52 The Bulletin. 



Some people are very enthusiastic over country life, and picture it as almost 

 ideal. Nature is beautiful — the changes which the seasons bring, with their 

 ever-varying tints and shadows, the life that teems on every hand. The coun- 

 try is all right, but the joys of farm life that you read about do not always 

 materialize. A drive in the pure air of a spring morning, as the birds begin to 

 wake, is no doubt delightful, but do you suppose that one farmer's wife in a 

 thousand ever experienced that delight? What can be grander than some of 

 our gorgeous sunsets? Yet they pass unobserved by thousands of tired women 

 in the midst of milking, baking hot biscuits and putting the children to bed. 

 Up before day, busy from sun to sun, the last one to rest at night, sooner or 

 later the constant grind has its effect. Eye and ear become dulled and the 

 heart unresponsive to the beautiful things our Heavenly Father has provided, 

 and hosts of women right here in North Carolina might as well be in midocean, 

 as far as their enjoyment of country life is concerned. 



A woman remarked to me once : "Seems like I haven't the time to train my 

 children. It is all I can do to keep them something to eat and wear." And 

 she was not the breadwinner, either — only cook, housekeeper, seamstress, etc. 

 This is but the wail of many hearts. My precious mother kept house over fifty 

 years, and, as far as I know, never had a vacation. There was always some- 

 thing for her to do. She, like many others, didn't know how to rest. Much 

 hard work falls to the lot of women in the country, and, at best, it must always 

 be so ; but I do believe it could be lessened to an extent. 



By the introduction of as many conveniences as the head of the house would 

 install, and just as much machinery as he would bring in if he had his wife's 

 work to do ; by the addition of labor-saving utensils ; by the disposal of useless 

 accessories in the home; by the united plan and effort of both husband and 

 wife to make the work on the farm fit the force indoors — these things would 

 do more than anything else, I believe, toward lifting the burden from the back 

 of the patient housewife — things to save strength and save time. How she 

 needs to conserve her strength we can easily guess, but how she craves more 

 time for herself no one but herself realizes. How she longs for it — time to 

 take care of her health, time to cultivate the virtues of character, time to open 

 up imprisoned mental activities, time to give her children proper training, time 

 to enjoy the friendships of life and the beauties of nature, time to practice the 

 deeds of Christian charity, time to rest and be happy and to grow old grace- 

 fully. 



We need the Woman's Institute for scattering information concerning con- 

 veniences in the farm home and for the interchange of ideas and experiences 

 which will facilitate the work. Intelligent effort along this line would un- 

 doubtedly result in great benefit to the women directly, and indirectly to all. 

 I am glad that this idea has been embraced already and carried out to an 

 extent by the institute workers this year. But we need more, much more, very 

 much more of it. 



Imagine, if you can, a young girl, all pink and white, and dainty and aesthetic, 

 looking forward with delight to a life of routine work, such as falls to the lot 

 of the average farmer's wife. Such a monstrosity has never lived, I'm sure. 

 Our girl cannot possibly understand how mother can devote herself entirely to 

 pots and pans and broom and mop and wash tub, and never want any pretty 

 clothes nor to have any fun. The daughter thinks, honestly, she never could 

 be like that. But a few years bring about great changes, and ere long she 

 finds herself in her mother's place, doing the very same kind of work, with 

 equal interest and devotion. 



By making the farm home less of a grind, and introducing into the country, 

 as far as practicable, the attractions of city life which charm and are really 

 "worth while," opportunity for the study of music and art, etc., and substi-. 

 tuting ways and means for making pin money, at least as much clear money as 

 salesgirl or seamstress or any other position which the average country girl 

 must accept can command, many girls might be saved to the country, much to 

 its benefit and their own. I believe that this thing of making a little money to 

 have and to spend as her very own takes many a girl away from home who 

 would not otherwise go. Here is a wide-open door for the Woman's Institute. 



