M'arthur Democrat. (McArthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1853-1865, 1855-03-02
THE ONE ACRE FARM.
A CURE FOR HARD TIMES

y
four agricultural papers;and all because
you have one acre Of ground! How
many such papers would you have to
take if you had hundred acres?
Il shouldn't probably need any more.
than take now; you know, MIR. Chap
man, one can go through all the mo-
tions,' on one as well as a hundred
"A man can throw away his money
if he has a mind to do so. For all the
good you get from such periodicals, you
might as well, probably throw the
money they cost into the fire, they are
nothing but humbugs.'
Il pay in all only eight dollars
Eight dollars! enough to buy tip
top barrel of -four, and a leg of bacon,
and then if you read these periodicals,
there is twice the amount Of money
spent in readings them
Il do usually read or kcrr them reed
almost every word there is in them;
my boys aud | take turns in reading,
and one reads aloud while the rest work,
complete nonsense no wonder your
shop don't turn out any more boots il
a day than it does.' s.
Perhaps we don't do as great DAYS
works, some days as scme OF our neigh.
bors but | guess that in the course o.
the year we turn out as many according
TO the hands at work as most dn.'
q suppose it is out of these publica
tions you get jour foolish notions abou
so many kinds Of fruit trees. One o
my boys came home awhile ago ant
said Mr.. Briggs had got lots and loa
OF fruit trees and such lhings,that cost
don't know how much, and vantet
ne 10 buy some grapevines, pear trees
and SO on. l told him it was ail fcol
ishness, and not to let me hear him So,
anything about spending money SO fool
ishly. You have, dare say, laid ou
ten or'tifeen dollars this spring.
yes, nearly as much again; hav
laid out twenty-five dollars for trees an,
garden fruit t..,trt. ..# .1rr
Twenty-Five dollaFsl wonder yoI
are not onthe town, or in Jail, at least
before now ~ ..
Pm not afraid ofeither; III bet yo,
the twenty-five dollars LII sell YOU tha
amount OF lruit from those things TO
which l paid the twenty-five dollars
in five years. .a5..asrt' 81
'DOne! I'll stand you; so your tree
will cost you fifty dollars, sure, in mon
ey, besides the time thrown away il
setting them out,or taking care ofthem.
'AS for the time spent in setting then
out, or taking care oil them, it is a
good exercise as playing ball, wicket
or anything else. While we were set
ting them out, Que Of your boys cam,
to get my boys 10 go over 10 Mr. Moo
Idya, where he said there was to be I
great time playing ball, and | have n,
doubt your boys spend just as mticl
time playing, as mine do with our tree
and SO forth; and then something i
idone; but in playing, the strength is al
laid out tor nothing, l5sCns4
,WelI, it don't cost anything to pla,
ball, but trees. cost money! alaI.i.
The foregoing conversation occarre,
in the shop, between Two neighbors
both b0o,-makers, in town not NOR
than thirty miles from Boston, ,Massa
chusetts.
MIR. Briggs, in whose shop the con
yersation took place, was man Of NOR
than ordinary intelligence for one Q
his advantages and circumstances il
life. He had been poor boy, and b
Industry, observation ard economy
had worked his way on in life, an
reared and well educated q family G
children, who, like himself, were in
dustrious and steady. For the fey
years past, he had become intereste
in horticulture, and both for exercis
and amusement had turned his atten
tion TO cultivating his 'one acre farm,
His attention was first called to this
by means ola back number Of Ii
New England Farmer which was pu
around some things bought at The store
MIR. Briggs found this so interesting
that he purchased another at the peri
odical depot, and then he became areg
alar subscriber. His sons soon becam
interested in the same direction. an,
the interest Of the father and sons in
creased 10 the pitch indicated in tn
foregoing conversation. q ,a
| In time, every inch of tina! acre o
ground was brought under the spade
and almost every best variety Of lrui
had place there, and the father ans
sons found pleasure and profit in tn,
garden, after being cooped up in th'
shop till the 'Stent' was done, and th'
exercise was far more profitable thar
the spasmodie, violent exercise taker
In games. q, '-'i] ," '','. -. '.' ..
Mr.. Chapman, the other neighbor
was man of common sense H,
looked upon everything new and ui
common as folly and nonsense AM
was ready to sneer at every, one ,wh,
stepped aside from the. common, track
1t looked simply silly to him to see 4
man stay at home from muster o
training or shows ard spend his tim,
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