The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1865-01-25

Fifty Acres Enough.

"Ten Acres" devoted to vegetable culture
near city may be miracle OF plenty, but in
the ouuaying rural districts it is not quite
enough though infinitely better than moth
ing. A man Win ten acres OF anywise decent
land need never fear the poorhouse, If he work
it well. His family may outnumber the nine
digits, but there will be corn in Egypt for all
that.
,Now,we hold that fifty acres of good land,
or thaCwhich can be made good, lis enough
unless a man wishes to slave out his whole life
in toil-diggng until his old back is as crook
ed as rainOow-till his muscles crack with
the rheumatism, and his joints snap with an
chylosis. Some penetrating genius has dis
covered that man has but one life to live on
earth-why toll necessarily for the bread that
perisheth? In the sweat of our brow are we
to get our bread, but don't let us sweat i'm
moderately tor mammon. Enough is all we
can use. We know of a snug little farm OF
thirty-four acres of cultivated land, and sew
enteen of rocky pasture, which yields profit
much larger than any one hundred and Hfty
which we know of. 1t upholds a snug little
cottage OF eight rooms, large barn with
modern useful improvements, three acres OF
splendid orchard OF all valuable fruits, half an
acre Of excellent garden, an acre and half
more devoted to carrots, turnips and onions
the fences are all post and rail, bushes and
MOOQo dlO IA OtCAAdl CAitCs duu bHO WuOlO
place is exceeding fair to look upon, and to
live on. This man is getting rich by being
thorough in everything. His henhouse is per-
feet, his hens lay, and no droppings are lost.
His pig sty is well supplied with muck and
the houseslops run into it, After taking the
first premium he put about six acres Of
corn into pork, which makes manure-his
carrots and turnips he puts into beef, which
makes more manure. Manure and thorough
thn &c e for, IL.
New England at least. This man lives well
no pork diet for him-he eats turkeys, eats
eggs, eats lamb, and the first of his fruits and
herds. he dresses well, rides in a carriage,
has good pew in church, and sends his chill
dren GO the first Institutions for learning. His
wife isn't worked to death, and has apiano in
the parlor. He pays about fifty dollars year
for hep-vlsits his neighbors and knows how
to fish. No rich uncle ever lett him any prop
erty -he begun life by owning about half OF
his farm without any buildings upon it, and
five Thousand dollars would not buy his real
estate to day. This farmer is no myth; we
know him, and more might be given to show
that fifty acres is enough-en0ugh unless q
mandesires to dig and scrub over large farm
OF half titled acres, and perhaps not be any bet
ter off in the end than my easy friend with a
small farm. e3 .as & efgsas 80 5ss5f6
It is TACT that a two-hundred acre farm
might be made equally good, but 1t is another
fact that they seldom are. Thorough tiliage
In New England cannot extend over amulti-
tude of acres. Fifty acres of rich land tit can
be made SO ifpoor now)with a snug house ina
spacious yard, with an abundant fruitage, and
everything as a man can make around it, is a
workingmaH's paradise There is his vine
Wreathed arbor in which to read his papers of
a summer Sunday eve, and behold the sun
sink down through the golden gateways ofthe
west the while-there is everything beautiful
and bright around him in the house and out
Of doors. and is it not all the paradise earth
can give? ais qsa saad sa .bsE..
Mehold that the man who makes an acre of
this earth more beautiful or productive is
doing Heaven service, and ii be has not over
fiIt5 acres he can make it all shine with frui-
tion aud beauty, and never ask discount be-
sides.-Country Gentlemen. ~ ea W