1343 
WOMAN  AND  HOME 
Evening  at  the  Farm 
Over  the  hill  the  fnrrn-bo.v  goes. 
II is  shadow  lengthens  along  the  land, 
A  giant  staff  in  a  giant  hand; 
In  the  poplar  tree,  above  tin-  spring. 
The  katydid  begins  to  sing; 
The  early  dews  are  falling;— 
Into  the  stone-heap  darts  the  mink; 
The  swallows  skim  the  river's  brink  ; 
And  home  to  the  woodland  fly  the  crows. 
When  over  the  hill  the  farm-hoy  goes, 
Cheerily  calling. 
“Co’,  boss!  co\  boss  1  co' !  eo’l  oo’!” 
Farther,  farther,  over  tin1  hill, 
Faintly  calling,  calling  still. 
“Co’,  boss!  co’,  boss!  co' !  co' !” 
Into  the  yard  the  fanner  goes. 
With  grateful  heart  at  the  close  of  day: 
Harness  and  chain  are  hung  away; 
In  the  wagon-shed  stand  yoke  and  plow, 
The  straw’s  in  the  stack,  the  hay  in  the 
mow, 
The.  cooling  dews  are.  falling;  — 
The  friendly  sheep  his  welcome  bleat. 
The  pigs  come  grunting  t<>  his  feet. 
And  the  whinnying  man*  her  master 
knows, 
When  into  the  yard  tin*  farmer  goes. 
His  cattle  calling, — 
“Co’,  boss!  co’,  boss!  co' !  co* !  co’ !” 
While  still  the  cow-boy,  far  away, 
Goes  seeking  those  that  have  gone 
astray _ 
“Co’,  boss  !  co\  boss !  co’ !  co’ !” 
Now  to  her  task  the  milkmaid  goes. 
The  cattle  come  crowding  through  the 
gate. 
Lowing,  pushing,  little  and  great : 
About  the  trough,  by  the  farmyard  pump, 
The  froFcsome  yearlings  frisk  and  jump, 
While  the  pleasant  dews  are  falling; — • 
The  new  milch  heifer  is  quick  and  shy, 
Hut  the  old  cow  waits  with  tranquil  eye. 
And  the  white  stream  into  the  bright  pail 
flows, 
When  to  her  task  the  milkmaid  goes. 
Soothingly  calling. 
“Co’,  boss  1  co’,  boss!  eo’ !  co’ !  co’ !’’ 
The  cheerful  milkmaid  takes  her  stool, 
And  sits  nod  milks  in  the  twilight  cool. 
Saying  “So!  so,  boss!  so!  so!” 
To  supper  at  last  the  farmer  goes. 
The  apples  are  pared,  the  paper  read, 
The  stories  are  told,  then  all  to  bed. 
Without,  the  crickets’  ceaseless  song 
Makes  shrill  the  silence  all  night  long; 
The  heavy  dews  are  falling. 
The  housewife’s  hand  has  turned  the  lock ; 
Drowsily  ticks  the  kitchen  clock : 
The  household  sinks  to  deep  repose, 
But  still  in  sleep  the  farm-boy  goes 
Binging,  calling, — 
“Co’,  boss!  co',  boss!  co’ !  co’ !  co’ !” 
And  oft  the  milkmaid,  in  her  dreams. 
Drums  in  the  pail  with  the  flashing 
streams, 
Murmuring  “So,  boss!  so!” 
—.1.  T.  Trowbridge. 
Tn  Western  Canada  women  have  the 
right  of  suffrage  and  will  vote  this  year 
for  the  first  time  on  a  temperance  amend¬ 
ment.  It  is  said  that  nine  out  of  10  of 
them  will  vote  for  prohibition.  In  Aus¬ 
tralia  the  women  are  to  cast  their  first 
vote  in  a  military  referendum.  The  qiies- 
tion  submitted  to  (he  people  is  whether 
military  service  shall  be  made  compul¬ 
sory,  so  that  the  men  of  certain  ages  must 
go  to  the  war  in  Europe  if  called  on.  It 
is  said  that  a  majority  of  the  Australian 
women  are  likely  to  vote  in  favor  » *f  such 
a  law! 
A  FEW  months  ago  one  of  our  readers 
sent  us  a  note  on  an  important  question 
which  interests  most  farm  families.  It 
was  a  somewhat  personal  matter,  so  we 
printed  it  as  a  fact  without  giving  the. 
name.  A  little  later  this  man  went  on  ,a 
trip  and  met  some  friends.  They  fell  to 
diseussing  this  particular  question,  and 
our  friend  gave  his  views.  “That  is  just 
what  THE  Rural  says,”  they  told  him, 
and  brought  out  a  copy  of  the  paper  con¬ 
taining  his  note!  Thus  lie  was  sus¬ 
tained  by  his  own  argument.  It  is  re¬ 
markable  how  people  rely  upon  wlnit  they 
see  in  Thu  R.  N.-Y.  All  we  ask  i*  that 
they  will  separate  this  matter  fairly. 
Remember  that  some  of  these  statements 
represent  opinions  only  and  are  printed 
to  draw  out  discussion  and  thought.  Wo 
try  to  make  this  clear  when  such  things 
are  printed. 
# 
It  seems  to  me  that  this  might  be  a 
good  time  to  call  attention  to  the  fact 
that  in  these  days  of  almost  unlimited 
advertising,  the  church  with  free  seats 
and  free  horse  sheds,  and  some  trees 
under  which  an  automobile  can  stand  in 
the  shade,  is  one  which  attracts  a  larger 
audience.  ii. 
Advertising  to  attract  attention  to  the 
church  is  legitimate  and  sensible.  When¬ 
ever  the  stranger  sees  a  neat  church  with 
® he  RURAL.  NEW-YORKER 
well-kept  grounds  and  sheds  and  shade 
trees,  he  thinks  at  once  that  here  is  a 
good  community  with  spiritual  develop¬ 
ment.  When  you  drive  through  a  village 
where  the  church  is  well  kept  and  neatly 
situated,  you  always  remember  that  town 
pleasantly.  Whenever  the  people  com¬ 
bine  and  give  out,  of  their  earnings  and 
savings  to  erect  and  equip  a  beautiful 
church  building  it  is  all  accepted  as  an 
offering  to  the  best  there  is  in  theni~and 
this  is  particularly  true  of  the  country 
church. 
❖ 
Housewives  in  New  York  have  just 
won  iu  their  battle  against  paying  meat 
prices  for  wrapping  paper  and  twine. 
Butchers  have  been  wrapping  the  meat, 
using  heavy  paper  and  twine,  and  then 
weighing  the  wrapped  package.  It  seems 
like  a  small  thing,  but  during  tin*  year 
New  York  housekeepers  were  paying  a 
total  of  $1,000,000  for  these  wrappings. 
It  shows  how  a  combination  of  little 
things  may  count  up.  Fader  the  New  York 
law  goods  must  he  sold  at  net  weight,  and 
the  butchers  and  grocers  must  live  up 
to  it. 
♦ 
A  recent  number  of  the  Mark  Lane 
Express  refers  to  women  who  have  taken 
Hundreds  of  women  have  come  forward 
this  season  for  work  on  the  land,  and  it  is 
mt  too  much  to  say  that  if  their  help  had 
not  been  forthcoming  the  difficulties  of 
f : rm el's  would  have  been  greater  than 
they  are.  The  women  have  shown  will¬ 
ingness  and  grit,  hut  we  must  not  forget 
that  they  have  worked  under  the  most 
pleasant  conditions,  and  the  Winter  is 
before  us,  tin*  time  of  dark  mornings,  bad 
weather,  muddy  yards,  and  general  dis¬ 
comfort  about  a  farm.  Will  the  women 
be  equal  to  the  emergency V  We  have 
been  told  in  plain  words  that  more  men 
will  be  wanted  from  the  laud. 
Women  have  been  doing  all  sorts  of 
farm  work,  but  mostly  dairying  and  the 
lighter  cultivating.  The  English  people 
have  found  it  absolutely  necessary  to 
keep  up  the  farms  and  increase  the  size 
of  crops,  and  this  could  not  have  been 
done  without  the  women.  More  men  are 
needed  for  the  army  and  more  women 
will  take  their  places  on  the  farm.  What 
will  happen  when  the  war  ends? 
$ 
“My  husband  is  doiny  picket  duty  and 
I  the  chores.  There  iccre  only-  a  fete 
pounds  of  milk  taken  in  at  our  station .” 
That  is  the  way  many  of  our  farm 
women  in  the  dairy  districts  have  been 
writing  of  late.  It  seems  like  turning 
back  into  history  when  the  women  did 
the  work  and  husbands  and  brothers 
turned  out  with  the  “minute  men.”  No 
one  knows  what  Starvation  prices  for 
milk  moan  so  well  as  the  farm  women, 
and  it  is  no  wonder  they  were  ready  to 
do  their  share  in  the  battle  when  the 
crash  came.  They  do  more  than  their 
share  in  time  of  peace. 
jj 
Our  Governor  is  to  be  in  town  Oct. 
14th  and  I  have  to  get  all  the  voters  in 
my  territory  out  that  day. 
That  is  from  a  busy  Kansas  woman, 
and  shows  what  women  are  doing  in  pol¬ 
itics — where  they  can  vote.  We  shall  not 
bo  surprised  to  hear  that  women  in  the 
suffrage  States  will  be  found  doing  for 
their  party,  in  country  neighborhoods, 
what  they  now  do  for  the  church.  I)ocs 
anyone  think  the  men  could  do  this  church 
work  better  than  the  women?  We  can 
easily  remember  when  it  was  thought  lit¬ 
tle  less  than  a  scandal  for  women  to  do 
clerk  or  office  work.  Now  they  are  get¬ 
ting  nearly  a  monopoly  of  it. 
* 
“  Wanted,  a  Woman  !” 
Ou  page  1101  appeared  a  note  with 
this  heading.  It  was  written  by  a  far¬ 
mer’s  wife  and  gave  a  statement  of  what 
one  woman  lias  to  do.  We  have  had  a 
number  of  letters  from  farmers’  wives 
who  say  they  know  of  such  cases.  One 
was  reported  on  page  1210.  Now  the 
men  are  taking  notice.  Here  is  one  from 
Missouri : 
Can  it  really  he  possible  that  there  are 
farm  women  laboring  under  such  condi¬ 
tions?  It  seems  barely  possible  to  me 
that  in  these  days  of  civilization  such 
cases  should  exist.  But  1  have  m>  reason 
to  doubt  it.  You  see  I’m  in  Missouri  aiid 
like  to  be  shown.  I  really  hope  such 
cases  are  rare.  c.  p. 
Wo  hope  and  believe  so,  too,  but  tlie 
only  way  to  know  about  it.  is  to  find  out. 
Here  is  a  Connecticut  man  who  thinks 
the  last  story  is  overdrawn : 
The  repeated  scoldings  she  complains 
of  I  infer  her  husband  fu'urshes.  I  have 
seen  a  number  of  husbands  iu  my  time,  in 
fact  I  have  been  a  husband  myself  near 
20  years,  and  I  have  never  seen  one 
worthy  of  the  name  of  husband  who 
would  make  such  returns  for  services  ren¬ 
dered.  N.  J.  Y. 
Well,  now,  there  are  many  other  20- 
year  husbands  iu  the  land.  What  do 
they  have  to  say  about  it? 
❖ 
Here  is  a  new  one  which  we  have  not 
considered.  Who  has  ever  discussed  the 
retired  farm  wife?  Does  she  ever  retire 
from  active  service? 
We  hear  of  retired  farmers,  or  of 
farmers  getting  along  in  years  and  farm¬ 
ing  on  a  smaller  scale,  but  did  you  ever 
heap  of  a  farmer’s  wife  retiring?  Too 
often  it  is  the  case  the  dairy  is  dis¬ 
posed  of,  only  a  few  cows  kept,  as  the 
farmer  feels  he  is  unable  to  milk  and 
care  for  enough  to  send  milk  to  the  fac¬ 
tory  or  milk  station,  and  thinks  a  few  * 
will  make  butter  to  help  out  the  grocery 
bill,  etc.,  but  he  does  not  think  of  the 
additional  work  of  the  wife  already  ilong 
in  years  as  well  us  himself,  while  he  also 
has  a  hired  man  to  help  him  on  the  farm, 
which  lie  needs,  but  that  means  more 
work  in  the  house.  I  thing  it  is  time  we 
begin  to  think  of  retired  farmers’  wives. 
W.  J.  w. 
* 
I  et  me  encourage  you  to  keep  up  the 
good  work  of  cautioning  people  about 
e Insets  being  too  near  the  well.  Ours  was 
20  feet  away  and  because  the  well  went 
dry  it  was  taken  up  and  dug  deeper  and 
found  that  the  drainage  from  the  closet 
entered  the  Well.  vv. 
A  similar  investigation  would  show 
much  the  same  condition  on  many  other 
farms.  Bo  eh  a  close  connection  between 
closet  and  well  is  always  a  danger  and 
should  never  be  left  standing. 
* 
Once  more  about  our  pot  scheme  of  a 
pie-baking  contest  for  farm  girls.  You 
know  the  details  of  the  scheme  by  this 
time.  We  want  some  horticultural  so¬ 
ciety  to  offer  good-sized  prizes  for  the 
best  apple  pie — made  while  you  wait. 
The  contestants  are  to  be  farm  girls. 
They  are  to  have  access  to  a  basket  of 
apples,  a  bag  of  flour,  butter,  sugar,  spice 
and  a  hot  oven  and  then  let  alone  to 
make  a  pie  in  their  own  way  before  the 
crowd.  Then  those  pies  are  to  be  sam¬ 
pled  by  a  group  of  judges  containing  a 
good  housekeeper,  a  scientist,  and  several 
persons  who  are  just  good  judges  of  pie! 
We  will  guarantee  that  it  will  attract  a 
crowd  and  prove  a  feature.  There  ought 
to  he  some  credit  in  starting  a  new  pro¬ 
position.  Who  get  it  in  Hiis  case?  We 
have  heard  of  a  pie  contest  where  the 
pies  were  brought  readymade.  The  prize 
went  to  a  French  cook  who  wore  a  long 
beard  !  Limit  this  one  to  farm  girls,  and 
have  the  pies  made  while  you  wait. 
* 
Flowers  for  the  Church 
1  have  always  wanted  to  raise  enough 
flowers  to  decorate  our  church  on  Sun¬ 
days  and  this  year  turned  the  trick  with 
Asters.  Now  I  have  pansy  seed  planted 
that  will,  or  should,  produce  enough  pan¬ 
sies  to  cover  the  railing  across  the  front 
of  the  church.  I  get  girls  from  one  of 
the  classes  in  Sunday  school  to  do  the 
decorating  and  pick  the  flowers. 
The  idea  of  potting  the  tulips  and  Nar¬ 
cissus  I  obtained  from  that  fine  old  char¬ 
acter  who  pots  several  hundreds  of  each 
every  year  to  give  away  to  his  friends 
and  to  sick  people,  he  wrote  about  it  in 
The  K.  N.-Y.  It  is  not  a  case  where 
he  had  plenty  of  money,  but  bad  to  figure, 
closely  to  make  ends  meet,  and  I  think 
it  just  about  the  finest  thing  I  had  read 
in  years.  Alt  you  save  iu  this  life  is 
what  you  give  away.  If  one  cannot  ren¬ 
der  some  little  service  iu  the  name  of 
Him  who  rendered  to  all  such  a  great 
service,  then  truly  and  then  only  fife  is 
not  worth  while.  u.  h. 
Indiana. 
* 
War  Work  and  Women 
I  read  what  is  said  about  what  English 
women  are  doing  at  farm  work.  My  per¬ 
sonal  view  is  that  it  will  be  for  the  ben¬ 
efit  of  the  race.  It  is  the  instinct  of  all 
normal  women  to  look  for  home  and  ma¬ 
ternity— even  under  abnormal  economic 
and  educational  conditions.  But  women 
who  are  compelled  to  look  on  marriage 
as  the  only  way  out  of  distasteful  condi¬ 
tions  are  not  living  normally,  and  resul¬ 
tant  marriages  are  often  uncongenial. 
Free  women  who  can  take  care  of  them¬ 
selves  will  only  marry  for  affection,  and 
the  men  will  have  to  present  qualities  at¬ 
tractive  to  them.  Hence  the  work  they 
are  now  doing  will  benefit  the  women  iu 
mind  and  body;  the  meu  will  automati¬ 
cally  improve  to  meet  the  women’s  views 
and  the  next  generation  will  be  a  supe¬ 
rior  one.  As  for  farm  work,  my  mother 
remembers  women  farm  laborers  iu  Wor¬ 
cestershire  and  Cheshire,  England.  70 
years  agot  as  very  superior  to  the  town 
factory  class.  t. 
the  places  of  hired  meu  on  English  farms: 
A  Suggestion  tor  that  Pie-baking  Contest 
