The Oregon Mist

Secretary for Washington Tells of Benefits to Be Derived.

By Fred W. Lewis, Secretary—Washington State Grange, Tumwater, Washington.

The Grange has, for forty years, stood for the upliftment of the farmer, and we only have to look back over its history, to see what it has accomplished for us. It is to the Grange that we owe the rural mail delivery, the oleomargarine bill, the denatured alcohol law, and in many states it has forced the passage of better tax laws, and other laws that assist in giving the farmer the benefits of his labor.

Nor is the work of the Grange alone directed to the urging the passage of laws. It becomes needful to prevent the passage of some laws that would be detrimental to the best interests of the farmer, and that is a part of the work the Grange does.

Space will not permit me to go into details, but anyone may obtain the details by asking for them.

Although we take an interest in the legislative work of our people, we also benefit them in many ways besides. To the young man and woman, we offer a chance to gain pleasure and profit in the meetings of the Grange, as we carry on our meetings in strict parliamentary manner, providing we get the right person for Master, and so give them a chance to learn how such work is done. We also have literary programs, providing we get the right person for Lecturer, and so give them a chance to practice speaking in public, and appearing on the rostrum before an audience, all of which is a benefit to any young or, in fact, an older person, too, in these times of public awakening.

To the father and mother, who are the providers for a family, it gives them a chance to purchase their needed supplies in connection with their brothers and sisters, and so gain the advantage that is to be derived from wholesale dealing.

To the home owner, it provides a safe and sure, as well as cheap insurance for his property, and any member of the Grange, who is attached to any subordinate Grange is entitled to that benefit. Our insurance is carried at exact cost, and we are laying by no surplus to be lost by poor investments, or by the dishonesty of the officers, but we keep enough on hand at all times so that we can pay all losses promptly, upon the proof being sent in.

In life insurance we have none to offer that will answer the demands of the great majority of our patrons, but we are working on a plan, that will ultimately furnish us a life insurance as well as a property insurance, and on the same basis, that of actual cost.

In the line of purchasing and selling, we are not as well organized as we would like to be, but as the dealers are all in combines, and the commission men are all united by common consent, it behooves us, as farmers, to combine if we would protect our own interests and obtain the just rewards for our labor and enjoy the better accommodations that we might have if we could obtain the real fruits of our labors.

In the Grange we place woman where she belongs, on an equality with man and so make our order a truly social one, and our Grange work includes the enjoyment of the fruits of our labors, as well as the education of the mind, and the guarding of the purse.

In conclusion let us state the purposes of the Grange, as set forth in the declaration of purposes adopted by the founders of the order:

To develop a higher and better manhood and womanhood among ourselves. To enhance the comforts and attractions of the home, and strengthen our attachments to our pursuits. To foster mutual understanding and co-operation. To maintain inviolate our laws, and to emulate each other in labor, to hasten the good time coming. To reduce our expenses, both individual and corporate. To buy less and produce more in order to make our farms self-sustaining. To diversify our crops, and to crop no more than we can cultivate. To condense the weight of our exports, selling less in the bushel and more in beef and in fleece, and less in lint and more in warp and wool. To systematize our work and calculate intelligently on probabilities. To discountenance the credit system, the mortgage system, the fashion system, and every other system that tends to prodigality and bankruptcy.

We propose meeting together, talking together, working together, buying together, selling together, and in general, acting together for our mutual protection and advancement.

If we, as farmers, become organized, we have the power to ask for what we want and to get it, because we have the numbers, and all that is required is the union that is the means of unifying that power.

Think the matter over, and decide to organize a Grange and so help to make this world more worth living in.