Weekly hawk-eye and telegraph. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1855-1857, 1856-05-28
Living I'm the Country.
From the sparrowgrass Papers, just Published by
Derby 4 yackson.l

Derby Jackson.I
It is good thing to live in the country. To
escape from the prison walls of the metropolis
the great brickery we call ''the cty"-and to
live amid blossoms and leaves, in shadow and
sunshine, in moonlight and starlight, in rain,
mist, dew, hoar-frost and drouth, out in the open
campaign, and under the blue dome that is
bounded by the horizon only. 1t is good thing
to have a well with dripping buckets, porch
with honey buds, and sweet bells, hive en-
broidered with nimble bees a sun-dial messed
over, ivy up to the caves, curtains OF dimity, a
a tumbler of fresh flowers in your bedroom,
rooster on the roof, and dog upon the pi-
azZa.
When Mrs. Sparrowgrass and l moved into
the country with our heads full of fresh butter
and cool crisp radishes for tea; with ideas en-
tirely lucid respecting milk, and looseness OF
calculation respecting the number in family it
would take good laying hen to supply with
fresh eggs every morning. when Mrs. Sparrow
grass and moved into the country we found
some preconceived notions had to be abandoned
and some departures made from the plan we
had laid down in the little back parlor in Ave-
nue. G..
One of TIE first achievements in the country
is carly rising! with the lark-with the sun
while the dew is on the grass, "under the open
ing eyelids of the morn" and so forth. Early
rising What can be done with five or six
o'clock in town. What may not be done at
those hours in the country? With the hoe, the
rake, the dibble, the spade, the watering pot? To
plant, prune, drill, transplant, graft, train and
sprinkle! Mrs. s. and I agreed to rise early in
the country.
''Richard and Robin were two pretty men,
They laid in the bed till the clock struck ten:
Up jumped Richard and looked at the sky:
n 49, ~, ls.ltN
Early rising in the country is not an instinct;
ii is sentiment and must be cultivated.
A friend recommended me TO send to the
south side OF Long Island for some very prolific
potatoes-thc real hippopotamus breed. Down
went my man, and what with expense of horse
hire, tavern bills, toll gates, and breaking a wa
gon, the hippopotami cost as much apiece as
pine-applcs. They were fine potatoes though,
with comely features, and large languishng eyes
that promised increase of family without delay.
As worked my own garden (for which hired
a landscape gardener at two dollars per day to
give me instructions),I concluded that the OBJ
ject Of my first experiment in early rising should
be the planting of the hippopotamusses. l ac-
cordingiy rose next day at five, and it rained.-
The next and it rained 1t rained for two wcess
We had splendid potatoes ever day for dinner
"My DEAR" said to Mrs. Sparrowgrass twhere
did you get those fine potatoes? "Why," said
she, innocenty, "out of that basket from
Long Island" The last of the hippopotammus-
ses were before me, peeled, and boiled, and
mashed and baked, with nice thin brown crust
on the top.
was more successful afterwards. / did get
some seed potatoes in the ground. But some
thing was the matter; at the end of the season, l
did not get as many potatoes as had put in.
Mrs. Sparrowgrass, who is notable house.
wife, said to me one day. "Now my dear, we
shall soon have plenty of eggs for l have been
buying a lot of young chickens" There they
were, each with about as many feathers as
a grasshopper, and chirp not louder. Of course
we looked forward, with pleasant hopes to the
period when the first cackle should announce
the milk white egg, warmly deposited in the hay
which we had provided bountiiully. They grew
finely, and one day l ventured to remark that
our hens had remarkably large COMBS to which
Mrs. S. replied, eyes indeed she had observed
that; but i'll ventured to have real treat,
ought to to get up early in the morning and
hear them crow" "Crow!' said faintly, stOur
hens growing! Then by the cock that crowed
in the morn, to wake the priest all shaven and
shorn,' we might as well give up all hopes of
having any eggs" said !; 'tor as sure as you live,
Mrs. s., our hens are all roosters!" And so
they were roosters. that grew up and fought
with the neighbors chickens, until there was not
a whole pair of eyes on either side of the fence.
A dog is good thing to have in the country
have one which raised from pup He is a
good stout telew, and hearty barker and feed
err. The man of whom bought him said he was
a thoroughbred, but he begins to have a mon
grel look about him. He is good watch dog,
though for the moment he sees any suspicious
looking person about the premises, he comes
right into the kitchen and and gets behind the
store. First we kept HIM in the house, and he
scratched all night to get out. Then We turned
him out, and he scratched all night to getin Then
we tied him up at the back of the garden, and
he howled SO that our neighbor shot at him
twice before day break. Finally we gave him
away, and he came back; and now he is Just
recovering from fit in which he has torn up
the patch that has been sown for our spring rad
ishes.
\ good strong gate is necessary article for
your garden. A good, strong heavy gate, with
a disiocated hinge, SO that it viii neither open
nor shut. Such an one have l. The grounds
before my fence are in common, and all the
neighbors' cows pasture there. I remarked to
Mrs. s. as we stood at the window in a June sun
set, how placid and picturesque the cattle look
ed, as they strolied about. cropping the green
heritage. Next morning, found the innocent
creatures in my garden They had not left
green thing lit. The corn in the milk, the
beans on the poles, the young cabbages, the ten
der lettuce, even the thriving shoots on my
fruit trees had vanished. And there they were
looking quietly on the ruin they had made. Our
watchdog too, was foregashering with them. 1t
was too much, so got large stick and drove
them all ous, except a young heifer, which l
chased all over the fower-beds breaking down
my treltses, my wood-bines and sweet briers,
my roses and petunias, until l cornered her in
4 4 n
trieate her from the sashes, and her owner has
sued me for damages IbeGeve shall move in
town.
A MoDEL DUN.-The Georgetown Gazette got
off the following suggestions to his subscribers,
in his issue OF yesterday: san persons indebted
to this Office are requested to walk up, ride up,
roll up, send up, or any way so they get up, and
settle Immediately, if not sooner. We are still
prepared to furnish our paper to all who want it.
We would prefer bank notes, gold dollars, and
silver quarters in exchange but in the lesperate