STATE CONVENTION—FARMERS' CLUBS . 
291 
increased intelligence already apparent in the community is be¬ 
yond the mere value of money. When you hear a farmer say, 
u I have no time for mental culture—no time to read mv news- 
paper,” tell him to join the Farmers’ Club or Grange, if there be 
one in the neighborhood, and if not, let him help organize one 
and become an active member thereof, and I will guarantee that 
he will find many a spare moment to read his newspaper, as well 
as time to develop, cultivate and train that— 
“Majestic power of mind, unfettered thought, 
Essence of Life, from throne’s supernal brought, 
Jehovah’s silent voice, which fires the heart 
And forms of man the nobler, greater part.” 
A farmer has less excuse for being an ignoramus than a mer¬ 
chant or mechanic. No trade, profession or vocation among men 
is more independent, and no class of laboring men have better 
time for mental improvement than the average farmer. It is not 
the lack of time as much as the lack of a stimulant—a something 
to rouse the mental faculties, to create a desire for knowledge, to 
awaken an ambition for something nobler, higher and of vastly 
more importance than dollars and cents, that makes so many 
farmers and farmers’ sons and daughters mere machines, perform¬ 
ing a certain amount of physical labor every day, without ever 
inquiring why this should be so, or the other thus. 
The action of mind upon mind, the discussion of questions 
with which you are or should be familiar, or at least interested in, 
the many, various opinions, suggestions and experiments of your 
neighbors, all tend to stimulate, to awaken thought, to create a 
desire to know more and to inquire into the whvs and wherefores 
of things. All this, yes, more than this, you have at the Farmers’ 
Club. Editors (especially those of agricultural papers) will tell 
you that wherever a Club or Grange has been organized, their 
subscription list has increased. Is not this evidence of increased 
intelligence, or at least an increased desire for knowledge in that 
community ? Accompanying, and as the result of this higher 
intelligence, we also have better morals in our community. Keep 
the mind constantly employed, active and eager for improvement, 
and vice and immorality will be strapgers in your home. 
