63o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
September 16 
“WHERE ARE WE AT!” 
THOUGHTS ON THE LABOR QUESTION. 
According to the speakers at the Popu¬ 
list meeting held at Sylvan Beach, the 
farmers and workingmen of this country 
are in a distressed condition. 
“ With thousands out of work in the 
cities and low prices for farm produce, 
the working people are white slaves.” 
The condition of the negro while in slav¬ 
ery was much better than of “our poor.” 
“ Did any one ever see a negro tramp 9 ” 
inquired one speaker. “The negro was 
a valuable piece of property in those 
days and was fed, clothed and given 
medical attendance if sick, but now 
even old soldiers are allowed to die in 
the poor-house, and thousands are, owing 
to the oppression of the rich, likely to 
starve this winter in the cities. No man 
in the audience is as well off as a person 
in a like condition 80 years ago, and a 
farmer who is out of debt is so scarce as 
to be an objpct of curiosity.” 
All of this bad state of affairs was 
attributed to our present financial sys¬ 
tem, which has created a lack of con¬ 
fidence on the part of manufacturers, 
depreciated real estate, and from a laek 
of sufficient money to do business, re¬ 
duced prices of labor and products. 
“Wall Street sharks” are given a chance 
to obtain great rates of interest. Many 
men are out of work in the cities, but not 
in the country. The price of farm pro¬ 
duce in my section is as high as the aver¬ 
age of years. 
Talk with a Tramp. 
Perhaps the speaker forgot that the 
only way a negro could “ tramp ” was to 
start some dark night for Canada for a> 
“ tramp for freedom,” and if caught, the 
penalty was death, or something worse. 
If the same penalty should now be en¬ 
forced, there would be no tramps. One 
of the latter called at my door yesterday 
and asked for a bowl of bread and milk. 
“What is the matter with you?” I 
asked, as he was putting down a good 
meal with a hearty appetite. Farmers as 
a rule are too generous and open-handed, 
encouraging t’-ampism by giving every 
applicant the best the house affords. 
“ Nothing ! ” said he. 
“ Then why are you out of money and 
‘ on the tramp ? ’ ” 
“Because I do not save my money. I 
have been getting good wages all sum¬ 
mer, but $5 or $20 per week—it s all the 
same ; it all goes.” This man, who was 
a skilled workman, has handled more 
money this summer than the average 
farmer. Have any of you seen a tramp 
farmer ? 
A friend of mine who is a “ drummer ” 
on the road receives $1,000 a year and 
expenses. He complains bitterly of hard 
times and “ cannot save a cent.” There 
are two men near here whose gross re¬ 
ceipts are less than his, who are educat¬ 
ing children and save money each year. 
The man, not the income, determines the 
saving. Here and there instances may be 
found of an old soldier ending his days in 
the poor-house. This is wrong; every man 
should receive a sufficient amount to live 
well, who imperiled his life for his coun¬ 
try, and the widows of generals should 
not receive enormous amounts. Some 
abuses creep into every system, but the 
fact remains that this country is of all 
nations the most liberal towards its sol¬ 
diers. 
The statement in regard to the finan¬ 
cial condition of the farmer is too absurd 
to be mentioned except from one view. 
The farmer of my acquaintance has 
steadily laid up a little money each year 
since he has not the habits of the 
tramp. In one way some have suffered, 
i. c., owing to the depreciation in real 
estate. 
What is the Price Standard ? 
What caused this drop in prices ? The 
Populist says, because we have no fixed 
standard of value. When there is plen¬ 
ty of money, say $50 per capita, prices 
are high, and a farm will sell for $60 an 
acre. When, as at the present time, we 
have only $23 per capita, the same farm 
only sells for $40. This works injustice on 
the seller who ran in debt on the higher 
basis Any system which would keep 
the price of real estate on the same basis 
until paid for would be a blessing to 
every debt owner. To others it makes 
no difference, as all articles maintain 
about the same relative prices. Suppose 
you sell your wool cheap, you can get 
your clothing at a correspondingly low 
price. The other day a woman here 
bought a pair of boy’s pants for 45 cents. 
After deducting the cost of all the labor 
expended on them, it seemed as if the 
wool was bought back for less than it 
was sold for. 
“In what way do you propose to make 
a fixed standard ? ” inquired one. 
“ It should be composed of material 
having the least value as a commodity. 
It should be based on the labor unit.” 
In his admirable address, Dr McQlynn 
said: 
“No man should be content to labor 
with his hands alone, but should strive 
to make the world better for being in it. 
Labor with the head as well as the 
hands. The labor question is one of 
life. The pith of it is how shall a man 
be best able to exert his energies whether 
of body or brain to satisfy the wants 
and develop the faculties of body and 
soul; so that, properly understood, every 
person should be a worker; all others 
are beggars or thieves.” 
He rebuked the so-called workingman 
who seems to glory in the horny hand, 
and would exclude from the army of 
workers those who are best worthy of 
the name of workers since they work 
with the highest human faculties, and 
produce the best results for humanity. 
The ideal currency should rest on some 
basis that should have for its foundation 
human labor rather than its products 
—let us say, an hour’s work of an able- 
bodied laborer. It is well he called it an 
ideal theory, for I know of nothing that 
would vary morj or be further from a fixed 
value than “an hour’s work.” No two 
men work alike any more than they save 
alike. Location makes value. While in 
the “ wilds ” fishing, I met an old fisher¬ 
man with five large fish. 
“ What will you take for them ? ” I 
asked. 
“ Well! I ought to have 50 cents ! ” 
“ Great Scott! ” ejaculated my city 
brother; “in the city they would be 
worth $5.” 
An hour’s work in one trade is worth 
more than an hour’s in another, and 
when the Dr. brings : n the higher form 
of labor, that of the head, matters are 
still more complicated. Our present 
financial crisis may be due to the money 
system, but I think the ci ndition of the 
two classes named is due to foolishness. 
Work Enough for All. 
There is plenty of work in the coun¬ 
try. Never since I can remember have 
so many women worked in the fields as 
this year; not because of poverty, but 
because no help could be hired. Wives 
and daughters of men worth thousands 
have gone out and helped save the wast¬ 
ing crops. Our local papers are full of 
notices asking for girls to work by the 
week. There are two reasons for this 
state of affairs. Two young men, one 
lately married, met a carriage contain¬ 
ing a baby. 
“There’s what you will soon come to, 
Tom,” said the bachelor friend, laughing. 
“ Not much; I am a modern Amer¬ 
ican,” was the reply. 
There are so many “ modern Amer¬ 
icans ” that the average number of chil¬ 
dren in our school districts is only eight. 
My whole town is filled with old people, 
and not one farm in five has a child cn 
it. Statistics show an increase of 25 per 
cent in the population of the cities, and 
no inciease in the country. People 
c owd to the cities until there is not 
work enough for all. These two causes 
—lack of children in the country and too 
many people in thd cities—come from 
the same source, i. e., selfishness. Large 
families to be supported on the fruits of 
the farm mean economy of living and 
dress, no luxuries and a struggle, if 
poor, to properly educate and dress the 
children according to the demands of 
modern society. To move from the city 
to the country means manual labor and 
perhaps the name of a “ hayseed.” 
If people choose to live in the city and 
starve, if the mechanic chooses to spend 
every cent while at work and beg the 
rest of the year, who is to blame ? 
I picked up the Press and read : “ At 
the great mass-meeting of unemployed, 
one speaker said, ‘ If a man works a year 
and saves nothing, is it right he should 
go hungry ? If he toils for months and 
saves nothing and finds his rent unpaid, 
is it right he should be turned into the 
s*reet ?’ Everybody said ‘ No ! no !’ 
Another speaker said, ‘ My wife had no 
supper last night,” but (suggestive item) 
the bartender kept raking in the nickels 
all the time. Out here in the country, in 
our simplicity, we believe the answer 
should have been “ Yes ! yes !” 
If there is more satisfaction to an in¬ 
dividual in so living and indulging in 
excess as to be “hard up” every winter, 
and be pleased himself, he should take 
the bitter with the sweet and not demand 
of his self-denying neighbor the little 
hoard saved for a time of need ; yet 
“The foundation of all politics is equal 
justice to all men,” was a sentiment 
cheered to the echo. Where is the justice 
of my being compelled to deny myself 
to feed another who would not deny him¬ 
self, or, what is the same thing, give of 
my denyings to him who has none. We 
receive according to our ability, energy 
and environment in this world. No man 
need starve who is willing to confine his 
wants within the boundary of modera¬ 
tion. C. E. CHAPMAN. 
A RAIN MAKING EXPERIMENT. 
The last few years have developed, in 
the West, a new business, that of “ rain 
making.” Certain men or firms go about 
making contracts to produce a rain 
within a specified time. Not long ago a 
scheme of this kind was tried at Chenoa, 
Ill. The papers reported a success and 
we wrote one of our subscribers near at 
hand for the particulars. Here is his 
characteristic reply 
“ The rain making scheme recently at¬ 
tempted at Chenoa, Ill. is somewhat as 
follows : The Bloomington Canning Co., 
of Bloomington, Ill., have aboutcl,200 
acres in sweet corn at that place and 
vicinity, and owing to the drought which 
has prevailed here for the past three 
months the concern made a contract with 
Morris Bros., rain makers of Emerson, 
Iowa, to produce half an inch of rain in 
five days’ time for $750. No rain, no pay. 
Morris Bros, came, rented a rickety old 
building, and with doors and blinds 
closed and curtains down commenced 
operations Tuesday morning August 8, 
1893, on a cloudless sky. On Friday morn¬ 
ing, August 11, Chenoa and vicinity had 
three-quarters of an inch of rain which 
extended well across the State from a 
northwest to a southeast direction. It 
extended probably over a width of 10 or 
14 miles. What vas done to produce the 
rain is a secret to the Morris Bros. It 
was done by chemicals they claim; but 
my opinion is they drank cool beer, 
smoked cigars, played sinch and had a 
good time generally, as they were out 
nothing and in $750 providing the good 
Lord was willing to let it rain within the 
agreed time. But nevertheless Morris 
Bros, got their $750 whether they pro 
duced the rain or not, and their part of 
the contract was fulfilled and they de¬ 
parted for drier fields and other fools. 
People in this vicinity have but little 
faith in rain makers.” d. k. unsicker. 
The “rain makers” took into the build¬ 
ing a carboy of so-called acid and several 
boxes weighing in all about 500 pounds. 
They cut a hole through the roof and put 
up a piece of tin pipe. That was all the 
public saw of their operations. They 
claimed to produce and send up a great 
quantity of certain vapors which “ col¬ 
lected the rain clouds and caused water 
to fall.” Any one who believes they 
caused the rain can have space needed to 
tell us about it. 
JUST PUBLISHED. 
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Thrashing Machine for Sale. 
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6 for 84.50. 
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and Brockville, Ont. 
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