THE TRAINING OF FARMERS 



(10) "Farm life is unattractive to me because 

 of the social conditions. Social life on the farm 

 is simply stagnation. I dread the horrible mo- 

 notony of such a life. I love farming, I love the 

 farm. I like to go out in the fields and work 

 under the clear open sky ; but man is a social be- 

 ing, and is not destined to live an isolated life. ' ' 



(11) "It seems to me that one can never, 

 without assistance, become independent on a 

 farm, and without independence farm life is 

 little more than drudgery. Life on a farm is 

 bound to be, to a certain extent, dull and tedi- 

 ous, with little variety or relaxation. One tends 

 to become narrow, sordid, and self-centered, 

 with few interests, and to lose his inspirations 

 for higher things. His finer sensibilities are 

 deadened by toil, and he becomes entirely uncon- 

 scious of the many interesting and beautiful 

 things around him. It is the man who was not 

 born there who really sees and appreciates the 

 beautiful things in the country. ' ' 



(12) "If I had been heir to a large or even 

 a good-sized farm, I would probably have en- 

 gaged in farming. 



"The chief reason why farmers ' sons leave 

 the farm, from my observation, is that their 

 fathers or their neighbors are always crowded 

 by their work, and have no time to spend in va- 



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