1404 
November 27, 1915, 
THED RURAL M li\V - YORKER 
WOMAN AND HOME 
On Thanksgiving. 
Sometimes my daddy makes me mad ; 
lie is so rude to mother. 
Her pies, lie says, are always bad; 
He’ll never eat another. 
Ilis mother is just the finest cook. 
And knows just how to bake. 
She never has to look in a book 
To find out things to make. 
She sent us down a great big pie 
To have on the holiday ; 
Mother made one like it—(she’s sly). 
And hid the other away. 
We’re anxious for the day to come,— 
Oh, we can hardly wait, • 
’Cause daddy will not miss a crumb; 
He’ll almost eat the plate. 
On Thursday noon, when pie comes 
’round, 
Two pieces I’ll bet he takes; 
I’ll shout when every hit lie’s downed, 
"That’s the kind my mother makes.” 
J. FRASER SKINNER. 
* 
The Wardrobe of Bliss. 
A pair of squeaky misfit shoes, 
A coat and pants too small ; 
A thatch of stubborn tangled hair, 
That wouldn’t brush at all; 
A necktie made from one of dad’s, 
A hat of freak design ; 
An ancient shrunken flannel shirt, 
Suspenders looped with twine! 
Would that I might put these clothes on 
If, once again, could be 
The happiness I felt that day 
Your ma said “Yes” to me. 
II. s. HASKINS, in N. Y. Sun. 
* 
Pound Sweet Apples. 
Oh, Pound Sweet apple, rich and rare, 
Distilling perfume on the air; 
Kissed by the sunshine and the rain, 
To you I doff my hat again. 
Down the old cellar stairs I went 
In days agone, my mission bent 
To choose from all your golden store, 
Fit for a king, a water core, 
Oh, dumplings of the good old days 
To thee I lift my heartfelt praise; 
Seal brown and smothered with rich 
cream 
The Pound Sweet baked awakes my 
dream. 
Oh, luscious globule, what delights 
You gave to us in wintry nights! 
I’ll try you just for chance once more— 
Egad ! this one’s a water core ! 
HORACE SEYMORE KELLER, ill N. Y. Sun. 
* 
Among other legal questions we have 
had one regarding the ownership of 
presents given before marriage. In this 
ease the man gave his sweetheart some 
valuable presents while courting her. 
The girl died before they were married. 
Who then owned these presents? Did 
the man have any right to demand them 
from the girl’s sister and mother? If he 
gave these things outright to the girl 
without restriction they belonged to her, 
and legally they would fall to her heirs. 
Of course if the engagement had been 
broken off the presents would have been 
returned to the man and probably in 
most cases the mother and sister would 
return them anyway if the man wanted 
them. He would have no legal right, 
however, to compel them to do so. In 
the case of wedding presents the New 
York courts seem to have decided that 
they belong jointly to husband and wife. 
* 
Country' women and children, yes, 
men and young folk of the country, need 
life—life more abundant to-day. This is 
a more pressing need than “two blades 
of grass where one grew before” by far. 
Science has shown and is showing the 
farmer’s family how to produce more 
abundant and better products from the 
land, and slowly all members of the 
farmer’s family are accepting the oppor¬ 
tunity. How to live more joyously, more 
capably, more efficiently, has been much 
slower in progress. The reaction from 
pioneer work, health and wealth has left 
some communities living at a dying 
pace. The country homes shut out the 
sunlight and fresh air more completely 
than do the “cliff dwellers” of New York 
City. The country school teaches some¬ 
thing of the three R’s, but fails to teach 
how to become strong and happy men 
and women in terms of the three R’s. 
We have a number of baok-to-the- 
land families who report hard struggles 
to save the home. The women in these 
cases are doing their full share. Several 
of them that we know are Caching 
through the Winter—their husbands 
being invalids and unable to do full 
work. Such people deserve to win their 
homes, and ways will be provided for 
them to do so. There is both comedy 
and tragedy in the life of the back-to- 
the-lander, and the hardest part of it 
falls to the lot of the women. 
* 
The war caused a shortage of milkers 
in England and a scheme for training 
women in milking was organized. The 
agricultural colleges have been giving 
short courses in milking and other farm 
operations. It seems that quite a num¬ 
ber of town women have learned how to 
milk and have found employment. All 
through Great Britain and France women 
are doing more and more of the farm 
work. This is the way the English pa¬ 
pers talk about it: 
“It is quite a modern view that there 
is any ‘degradation’ in the fact of a 
woman taking part in agricultural labor. 
In what respect is work in the fields 
worse than work in the factory? Our 
factories are crowded with women work¬ 
ers at all times, and the conditions there¬ 
in are far less satisfactory, more un¬ 
wholesome hygienically and morally than 
those which obtain on the farm. Natur¬ 
ally it is not right that either women or 
young boys should be put to tasks that 
entail too great a demand on their 
strength, but unless labor generally is 
held to be a degradation there is no 
valid argument against the employment 
of women on the farm in tasks suited 
to their powers.” 
* 
“I cannot afford to put water fixtures 
into my house,” said a farmer recently. 
“I would if I could, but this has been a 
bad year, and interest and taxes all come 
together. One thing, however, I can do— 
I will carry the water in myself. .My 
wife is not strong. I know, and it comes 
hard for her to lug water. I'll he the 
water power this Winter, and keep a 
barrel or tankful inside. I have found 
that when I have a steady job to do I 
usually think out some way of saving 
strength on it. If I make lugging all the 
water and wood my stent I shall soon 
have waterworks!” 
One of our women readers has a farm 
on which she is trying to grow Alfalfa. 
She put in two acres or so with the ut¬ 
most care, only to find when it came up 
that it was foul with weed seed. The 
Alfalfa seed had surely been “salted.” 
This is our woman farmer’s comment: 
“If I had not been a farmer and a good 
loser I should have cried!” 
We commend that philosophy to all our 
people at Thanksgiving time. It has been 
said that women find relief in tears and 
men in tirades or hard language. “A 
farmer and a good loser!” The best com¬ 
bination lock to shut out discouragement 
we have heard of. 
* 
This question of educating the chil¬ 
dren is a hard one. It is hardest on 
mother, for she usually feels the necessity 
for such things more than father does. 
We have come to the conclusion that it 
does not pay to give every child a col¬ 
lege education just because he is a child 
and the college is thought to be head¬ 
quarters for wisdom. We feel sure that 
some children would be ruined by college 
life. When, however, it becomes evident 
that the child truly and sincerely will 
obtain real power from the college we 
would educate him even if it meant a 
bitter sacrifice. 
* 
Many of our readers have expressed a 
desire to see a good picture of “The Pas¬ 
toral Parson.” Rev. Geo. B. Gilbert. So 
they may see this picture on page 1405. 
When we asked Mr. Gilbert for his pic¬ 
ture he wrote : 
I am taking the liberty of sending also 
a picture of Mrs. Gilbert, who goes with 
me on many of these long trips and is of 
the very greatest help. She was for many 
years soprano soloist in the Vermont Ave¬ 
nue Christian Church at Washington. In 
fact, we were married in that church. 
Though city born and bred she loves our 
little farm, realizes the fact that it is the 
only place to bring up children, and each 
week makes butter not only for our own 
family but to sell. Iler almost super¬ 
human sacrifice and perseverance has 
saved at least two of our four children, 
and I feel that my picture would carry 
a sort of selfish atmosphere if hers was 
not beside it. 
Would that more men felt this same 
way about the help and strength which 
they have received from their wives. 
.* 
New York Schools. 
The New York school system, as dis¬ 
cussed by C. C. C. of Chautauqua Co., on 
page 982, has my heartiest appreciation. 
Farmers do not take kindly to giving up 
our schools to a village board of officials 
and assuming expenses of the village 
school. There is too much politics in 
town boards, and our people have little 
confidence in them. The majority live in 
villages or hamlets, and do not under¬ 
stand conditions among the hills. Why 
should we give our children to their 
care? That such persons do not under¬ 
stand conditions among the hills is 
proved by the way they manage our hill 
roads. The proposed board would con¬ 
sist of Democrats or Republicans for 
political reasons alone. As it is politics 
has no place in our annual school meet¬ 
ings. The district offices are filled with 
men who have our confidence, not be¬ 
cause they belong to either party. I do 
not know the politics of our district 
supervisor. The pupils have confidence 
in him, our teachers are faithful and 
conditions satisfactory as far as they go. 
As to the charges that our schools are 
antiquated, I beg to differ; on the con¬ 
trary they are better than ever before. 
And why not? We are supposed to be 
under the wing of the State Department 
of Education. Our schools were graded 
in 1890, and certainly do fine work, when 
a boy of 12 completes our school course 
and makes fine progress the following 
year in a village school. Our school- 
house has patent seats, walls papered, 
and hung with framed pictures; there is 
a fine playground with shade trees. If 
people wish to help us why not place a 
library at the sclioolhouse for grown¬ 
ups and give farmers special instruction 
there. As ex-President Roosevelt says, 
“It is the only gathering place.” Most 
of them cannot leave home to attend 
farmers’ institutes. Our school super¬ 
visor gave illustrated lectures at our 
sclioolhouse, which were well attended. 
Is not the American farmer as deserving 
of help at home as foreign immigrants 
in the night schools of New York? From 
a daily paper I quote: “The average 
school district tax in New York State 
is $2.70 per thousand, while that of 
Pennsylvania is $10 per thousand where 
the township system has been in force 
many years.” Surely no State ranks 
higher in education than New York. 
Astute politicians, legislators and all 
other enemies of the country school 
should bear in mind there are many deli¬ 
cate children who must grow up without 
an education when that great and 
glorious institution, the township system, 
comes in force. Children can walk reason¬ 
able distances to school who could not 
stand long chilling rides each day during 
our rigorous Winter. Not every family 
can clothe children as should be done 
to endure such great exposure. The poor 
we always have with us. Not long since 
I had a little girl nine years old in my 
home, whose letters to her mother were 
written in a beautifully clear hand and 
composed as well as those of some grown 
people. She never had home instruction. 
Does any one think such a thing was 
possible in 1872, when I taught school? 
When our schools are so satisfactory to 
parents and children, why legislate them 
out of existence, at the same time multi¬ 
ply our taxes by four? 
MRS. JAY SANFORD. 
Tioga Co., N. Y. 
* 
The Parents’ Sacrifice. 
May I say a few words from a mother’s 
point of view about the so-called sacri¬ 
fices made by parents in order to educate 
their children? I have just read your 
remarks on the subject, page 1166, and 
the conclusions of “A Wise Man,” with 
whom I venture to differ. I can 
speak from experience, as I have myself 
earned a good many hundred dollars by 
more or less distasteful work, for the 
purpose under discussion, and so far 
nothing in my life has afforded me so 
keen a satisfaction. I do not think that 
any woman able to earn money to send 
her son to college is to be pitied—far 
from it! A thoroughly worth-while ob¬ 
ject to work for is the best inspiration 
I know of. It makes life worth living, 
and the hardest work interesting. 
As to the question of whether young 
folks fully appreciate the efforts and 
“sacrifices” made for them, I agree that 
the answer is no. But do we wish that 
they should have such realization? Surely 
not. It would be unfair that they should, 
for if they cannot enter into their par¬ 
ents’ difficulties and privations, neither 
can they in the nature of things com¬ 
prehend the obligations incurred by 
parenthood, or the profound satisfaction 
and happiness which fathers and mothers 
feel in securing advantages for their chil¬ 
dren and in watching and contributing 
to their progress and development. When 
the time conies they will understand, and 
the debt—if it be a debt—will be paid, 
not to the passing, but to a future gen¬ 
eration. a collegian’s mother. 
* 
Good Books on the Farm. 
The article on page 1246 I read with 
much interest. So very forcibly you wrote 
of the coming Winter with the cold, 
cheerless days and nights in store for 
the farmer. You write of the many dis¬ 
comforts that may be avoided. Your sug¬ 
gestions are good, too. But let me add 
one comfort; yes. a luxury that is very 
sadly missing. One source of pleasure 
that is pure, entertaining and educational 
that is books. In my business among 
farmers how many houses I find with 
scarcely a book. I find houses costing lots 
of money, fitted with gas or electric lights, 
steam heated, water, costly furniture, 
carpets and laces, without a bookcase— 
scarcely a book. It was Henry Ward 
Beecher who said: “A shelf of books to 
me is a greater sign of refinement than 
the costliest sideboard.” 
And while good people, kind and hospi¬ 
table, what poor entertainers they are. 
Aside from local gossip, weather and 
crops their means of entertaining ends. 
You will find a greater source of pleasure 
and profit from reading on these cold 
stormy Winter nights, sitting by a warm 
fire with a bright light at your side, than 
you ever dreamed of. 
Don’t buy the latest copyright book 
with a big title that costs $1.50; for it 
may not be worth the reading. There 
may be no real merit in it. In five years 
it may be out of print. Buy old standard 
books that have lived 50 or 100 years and 
have real worth. They are worth read¬ 
ing or they would have been out of print 
years ago. They can be bought for 50 cents 
or less. Buy books that will interest your 
boys. Then see how they will hustle to 
get the chores done so as to get at that 
interesting chapter. You cannot furnish 
a better way of keeping them at home, 
and at the same time giving them broader 
and better ideas. byron davis. 
Iowa. 
Thanks for a Very Liberal Education. 
