THE CALL OF THE LAND 



life is as monotonous and wearying as any. 

 There are certain short seasons when his 

 work is extremely heavy and rushing. Dur- 

 ing haying, harvesting, stacking and thresh- 

 ing periods, in spite of the heat and stress, 

 the farmer must work from daylight until 

 dark without daring to lose a day or an hour. 

 Weather conditions often demand night 

 labor. This period lasts for something like 

 two months. At the end no one on the farm 

 can fail to be exhausted. 



Farmers' wives and daughters bear heavy 

 burdens of housework, and theirs are lives of 

 comparative isolation. They would keenly 

 appreciate periods of communion with the 

 outside world. Why is it that farmers' fam- 

 ilies so rarely enjoy these advantages? The 

 few who do change their lives now and then 

 are usually the best farmers. They are the 

 ones with the most progressive ideas and 

 methods, the farmers who are most highly 

 regarded in the community. But why are 

 they so few? 



Surely not because farmers cannot afford 

 the expense of outing trips. I instance to 



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