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their employers. Mr. Rowley knew this to be so, for he had learned from them 

 himself ; but the farmer should never let them know more than himself 

 about his farm. It is something besides wages that makes trouble between the 

 farmer and his men. It is a good idea to consult the men now and then, for it 

 interests them in their work. Mr. Palmer asked if it was better to instruct men 

 rather than hire one already instructed. Mr. Rowley thought it well to instruct 

 men in the way we want the work done. Some are blamed because their for- 

 mer employers are not practical farmers. He had a man once whom he had to 

 instruct to count the sheep whenever he salted them, to speak to the cattle 

 before using the whip, and other particulars. He wanted his men to eat three 

 times a day, to sleep at home, and to observe Sunday. After getting into the 

 right way they followed it. Learn them to keep things in their place, and not 

 leave tools thrown down in the lot or left around loosely. We must feel an in- 

 terest in our help. Mr. L. V. N. Blakeman of Egremont wanted to know if it 

 was a good policy to furnish help with a tenant house, particularly if they 

 had only a few men. Mr. Rowley replied that he found it so, and he thought 

 it wise. He always requires his help to do chores Sunday morning and evening. 

 He considers it to his interest and part of their education. He believed in 

 treating help with a certain degree of familiarity, but not to that extent as to 

 breed contempt. 



The meeting then adjourned an hour for the collation which was served in 

 the hall. 



"Is an ox team or a horse team the most economical for the farm ?" asked 

 President Kline. "Circumstances must decide this," replied Mr. Rowley. "If 

 you have only one team, a horse team is decidedly the best. If an ox is to com- 

 pete with a horse, you must begin to feed him in March and make his keeping 

 for the season cost as much as a horse's It is poor policy to buy thin oxen just 

 off wood jobs. Frank A. Palmer, of Stockbride, believed that the best help is 

 the cheapest, though one good man among three or four common men will do. 

 Yankee farming is made up of a multiplicity of things and requires the best 

 men to do them best. The inventions of farm machinery came in the right 

 time, for as labor has become scarcer, something was needed to supply the 

 deficiency. Many horses are a detriment to farmers ; better have too many 

 oxen than too many horses. Every year horses are depreciating and oxen are 

 growing more valuable. Oxen cost less than horses to keep, and the oxen can 

 be turned off at any time at a good value. Farmers can't afford to raise corn ; 

 grasses are more profitable. Barnyard manure is better than any commercial 

 fertilizer. For hired help single men are apt to be floating about. Boys can 

 be helpful, but only to a limited extent. The farmers' jealousy of each other is 

 a fruitful source of many of their ills : it makes them the prey of sharps and by 

 it they lose many good markets. Mr. Palmer had been a granger, and he still 

 believed in granges, for through these farmers can accomplish much in the way 

 of cooperative purchasing and in the way of controlling market prices. For 

 butter makers, creamers are indispensable ; they save one-half or more of the 

 labor of old-fashioned butter-making, and take it entirely from the hands of 

 women. 



President Kline picked up the subject of jealousy of farmers and much 

 deplored it and approved of their consulting with each other. 



