Newspapers / The Carolina Union Farmer … / Nov. 30, 1911, edition 1 / Page 1
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Vol. 5. No. 48. GASTONIA, N. C., NOVEMBER 30, 1911 One Dollar a Year {Prom Wallaces’ Farmer) While the president of the nation and the §^overnors of the various states call upon the People year after year to give thanks, among ^^Pcr things for bountiful harvests, they do always remember that the harvest depends alone upon the bounties of Providence but ^'Pon the farmer also. No matter how favor- ‘'^ble the season may be, or how rich the soil, ^bere will be no crops unless the farmer pre- P^i'cs the ground, sows the seed, cultivates the ^^^P, and gathers in the harvest. In other l^ords, the farmer is God's hired man, or per- ’^Ps better, he is God’s partner in feeding the ^'’oHd; and the amount of food that the world ^’Poy depends largely on the efficiency of ^ junior partner in this food-producing firm. ^ be farmer, we fear, does not always suffi- ^^cntly “magnify his office” nor his position in partnership. The prophet Isaiah, how- > I'ccognized it long ago when he wrote: ^ Give yc ear, and hear my voice; hearken, S()v\ speech. Doth he that ploweth to ' plow continually ? doth he continually open J'l harrow his ground ? When he hath leveled thereof, doth he not cast abroad the in scatter abroad the cummin, and put Poin ^ ''"beat in rows, and the barley in the ap- of? ^^1 place, and the spelt in the border there- his God doth instruct him aright, and teach him.” fo '^'hc far should differ from the Thanks- the ^ °^her man or class of men on Ihe earth. He is a partner with ^Vori(| in the work of feeding the h^Hsl" ''’ithout him the human race would iner’s Thanksgiving, therefore, dif- world. Without the senior partner, the junior partner can do nothing. He may plow and plant and cultivate; he may even manure heavily; but the amount of the harvest de pends mainly on the raw material, which is entirely beyond his control. David long ago recognized the fact that this rain from heaven and fruitful seasons are the gift of God, that filleth the heart of the farmer and the con sumers of his product with joy and gladness. While the farmer should give thanks for rain and sunshine and fruitful seasons, he should not forget that he also owes thanks for any natural ability he may have to work up this raw material. We have known men who were really good farmers, but who spoiled it all by taking all the credit to themselves, and thinking and speaking slightingly of their neighbors who had not their skill and success. This is human nature. This streak in human ity runs back a long way. iMoses saw it in the wilderness, and in the eighth cliapter of the book of Deuteronomy writes: “Beware lest thou forget Jehovah thy God, * * * lest, when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; (13) and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; then thy heart be lifted up, and thou forget Jehovah thy God, * ♦ * and lest thou say in thy heart. My power and the might of my hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember Jehovah tin’ God, who giveth thee power to get wealth; ♦’» Gie ^ partners is quite distinct. Pe 'e tlio »Piterial—the sunshine, the rainfall. 1* conditions—is furnished by the PPUner, as He sees best. The fanner thing to do with that. His business is Ptili;,,, • %'n , . ^ ’"P"’ material, and by utilizing it Ipis ' for the hungry nations. If he nse of this raw material, the '■■5L ^ ^ » P^Sisihlc under the conditions and cir '*^tan ''lilt ]-J. he will have a harvest and abund- to ,, for thankfulness. If he has failed 'Vlu> ho he has failed hhs duty, it is his business to know ho h ^PeiKj o'Pn see as no other man can his oij J^ower that rules this The rich man is not the only man who puts on air«, pats himself on the back, and says: W’hat a tremendous big fellow I am.” Nor is the good-looking girl, who by birth in herited a fine form and a beautiful face, the only one whose head is swelled. The farmer is quite likely to pat himself on the back, and say: “I am the biggest man in all this com munity. These neighbors of mine are poor farmers, shiftless and lazy.” The question we wish to put to any man vlio feels so inclined on Thanksgiving Day is: \\ h.ere dil you get it ? W'ho gave you the knack of farming? Why is it that everything you touch turns into money? and why is it that some of these other people failed after doing their best? It is partly natural endow ment; and all the credit that is due you is for developing that endowment. ' This brings another fact: that the farmer in this day, and especially the western farmer, should be thankful all Thanksgiving Day that he was born at the right time; that his father or his grandfather settled in the right place; that he was born at a time when inventive genius enables him to get rid of most of the back-breaking work and drudgery of farm- ing, that science has enabled him to hang his cradle and scythe on a tree and get onto a mower, a reaper and binder; that science has taught him how to preserve canned feed for his live stock all the year around, winter and summer; that science has taught him all about bugs and worms and blights and molds, the life-habits of all these pests, and has taught him to stand by his feathered friends through thick and thin. This in itself is ground for thankfulness. It is true that we do not utilize all these ad vantages, and that is a matter for humiliation even on Thanksgiving Day. There never was a time in the history of the world when the farmer had so many helps in utilizing and making the most of the raw material which the senior partner gives him. If our neighbor’s cornfield has yielded forty bushels of corn this year when ours has yielded only twenty on the same kind of land, that’s no reason why we should be jealous of our neighbor; but it is reason why we should inquire why it is that our neighbor under the same conditions has been so successful. If ours has been a big crop and our neighbor’s a small one, this is no reason why we should look down upon this neighbor; but the very best of reasons why we should win his con fidence and suggest to him how he can reap as great a harvest as we have reaped this year. If our readers will think this over, we be lieve they will see new reasons for thanksgiv ing and gratitude, new reasons for using extra efforts next year, taking more and better agri cultural papers, reading more carefully the reports of experiment stations, attending the corn and judging shows, getting in touch with the young fellows who have been wide-awake to the opportunities and are ready to help us. There is no reason why this should not l>e the best Thanksgiving we have ever had since Thanksgiving began in our experience. i mi
The Carolina Union Farmer (Charlotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Nov. 30, 1911, edition 1
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