HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION
Editorial Page of Home and Farm Magazine Section
Timely, Pertinent Comment Upon Men and Affairs, Following the Trend of World News,;
Suggestions of Interest to Readers; Hints Along Lines of Progressive Farm Thought.
4
TO ADVERTISERS.
Advertisers in this locality who wish to
fully cover all sections of Oregon and Wash
ington and a portion of Idaho will apply to
local publishers for rates.
General advertisers may address C. L. Bur
ton, Advertising Manager of Oregon-Washing-ton-Iditlio
Farmer, Oregonian Building, Port
land, Oregon, for rates and Information.
TO READERS.
Readers are requested to send letters and
articles for publication to The Editor, Or
egon Washington - Idaho Farmer, Oregonian
Building, Portland, Oregon.
Discussions on questions and problems
that bear directly on the agricultural, live
stock and poultry interests of the Northwest,
and on the uplift and comfort of the farm
home always, are welcomed. No letters treat
ing of religion, politics or the European war
are solicited, for the Oregon-Washington-Idaho
Farmer proclaims neutrality on these matters.
Comparatively brief contributions are pre
ferred to long ones. Send us also photo
graphs of your livestock and farm scenes that
you think would be of general interest. We
wish to make tills magazine of value to you.
Help us to do it.
"PEACE ON EARTH."
LOOKING aeross the Atlantic, how sad
sounds the song of the heavenly liosts,
"Peace on earth; good will to men."
How vain seem the teachings of the Car
penter of Nazareth when the machinations
of a few in power strike the death-knell of
hundreds of thousands of virile men. And
this in an age deemed Christian. "While mis
sionaries in the heart of savage lands preach
the doctrine of peace and good will, the Chris
tian nations they have left are making super
human efforts to make of the earth a charnel
house, a mockery of the brotherhood of man,
Yet, we who live in the peaceful United
States selfishly retire within the boundaries
of our own land and proclaim the peaco
within its borders to be a gift of God.
"Lest we forget " wc are only enjoy
ing the fruits of peace because we were for
tunately free from European alliances when
the war cloud loomed dark. Suppose this
were a war of conquest directed toward tho
United States and her possessions, toward
the rich lands we are bound by the Monroe
Doctrine to protect from European ag
grandizement. Within a few hours this na
tion would be pouring men and money into
the insatiable mill of war, fighting for very
existence.
So long as the weapons for war are man
ufactured and kept in readiness, just so long
will the fear of war remain on this earth.
The time is not now ripe for disarmament,
to be sure. Yet, when the disastrous war
is over the United States may have an op
portunity to be the leader in a movement
toward universal disarmament, the forma
tion of a world police system and the reali
zation of "peace on earth" and the brother
hood of man.
TOO SUGGESTIVE.
PERFECTION of cleanliness and sanita
tion is one of the essentials of modern
surgery and one method of indicating
this condition is by dazzling whiteness of ap
purtenances. White walls, white robes for
nurses and surgeons, white sheets for swath
ing the patient, have been considered a neces
sary part of the equipment. And their spot
less cleanliness is quite admirable.
Now comes a physician, in the Jefferson
Hospital, of Philadelphia, who deda'res after
an experiment noted in a California sanitar
ium, that this glare of whiteness is not con
ducive to the best sight and that a better dis
tribution of light can be arranged through
the use of dark draperies, lie substituted
black sheets for white ones in swathing a sur
gical patient. The experiment was so satisfac
tory that other surgeons adopted the plan and
many of them are now using black sheets in
stead of white. As a further experiment, tho
walls and ceiling of one of the small oper
ating rooms in the hospital will be painted
black and the surgeon, attendants and nurses
will wear black.
There is no reason why black clothing
should not be as surgically clean as white, but
it does not so readily suggest immaculate
cleanliness.
But there is an important psychological ob
jection to the innovation. Light symbolize9
life ; darkness, death. The effect upon the
mentality of a patient wheeled into chambers
of darkness rather than into those of brilliant
light is likely to be marked. The appearanca
of surgeons .clothed in black will suggest
gloom, horror, and death. Keyed to a high
tension by the impending operation, a patient
might suffer a mental reaction so violent
upon beholding the solemn chamber sugges
tive of death that it would seriously interfere
with his recuperative powers after the oper
ation. Brilliant white and a glittering array of
shining surgical instruments suggests effi
ciency by some strange mental process which
a darkened room could never produce. Per
haps it is merely custom perhaps black has
been too long associated with the morbid
shades of life.
PROSPERITY AHEAD.
WHEN Senator Stone said that business
prosperity is forcing itself upou
this country despite the clamor of
pessimists, he stated a belief that is in many
minds. The origin of it in every ease is the
perception that our friends who are each
other's enemies across the sea are raising
and spending enormous sums of money for
supplies which must come in large measure
from this country. European orders for tex
tiles, military supplies and foodstuffs are
pouring into the United States in large and
increasing volume.
Manufacturers of shoes, blankets, under
wear, ammunition and other lines, for
which the war has caused an unprecedented
demand in this country, are working day
and night to fill their orders. Steel plants
are adding to their working forces and cot
, ton exports are growing in volume. The
prosperity which these activities are bring
ing is indeed forced upon the country, but
there is another prosperity which is not
forced.
It will be a better, broader and more
permanent prosperity because it is not
founded upon war abroad, but upon changes
at home which make for better understand
ing among all classes and a profounder con
fidence in the industrial destiny of the
Nation. Let the pessimists say what they
will when expressing their carefully pre
pared criticisms of existing conditions, they
cannot conceal their conviction that in the
currency law, in the changing attitude of
the pubic toward capital, of capital toward
its responsibilities, of the people toward the
railroads and in the growing movement
toward the development of foreign commerce
there is promise of National advancement
which will not fail.
There is not Ihe slightest danger that
cattle affected with the foot-and-mouth
disease can be slaughtered for food at any
market where Federal inspection is main
tained, and meat from such animals would
not be in any degree dangerous to human,
life or health.
The public knows this or should know it,
but it seems to make no difference. Just
as long as the papers are full of items abont
the disease, just so long will people refuse
to eat beef and turn to other meats poul
try, fish, etc. As President Wilson would
say, it is a psychological boycott against
beef, but it is none the less real aud effective,
and accounts for the general demoralization
of the cattle market at this time.
THE "SHOW" BIRD.
WITH the numerous poultry shows in
the Northwest at this time of the
year, chickens assume a position of
importance quite in keeping with their
value to the farmer. The keeping of poultry,
is now known to be the second largest in
dustry in the United States, and "poultry,"
while it may include turkeys, ducks, or any
barnyard fowl, is conceded mainly to mean
chickens.
A criticism has been made of poultry
shows to the effect that they tend toward
development of a show bird, a' type that is
not of utilitarian value. While this may be
true to some extent, the poultry show im
proves breeding conditions and knowledge
of chicken-raising, which is of inestimable
value. And, though it is not always true,
the show-bird is often a combination of the
very best qualities of the egg-layer and
breeder.
It may be said in defense of the Southern
cotton-growers, in the midst of the agitation
against depending upon one crop, that they
are scarcely more one-crop fanners than are
many of the wheat and corngrowers of the
West. The crusade is directed against the
cotton farmer just now because the war has
curtailed the market for his crop, while it
has broadened the market for the wheat
and corn farmer. It is to be remembered
that in the long run the world does not
grow more cotton than the world needs.
Good cotton lands are not to be found
everywhere. But all this is no argument
against diversity in farming It simply
indicates why certain sections run largely
to single crops.
The only thing that seems perfectly clear
from, a consideration of the numerous vic
tories and defeats in Europe is that nobody
is gaining much and that somebody must
be wearing out.
If the British embargo on all exports ol
wool to the United States should become too
serious, an intimation that embargoes work
both ways would doubtless loosen it.
"What's the use of being unf riendly J!
There is nothing in the world more pleasant
than a host of good friends. Cultivate a
few and see for yourself.
Now that Oregon and Washington have
voted "dry," a number of schooners may be
expected to strand while crossing the bar.
Latin-America wants the belligerents Co
keep out of its territory. That was all Bel
gium wanted.
If you would know the value of money, ga
and try to borrow some Benjamin Franfa
lin.
The allies want to make Colombia hehavfc
It can't be done.