278 ANNUAL, REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



of our State as reported by the Dejiartment of Agriculture, the farm- 

 ers of Peunsvlvaiiia must sell their wheat crop of 1900 at seventy 

 cents ijer bushel to obtain tirst cost. The farmer that raised twenty 

 bushels had a small prolit for his labor. This is discouraging, to 

 say the least. How are we to remedy this state of affairs? 



There are two ways; either increase the average or reduce the cost. 

 Cau this be done? I was helping a neighbor to thresh who had 

 given his son the potato and truck patch for wheat. We threshed 

 that first and the boy Jiad thirty-seven bushels on what was sup- 

 posed to be an acre. V\'e cultivate too many acres as a rule. It 

 W'as the thorough cultivation that produced this result and if w^e 

 would give all the labor and care and fertilizer to fewer acres we 

 might have greater profit or give the greater acreage the same pro- 

 portion to amount of labor and care. The tendency of institute dis- 

 cussion is. in a measure, idealistic. We love to picture things as 

 we would like to have them and sometimes, I think, we love to com- 

 plain and magnify the supposed or real evils that confront us. We 

 fail to discuss the everyday practical questions or suggest practical 

 remedies for the real difticulties. ''The fear of man that bringeth a 

 snare" deters, and "let him that is without sin cast the first stone," 

 makes us unduly modest in giving the real reasons for the conditions 

 existing. 



Nor is it conducive to one's popularity to do so. Few of us graci- 

 ously submit to censure, however conscious w^e may be of short com- 

 ings. Slovenly, careless farming, careless in improving even our 

 limited means of education, so that in education, in social standing 

 and in other conditions we are unfit to cope with others though they 

 may be engaged in less honorable occupation than we. We are only 

 fitted for the position we occupy shouting "prosperity, prosperity, 

 monopoly, imperialism, or 16 to 1," as our several party bosses dic- 

 tate. Wherefore should a livng man complain for the punish- 

 ment of his sins? There is no more honorable occupation, 

 none more enobling; but by careless indifference to -all that 

 goes to make lives of usefulness, we have clung to the tradi- 

 tions and customs of our fathers who in their day and gen- 

 eration were w'iser and better than we, while the rest of the world 

 have passed on. They have set the pace in the race of life and we 

 are plodding along behind. This is plain, hard truth, humiliating 

 as well, but who will successfully deny it. 



What is the remedy? One will say we must have legislation. 

 Yes, proper legislation that is the remedy for us. A new^ depart- 

 ment, a few more offices to be filled by some one useful to the 

 dominant "boss" the only qualification necessary for the position, 

 obedience to party dictation. Another will say we must organize. 

 "A wheel within a wheel" with all its concurrent cost. 



I do not claim that these may not help to solve the problem, but 



