6 CHAPTERS IN RURAL PROGRESS 



but much more of it is so only relatively and not 

 essentially. We must admit that civilization is 

 at least partially veneer; polish does wonders 

 for the appearance of folks as well as of furniture. 

 But while the beauty of "heart of oak" is en- 

 hanced by its "finish," its utility is not destroyed 

 by a failure to polish it. Now, much of the so- 

 called barrenness of country life is the oak minus 

 the polish. We come to regard polish as essen- 

 tial; it is largely relative. And not only may 

 we apply the wrong standard to the situation, 

 but our eyes may deceive us. To the uninitiated 

 a clod of dry earth is the most unpromising of 

 objects — it is cousin to the stone, and the type of 

 barrenness. But to the elect it is pregnant with 

 the possibilities of seed-time and harvest, of a full 

 fruitage, of abundance and content for man and 

 beast. And there is many a farm home, plain 

 to an extreme, devoid of the veneer, a home that 

 to the man of the town seems lacking in all the 

 things that season life, but a home which virtue, 

 intelligence, thrift, and courage transform into a 

 garden of roses and a type of heaven. I do not 

 justify neglect of the finer material things of life, 

 nor plead for drab and homespun as passports 

 to the courts of excellence ; but I insist that the 

 plainness, simple living, absence of luxury, lack 



