Litchfield enquirer. [volume] (Litchfield, Conn.) 1829-current, 1836-04-07
From the Six Culkuyist,

the VlleSt trash and rubbish.
From the Silk Cuhurist.
Hard 1imes.-Some farmers arc so ha-
bituated to fault-fnding, that let seasons be
ever SO favorable, crops ever so abundant,
and prices Of produce ever so high, they
will still complain about hard times. They
also assign them as reasons for pulling
up stakes" and moving west, where man is
doomed to eat bread by the sweat of his
face" They say, land which in sold
times" could be bought for forty shi-
lings" an acre, is now selling at so and 60
dollars-that corn which used to be sold
for s. half CROWN" and oats at "pista-
reen'' a bushel, are now selling, the for
mer at dollar and the latter at sixty-two
and half cents, and that every thing else
is proporlionabIy high-that in short, the
times are SO hard they must go TO Illinois
or Michigan, where land can be bought
for song," and where roast turkeys and
fricaseed chickens are skipping about and
begging to be eaten.
We accidentally met one of these grnm-
blers a few mornings since. lie was an
old acquaintance, farmer from neigh
boring town. After the customary saluta-
tions and inquiries respecting the health OF
his family, we asked him if their was any
thing new. He said there was {" nothing
stirring" except hard times, aud he s"ppo'
sed that was no news. We informed him
that we had not been aware that The times
were hard but on the contrary, had sup
posed they were unusually easy, especially
for farmers. He replied that we were
"miehtlv msiaken"-that the times were
so hard that farmers found it very difficult
to maintain their families and raise money
enough to pay their taxes, and for himself
he was so embarrassed that he must " sell
out' and go where land was cheaper and
| better.
We expressed our regret at finding him
in straitened circumstances, and rendered
hin, every assistance in our power in extri'
eating himself from his difficulties. W.
told him we were laying in our winter sup
plies. and would take some of his produce
off his hands and pay him money for it
that if he would bring US in few cords OF
two-feet wood, we would give him three
dollars ID cord for it; but he said he had
none 10 spare, haying already cut oil So
much "to buy necessarieS" tina! he should
soon have to buy for his own fire. We
told him we wanted few loads Of hay FOR
which we expected to pay Is or 20 dollars
a ton; but he said his grass lands had al
most wholly "run OUT" and his crop was
so light that he should probably have to
buy for his own stock by the middle OF
March. We offered him dollar a bnshel
for corn-sixty-two cents for Oats--twen-
~ five cents for butter, sc. &c. lie said
they were great prices but he was one OF
that unfortunate class Of beings. who "when
it rained porridge always had their dishes
bottom side up''-that he had none OF these
things to sell, but had them all to buy for
his family. -.
We inquired about his farm, and the as
sistance he had in culrvating it. He said
he had 100 acres of what was once "tol-
cradle good lands" BUTT was " worn oat"
and would not pay the expense of cuitiva-
tion-lhat his house was "a leaky old
thing" the roof of which he had been try
ing To cover for eight or ten years but
could not as We, get money enough to buy
shingles-tIlat he had three stout boys a,
home of IL, IA and 16 years Of age, and
that they all had to "work like dogs" to
bring the year about" and after all "it
was tough match TO make the buckle and
strap meet" and some years they did not
meet at all, in which case he was obliged
to ago Oh tick" Heimputed his difficul.
" wholly to the times-rCprobated extrav-