fc>G8 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKEH 
October 15, 
Hope Farm Notes 
I spent most of last week visiting four 
of the corners of West Virginia. Tbe out¬ 
line of that State is pretty much all cor¬ 
ners, and tucked away in what they sur¬ 
round can be found a great variety of 
natural products and human nature. A 
few far-seeing men in that State realize 
the great possibilities of farming and fruit 
growing and they are laying the founda¬ 
tion for a great development. The meet¬ 
ings I attended were different from the 
usual farmers’ institute. They are called 
agricultural rallies and were I think sug¬ 
gested by Gov. Glasscock. They are or¬ 
ganized and directed by M. I’. Shawkey, 
State Superintendent of Education. These 
men believe in brief that tin- real future 
of West Virginia depends more upon her 
farms and orchards than upon the coal, 
minerals and oil in the hills. Then they 
reason that the best asset of the State is 
the child crop and it follows that de¬ 
veloping the public schools and interesting 
the teachers in farming is the essential 
thing for developing West Virginia. 
The meeting at Keyser was fine. Stand¬ 
ing at any street corner of the town one 
might imagine himself in a cornfield. 
There were great shocks of corn with the 
ears on and sheaves of wheat piled up 
everywhere. 1 should estimate that 10 
acres of corn were needed to provide the 
stalks which stood on these streets. The 
shop windows, the banks and many private 
porches were piled up high with apples, 
pumpkins, potatoes—all sorts of farm pro¬ 
ducts. It was a great showing. There was 
a long procession with a band, men on 
horseback carrying stalks of corn and a 
long line of automobiles. At the end of 
this march we passed through a long street 
lined with school children waving flags. 
There must have been at least 1,000 of 
them and it was an Inspiring thing to 
se'' these happy youngsters drawn up to 
honor an agricultural meeting. Fruit 
growing is the great business of Keyser. 
Some great orchards have been planted, 
and while the trees are young, they promise 
to make this region famous. The meeting 
was held at the great preparatory school 
which exists frankly to prepare pupils for 
the State University. There was an enor¬ 
mous crowd with a very large proportion 
of teachers. Prof. Sanderson, the new dean 
of the Agricultural College, explained what 
agricultural education means and stated the 
facts about West Virginia. The college 
needs a good equipment and strong sup¬ 
port from farmers and deserves both. One 
significant thing about this meeting was 
the appearance of ex-Senator II. G. Davis. 
Here was a man close to 90, still active 
and keen. He can remember when there 
were no railroads in this country. It was 
almost like some old pioneer stepping out 
of the frame of a portrait to tell us that 
in spite of all the wealth tucked away 
in the hills of West Virginia the farms and 
orchards still carried the hope of the State. 
At Moundsville the big audience was 
remarkable for the large proportion of 
teachers and practical farmers that were 
present. I asked those who had ever taught 
a school to hold up their hands. It seemed 
as if 75 per cent responded. Then I asked 
how many had grown a crop with their own 
hands, and again it was more than half. 
1 noticed that many of the farmers had 
taught school. Of the men present I 
think 85 per cent actually worked with 
their own hands. Now you can imagine 
what that means in an effort to develop 
a sensible plan for teaching farming of 
some sort in country schools. In most 
Northern States if you called a meeting to 
discuss agricultural education it is doubt¬ 
ful if 10 per cent of those who attended 
would know how to do practical work on a 
farm. 1 wish I knew how these men are 
aide to interest earnest practical nun and 
serious-minded teachers in such meetings. 
At this place there was a remarkable dis¬ 
play of products grown on the farm of the 
State penitentiary. There were stalks of 
corn so thick and high that one would 
think the convicts might almost climb them 
like a tree and jump over the wall. You 
might call this display the evidence of 
good crops grown by bad men—though 
many of them are unfortunate rather than 
bad." The figures showed that this farm 
was conducted at a profit to the State, but 
the work of the inmates was charged at 
only 52 cents a day. There was a yearly 
charge of over $1,400 for cost of guarding 
the workers. I would like to give the on- 
fire figures later to show what this prison 
farm pays. 
At Huntington Gov. Glasscock made a 
very sensible speech in opening tbe meet¬ 
ing! The average public man when be 
<omos before farmers considers it his duty 
to get off a large volume of what is called 
hot air or childish compliment. Gov. 
Glasscock took up the idea that many 
farmers complain of their lot and think 
lawyers, doctors and merchants have an 
easier time. The Governor briefly sketched 
the bright sioe and tbe shadow of these 
professions and then described the home 
life and possibilities of a farmer. He left 
the farmer at supper surrounded by his 
wife and children with a table groaning 
under the weight of the good things a 
West Virginia farm can provide. Tbe Gov¬ 
ernor could have gone further and told what 
the farmer would have been obliged to pay 
for that supper had he taken his family 
to a city restaurant and ordered the same 
food. I brought home a hill of fare from 
New York and figured from it the restau¬ 
rant cost of a meal that was served at our 
big family. It came to $14.50! 1 will 
never admit that any city cook can prepare 
food that will suit my taste better than 
that cooked by my wife or daughter. Why 
then should a real farmer prefer to pay 
$15 cash for a meal rather than have the 
same kind of food served at home? You 
give me an answer and we shall he a long 
distance ahead on the way to a settlement 
of some of our troubles. One thing I 
learned about West Virginia was that 
everyone in the country at least has plenty 
to eat. 
At Ronceverte the most interesting meet¬ 
ing of all was held. This town lies in a 
valley—ranged along the side of a steep 
hill. I told one man that I did not see 
where the boys found a level spot large 
enough to practice baseball. It didn't 
make much difference to him where the 
boys practiced—if I had any nine that I 
thought could beat them I could bring it 
along. The meeting was held in a house 
built to the side of a steep hill so that 
you climbed steps as steep as a ladder to 
get to the .entrance. The hall was crowded 
with strong, earnest, serious men and 
women. Here again more than half proved 
to be teachers, and 1*0 per cent of the 
men were working farmers. They seemed 
to bring the truth and solid strength of 
the hills to that meeting. They all wanted 
t<> tell me that the railroads of West Vir¬ 
ginia do not run through sections which 
give a fair estimate of the State. These 
roads follow the water courses, and a 
stranger looking from the car windows 
cannot realize what a goodly and noble 
farm country stretches away beyond the 
hills which shut in the railroad. Ron- 
ooverte lies in a section most admirably 
adapted to apple growing. There are hut 
few commercial orchards there now, hut 
some day 1 firmly believe that this range 
of mountains from Pennsylvania down will 
he as famous for apples as California now 
is for oranges and grapes. Some of these 
farmers have for years been content to let 
their farms simply produce a living. They 
have been prejudiced agaiust paying cash 
for anything the farm can produce. A 
change is coming and the younger men will 
take advantage of the wonderful chance 
which nature has given this section for 
apple growing. That was the earnest spirit 
of this meeting. And again these* moun¬ 
tain pastures produce sweet grasses for 
dairying or sheep feeding. AJr. R. E. 
Thrasher sends lambs from this region 
which top the market for quality. One of 
these lambs was served for dinner on the 
day of this meeting and the meat fairly 
melted in the mouth. These men in this 
wonderful section do not realize what 
nature has done for them and what man 
might do if he would. A live agricultural 
college can train bright farm boys from 
this section and send them home to do 
wonderful things for their State. Dr. 
Hodges, the new president of the State 
University, made a strong point when he 
said that farmers may have their differ¬ 
ences over small matters and find it hard 
to agree, hut when some large moral ques¬ 
tion arises they may be depended upon to 
get together. In West Virginia this new 
movement for farm improvement is essen¬ 
tially a moral educational effort and that 
is why it will succeed and make a way for 
others to follow. And in a broader way I 
think this State movement is to have a 
national influence. For, strange as it limy 
appear to many, I believe that West Vir¬ 
ginia is to offer a partial solution of the 
“back to the land’’ problem. Among these 
mountains there may he found thousands 
of homes for the people who will he 
crowded out of city life and industry. 
There are countless men of middle life 
who know it is only a question of a few 
years before they must give place to young¬ 
er men. Once retired the chances are not 
one in 10 that they can find a profitable 
place in town. They have saved a few 
hundred dollars and that is all that stands 
between them and want. To-day I believe 
West Virginia offers such men a belter 
chance to make a comfortable home than 
any section I know of. I speak now of 
men with very limited means. With larger 
capital other States might give bettor op¬ 
portunity, hut conditions are now such in 
West Virginia as to make it a hopeful 
place £or the man with a few hundred 
dollars. When the State once begins to 
“boom’’ desirable real estate will rise in 
value for farm purposes, but now certain 
sections might become a paradise for the 
“crowded-outs” of our cities. Tell me 
where such men can find a better oppor¬ 
tunity at this time? H. w. c. 
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Instead of Two 
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