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V^^V^ HI: rc.il objective of an or^^an- ' 

 — i^ iz.ition such .is the I. A. A. is 

 ^^_y the welfare of the farm family. 

 There is no doubt about it. 'I'lie last 

 years have sliovsn us that beini; able to 

 produce has not solved all of our prob- 

 lems by any means. I tliink we liave 

 been very "riluch aware of our lack of in- 

 formation on the side of agricultural 

 economics. \X'e know that we need 

 money and that we need things, but wc 

 ilo have other needs. 



I'arm families, like every one else, are 

 undoubtedly askin<,' some old. old c]ues- 

 tions. One of the first is: //'y/< /wp'/rl.iii! 

 IS money' In this aye of contradictions, 

 the recent years have pointed out both 

 the tragic importance of money and its 

 relative unimportance. Various points 

 of view have been expressed. Paul 

 Douglas has said: "People cannot be 

 fully happy or have expansive and 

 rounded personalities until they tcel rela- 

 tively secure, until they feel that their 

 family will be protected economically." 



Hoir imporlMit is work? Is hard 

 work the virtue that we once thought it 

 to be? I think we have all felt, emerg- 

 ing frqm the years through which we 

 have been living, a new attitude toward 

 work. Some of the people who had 

 complained about their work would have 

 been very glad to have it. I think it is 

 somewhat like the saying that you never 

 miss the water until the well runs dry. 



How important is recn\ilioii? Does it 

 have a place? We are hearing a good 

 many of what we might call theoretical 

 statements being made. I would like to 

 refer to a statement made last year by 

 some one who h.is written a book in 

 which he praises agriculture very highly. 

 He said, "The way to keep the American 

 farmer on the land is to revive the sys- 

 tem of farming which modern writers 

 call "agrarianism." Agrarianism is the sys- 

 tem in which the farmer first makes him- 

 self, his family and his beasts as sell- 

 supporting as possible. He then sells a 

 surplus crop for the money to buy what 

 he does not produce." Who will tend 

 the extra garden, the extra poultry flocks 

 and do the extra canning and preserving? 



I will say farmers are the source of 

 supply for more than bread and wheat 

 and beef and cotton and corn, and the 



"Every human being needs adventure or new 

 experience" 



long list of needs familiar to every one. 

 They are the source of supply of people 

 for the cities and towns. Most of our 

 increase in population, as you know, 

 comes from the going of people from 

 farms into towns. It is clear, then, the 

 cjuality of family life on our farms is of 

 national importance. Of course, wc have 

 more family life on farms than any other 

 place. Undoubtedly we are better fed, 

 clothed and sheltered than we would have 

 been had not our various agricultural 

 .igents been working at research ani.1 cilu 

 cation directed tov\ard the problem of the 

 farm and farm life. We can well be 

 proud of our accomplishments, but that 

 is only one phase of the problem. 



What about the hum.m aspects, fam- 

 ily lite, building up men and women 

 increasingly able to enjoy life, to work 

 comfortably and happily with others for 

 the common good.'' Some factors state 

 we are far from being a mentally and 

 emotionally happy people, and I have 

 cited some. I suggest that we incorpor.ite 

 into our programs .dl that science has to 

 offer in the .solution of these human 

 problems. You cannot have cooperation 

 until you have learned something about 

 it in the family. L'nhappiness takes a 

 dreadful toll in human suffering and in 

 money. 



I talked to a psychiatrist in charge of 

 the psychiatric clinic at McGill. I said to 



this man. If you could tell folks one 

 thing tiiat couki iielp them, what would 

 you say'" 



He said, "I would tell them to play - 

 to play with the children. They wiH tell 

 you how to get off your high horse of 

 bigotry and really pl.iy. It is as neces- 

 sary .IS food anii drink to have some 

 light hearted play. ' 



After all. we have at our hands all 

 the things that ought to iiLike for human 

 happiness. A psychologist has made the 

 suggestion that in aildiiion to our physi- 

 cal needs every individual needs four 

 things. A <ciiie of ui/oif). that is one 

 of the things that has lx.en troubling us 

 these last few years. It is one of the 

 things at which you are working and it 

 IS very much worth while working at. 

 l:ver\body needs a sense- of knowing 

 where their next meal is coming from. 



//•c \Li"ih/ ihnr^ iiei-ihojy iucJ\ n 

 iui'txi!!t!o)i. ^'ou are not happy unless 

 you have a degree of success among vour 

 fellow men. It may be growing good 

 sheep. It may be planting straight rows 

 of corn. Help your children to dis- 

 tinguish themselves in some things. To 

 learn to do something well is one of the 

 things we need for mental happiness. 



Tlicn evi-n,b<K.ly nc^ds .isjutf-n. F.um pt-<i- 

 plc- .ire a little- sliv. TIrt .!.> not express itu-ir 

 affection rHir their appreciatuin as well ,is tlu-y 

 iim;ht This IS the pl.ice ftw coopeiation. 

 I lie uoiii.in «oiks in lier own lioine She 

 Jiies not li.ive so muid reioi;nitiiin Ciivc 

 her some reco4;nition. a little Jppreii.ition. jii.J 

 :.-ct the (IuMkii to Jo It It ni.u seem tol.le-rol 

 to vou. hut It will biiiii; J.iii;e returns. lAery 

 human beti\;; neet.fs .tjituittu or «; /< t>/»ir/. 

 i«ie Tli.it is what Is likelv to liappen to us 

 .It nirj-lite I. lie i;ets ilull. \Xe .lie Joirij; 

 the s.inie tliini; o\er .mj o\er. .iiiil we die 

 on our teet. We ilo n<i| re.ili/e th.it t-iery- 

 hojy nttJs st»mt new expel lenet, nee. Is to 

 . i.:et aw.iy troin liome. Look at it as .i neces- 

 sity, not .IS a luxury. 



One psychologist sjvs .is .1 hum. in hiinp 

 \eiu h.i\e the choice ot tliiee h.isie .ittitu.les 

 low.iul life \"iiu m.iv appro.uh lite wiiii the 

 pliilosophv of the pi, int. in wliali c.ise vour 

 life will consist in henii; bom. e.itini;, <liink- 

 in.i:. slctpmi:. ni.ituiini;. m.itin.c. ..i;io\\ mt: old 

 .mil Jyim; This biiiii;s ciintentnunt un.hs- 

 tiirbed h\ the piobleiiis of this woij.) H.ip- 

 piness IS not att.iineJ. 



^^>ll m.iy appro.uh life as .1 husimss \.,ux 



(irst re.iction to .iny new txpeiieme will be 



How niiieh is this worth to nie ' ' ')ii this 



leMJ. li.ippiness becomes .1 ni. liter of sumss- 



ful competition and tins is the metlio,) of 



H.'^nlinutJ 'iii /•j'^i 201 



FEBRUARY, 1937 



IS 



