Show i I HOME TOWN BUILDING I The following communication for this department was received recently recently recent recent- ly from a reader whose name is withheld withheld with with- hel held by request We are sorry that lack of space prevents us ns from publishing publishing publishing pub pub- lishing more of the letter which we began last week We will endeavor to find space apace for it in our next issue Dear SirI Sir Sir Sir- I am interested d in your articles on Home Town Building and in fn an an- ewer to your 1st question concerning the decrease in the population of our country towns r I will give you a few I of ot my ideas along these lines taking as my basis the small farmer the farmer the predominating class in our town The Themen Themen men in middle a age e who possess big farms never earned arned them they them they have inherited them Seeing their suc p m me ti jl along along- o these thes theses dines lin lines s remark r l Surely Ut farmer a I f is ki king g and they set about to Eo 6 ge get geE a a farm farmr They sell their home to make the first payment Spring opens and they get busy Now they Y need a team wagon harness saddle seed grain I more cows separator flowing well fence material lumber galore and more help if they have not two s sons nl large enough and at least one daugh daugh- au b ter Where are they going oin to g get t the ih money Why that is easy easy mort mort I gage the farm and pay 10 lD p per r. r cent ent interest Now here is t the e first reason reason-If reason reason reason-Ii If Un Uncle Un cle ele Sam or some other good ma man Or or set of ot men would legislate for for- forthe the Struggling Small Farmer and lend him money at 4 per cent instead of 10 I Ipe pe per cent he might sometime e be able ale J I to to redeem his farm Or if he could j get et a bounty like the rich sugar firms to help him through ugh two two y years years I he might li live e. e But no o its it's root hog or die Still be he plods on each year thinking perhaps the next legislature 1 I o oo od n will do something to aid tb the small farmer There i is nothing to insure crops They are subject ct to grasshoppers grasshopper w windstorms and eve even n fire because 90 p per r cent enl of the hired men smoke and many of f the helpers helper s will leave ha hay on the ground to bl bleach ach achand and grain lai J getting too ripe in order to attend a baseball game Who is the loser if not ot the small smal farmer Our school system also works a ah h hardship p pon on the small farmer It continues con con- in the spring until the early hard work is over and starts again gain inthe in inthe the fall before the harvest is on And to tomake make matters worse someone someone- is s constantly reminding us from the rostrum rostrum rostrum ros ros- trum that 86 per cen cent t of of our tax taC goes to the schools of which ma ma- ou small alI far farmers farmers' rs get t benefit no benefit Another reason reas reason It takes t. t two o or three men to run even a small farm conveniently and three men with families families cannot live on a small farm Th Therefore eit either er the one ope or the other must seek emp employment elsewhere No Nogo go good d can come from the trend things are re taking Will someone ere long wake up the real situation of the he small farmer and make it possible to keep keen the bove s at nf home w 24 qu question tion No we cant can't account for the stagnant condition of things things- unless it is because those who have mean means are too cautious ous to branch out with it ic I would suggest that someone some one with means draw some some of of our I well to men a and d women around aroundhim I him and introduce a afe afew few things by byway byway way of new enterprises that will fur fur- ish employment for our children hildren St Start rt our laundry also aiso a candy fac fae factory tory Cory ry and maybe laYbe a starch factory Readers may have many better ideas ideas' I If It so aoe let us ui hear hear- them J. J i |