Same Course, j
out tne unly True uommunity is a JNeignbornood.
Ry ROBERT
AGAIN and again, lately,
. across thnt made worri-
I have conio
-culture. The
qunrrel over tho right and righteous defini
tion of Kultur, between Germans nnd Allies,
already seems foolish and fur away. I am
planting a garden. This Is what I find In
tljo books and catalogs I am reading now:
CULTURE Beans nre somewhat ten
der, but it often pnys to take some risks,
riant In warm, loamy soil at the begin
ning of settled warm weather In spring,
nnd at Intervals for succession until Au
gust. Rows may be marie 2 feet npart,
and the beans planted a few Inches apart
In drills, or 3 or 4 beans in hills 6 lo S
Inches npart. Cultivate, and hoe fre
quently, always, however, when tho
vines arn perfectly drj. In lmclng draw
tho soil up toward tho rows or plants.
I'or string henns gather tho pods clean
iih soon ns fit for ue. Tho plants will
icmain all the longer In bearing.
This is but ono brief excerpt from tho lit
erature ot culture. It contains. In a few
sentences, much knowledge. But knowledge
Is not culture. Neither Is hoeing or other
hard work. Nor Is culture confined to gar
dens. Sometimes it goes a-flshlng, some
times it goes a-votlng.
Neighbors Discovered
Gardening Is both a utilitarian and an
aesthetic occupation according to a man's
spiritual mnke-up nnd his economic needs.
Whichever aspect of Its character is para
mount in nny Instance, It usunlly presup
poses a respectablo amount of knowledge.
And often Just supposes! I have gained part
of what I know nbout the science nnd art
of gardening from books nnd catalogs did
you ever discover tho fact that a catalog
can bo very Interesting reading? and part
from my neighbors. The Important thing Is
that I havo become acquainted with my
neighbors and by way of my garden.
My agricultural erudition is still compar
atively slight. I say "comparatively" be
cause, ever since I saw that tho neighbors
had "got the jump on mo" In the matter
of backyard industry nnd enjoyment, I have
given my days and nights to tho study of
gardens. Thero Is, Indeed, a great deal to
consider climate, soli, fertilizers, and so
forth nnd so on, Somo seeds should go In
drills, somo In hills nnd some should bo
sowed broadcast. Some should be covered
with the thinnest sprinkling of earth, whllo
others should bo burled soveral Inches un
derground. Some, I havo discovered with
regret at this late date, should be planted
In hotbeds In January or February. Ono
kind requires a light sandy soil and an
other will thrive only In tlch humus. But
nil these, I nm qulto nwaro, aro elementary
considerations, Thero are greater nnd moro
numerous problems with which gnrdeners
and farmers have to deal.
The amateur suburban gardener ought to
have somo appreciation of the vast amount
of knowledge accumulated In a farming com
munity. Professor Carver, director of the
Tlural Organization Service, tell.i us that tho
agricultural lore handed down In the country
places Is vastly underrated. Urban commen
tators are apt to label It "tradition," nnd not
a few misguided crltlCB go so far ns to call It
"superstition." They deplore It rs the chief
obstacle In the way of scientific agriculture.
They are partly right, but mostly wrong.
This wonderful lore of tho farmer Is some
thing which he values' highly becnuse It hns
proved workable. He Is not a whit fonder of
doing things without return of profit than
nnybody else, and when he sees a chance of
making two blades of grass grow whero only
one grew before he Is glad enough to do It.
He Is more willing to see than many of his
critics believe.
Rural FrogressWism
Progresslvlsm Is present In the country, It
welcomes college extension and establishes
farmers' Institutes. In the State which Is
sometimes called the most thoroughly rural
State in the Union every county Is well or
ganized for tho promotion of agriculture.
Nearly every county has a paid agent who
consults with and advises the farmers con
cerning crops and other farm problems.
Thero are more automobiles per inhabi
tant In that State than In any ono of 46
other Commonwealths, and, this In spite of
the fact that mora people. In proportion to
total population, own their homes, free of
encumbrance, than anywhero else In New
England. The Legislature has mads Its
statute books notable for their reflection of
the modim social spirit No other Stats In
HILDRETH
America has so largo a proportion of Its chll.
dron in school, and the educatlonal'facllltlu
of tho Commonwealth havo been ranked by
the Hussell Sago Foundation as oxcelllni v
those of three-fourths of tho American
States.
If tho country places aro so progtesslri,
why the "rural exodus" of which wo hear so
much? Tho truth Is that tho menace of ttit
rural exodus haa been greatly exaggerated.
In volume it Is decreasing. Moio than that,
its results havo been by no means wholly v
harmful. Tho shiftless, tho restless, the tin-
fit, these havo gono to tho cities becaust "?i
thoy could not mako farming pay. It's a '
very good thing for tho country places. Oth
ers have gone the youth who were not farm '.
minded. The best thing thnt can happen "J
lo rural America Is to man It with a rural '
population, a population rurally fit, rurally
minded nnd rurally Idealistic.
Kenascenco Follows Humanism t
Tho adjustment Is In rapid progress. With A
it tlio rural renascence grows In force and
effect. Tho tcnnsccnce does not depend to if
much on emigration and Immigration as on -
ccrtnln qualities of country life. It is founded
on humanism. Country life Is naturally co- f
opcratlvo nnd neighborly In a thuusand dlf- j
ferent ways. A farmhouse burns and the
neighbors help rebuild It. A rain threaten
nnd tho neighbors get In tho hay. In a rural 1
community everybody knows' everybody eli.
The people participate In a common life.
They are as closo to humanity as they-ate i
to the soil. Tho welfare of the Individual
cannot be a mntter of Indifference tQ the
,. rel.n Hatntnmnt nf community 8P!"t
and community consciousness Is the real aim J
of tho country-Ufa movement. J
pi,. nmint i-v.Ufe movement rises from the ' A
Ideals and aspirations of the country people
themselves. They aro malting u i .
civilization. It Is simply because they are J
. M,i. ......, nnmmiinllV OrC&IliZS ,.
lUlinilll. A lie nuim;ii,uo - .
tlons of Vermont, formed in the last ten yes sj
nnd bound together In a Slate association, are
tho direct outcome ot the rediscovery of JS
.-,,., ... ,i,i iri, nnlAhratloni 01 '
neigHDOiM uy imiftiiKuio, -- f,.
tho 100th and 150th anniversaries of tM ,
founding of towns had much to do with It
Tho people got together, hem pageanw "
Kinvort TMnvinrr together leads to worklnf
together: It Is an excellent preparation, M' i
.. - An. Vltn T.1
qualntanco and nelghboriiness can .--ders
for community welfare.
It's a long, long way from farms to sun
urban gardens, or the other way round, tw
cither place will teach something concern!!
nelghboriiness, and nelghboriiness Is the or
lng force of social culture If. Indeed, It Is not
culture itself.
THE NEEDED REVIVAL
. . . . .,.. ijimhI. TD
we neea a revival m um ...... ir-,,., i
question Is not. What are , they do ' .
wnat am i noinui .m, ""--, isi-
that or the other?-But, Why am I dolnj w"n
that or the otherT-JenKen ioyo ""'"
LEGEND OP THE SPINNING WHEEL
AVhen bedtime came, the ancient dame
Forsook her spinning wheel . . -
And said: "Now. hear, my children owt
All that I would reveal,
Know you that I, In years gone by,
Made the flrat clothes you worel
A shirt I've spun for eaoh new an
Born In a mile or more,
"Fly candlelight have changed to white
These cheeks, once. oh. so red,
That the young bride I tnllht provide
- With fine sheets for her bed,
I never go to church, you know,
Tt much I pray alone.
As here, within, my shirts I spin.
For those who else had none.
"On Sundays, too, my work I do,
Yet fear I not Ood's wrath.
He knows, at least, 'Us for the Priest
I make that tablecloth:
But, ere long, I must look to die,
And so must soon prepare
My winding sheet-as Is most meet,
Of linen, whte and fair"
That very night, ere morning Heht,
Snapped was the flaxen thread.
As pale and wan stole In the dawn.
The anplent dame lay dead. h
Alas! she who her whpls life throun
Clad others with her spinning,
Into the clay was thrust away
Without a shred of linen.
Th callous clown that nailed her down
In coffin of thin dsal.
In brutal Jest upon hyr ...
Placed br loved spinning w bi
Now. if you bark whtn U Is oara.
Tou hear a whirr, . .
Tie the poor soul in shams nd aois
Making a wincing sni-
Ttuodetre Botrel,
a "pet t SrlUssr."
u r
jvs weiKir.
WWituWrn