Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1871-07-07
Boys as Farmers.


spring wagon, and put IN the buffalo and
the best whip, for father Is obliged to
drive over TO the Corners, to see man
about some cattle, to talk with the Road
Commissioner, to go to the store for the
" women folks" and TO attend to other iEl-
portant business; and very likely he will
not be back till sundown. II must be
very pressing business, for the old gentle
man drives off in this way somewhere al
most every pleasant day, and appears to
have great deal on his mind.
Meantime, he tells John that he can
play ball, after he has done up his chores.
AS If the chores could ever be "done up
on farml He is first to clean out the
rse.stable; then to take bill hook and |
cut down the weeds from the fence corners |
in the home mowing-lot and along the |
road toward the village; to dig up the |
docks round the garden patch; to weed |
out the beet bed to hoe the early potatoes;
to rake the leaves and sticks out of the
front yard in short there is work enough
laid out for John to keep him busy, 1t
seems to him, till he comes OF age; and at
half an hour TO sundown he is to go for
the cows, and, mind, he don't run 'em
Eyes, sir" says John, is that al"
"Well, ifyou get through in good season,
you might pick over those potatoes in the
cellar; they are sprouting; they amt fit to
eat"
John is obliged to his father, for if there
is any sort of chore more cheerful to boy
than another, on a pleasant day, it is lub-
bing the sprouts off potatoes, in dark
cellar. And the old gentleman mounts
his wagon and drives away down the en-
ticing road, with the dog bounding along
beside the wagon, and refusing to come
H., VA1. T.I. Iolf yiulan
that he were the dog The dog knows the
part of farming that suits him. He likes
to run along the road and see all the dogs
and other people and he likes best of all
to lie on the store steps at the Corners
while his masters horse is doing at the
post and his master is talking politics in
the store-with the other dogs of his ac-
quaintance, swapping at mutually annoy
ing flies, and indulging in that delightful
dog gossip which is expressed by wag OF
the tail and sniff of the nose. Nobody
knows how many dogs characters are de-
stroyed in this gossip; or how dog may
be able to insinuate suspicion by a wag of
the tail, as a man can by shrug OF the
shoulders, or sniff a slander as man can
suggest one by raising his eyebrows.
John looks after the old gentleman driv-
ing off in state, with the odorous buffalo
and the new whip, and he thinks that that
is the sort of farming he would like to do.
And he cries after his departing parent:
"Say, father, can't l go over to the fur
ther pasture and salt the cattle9" John
knows that he could spend half day very
| pleasantly in going over to that pasture,
| looking for birds nests and shying at red
squirrels on the way, and who knews but
he might see" a sucker in the meadow
brook, and perhaps get "jab at him
with a sharp stick. He knows hole
where there is a whopper; and one of his
plans in life is TO go some day and snare
him, and bring him home in triumph. 1t
therefore is strongly impressed upon his
mind that the cattle want sailing. But
his father, without turning his head, re-
plies
mo, they don't need sailing any more'n
you do" and the old equipage goes rat
tling down the road, and John whistles
his disappointment. When l was boy
on farm, and l suppose it is 80 now, cat
tie were never salted half enough.
John goes to his chores, and gets
through the stable as soon as he can, for
that has to be done but when it comes to
the outdoor work, that rather drags, there
are so many things to distract the atten-
tion, a chipmunk in the fence, bird on q
near tree, and hen. hawk circling high in
the air over the barn-yard. John loses q
little time in st0ning the chipmunk, which
rather likes the sport, and in watching the
bird TO find where its nest is; and he con,
vinces himself that he ought to watch the
hawk, lest it pounce upon the chickens
and therefore, with an easy conscience, he
spends fifteen minutes in halloing TO thai
distant bird, and follows it away out o.
sight over the woods, and then wishes il
would come back again.
And then carriage with two horses, anC
a trunk on behind, goes along the road, anC
there is girl in the carriage that looks a
John, who is suddenly aware that hi
: trowsers are patched on each knee and il
two places behind and he wonders if she
is rich, and whose name is on the trunk
and how much the horses cost, AM
whether that nice looking man is the girri
J father, and If that boy on the seat with thu
driver is her brother, and if he has to d.
, chores; and as the gay sight disappear
J John falls to thinking about the grea
world beyond the farm, of cities and peo
, pie who are always dressed up, end grea
many other things of which he has but
very dim notion.
And then a boy, whom John knows
, rides by in a wagon with his father, anC
; the boy makes a face at John, and JohI
: returns the greeting with twist of hi
own visage and some symbolic gestures
All these things take time. The work o
} cutting down the big weeds gets on slow
! ly, although it is not very disagreeable, o
} would not be if it were play. Johl
imagines that yonder big thistle is SOM
|. whiskered william, of whom he has reaC
in a fairy book, and he advances on hin
with Die, ruf1anp and slashes off hi
head with the bill-hook, or he charge
I upon the rows of mullen stalks as If the,
8 were rebels in regimental ranks, and hew
r them down without mercy What fun
might be if there were only another bo
Z there to help! But even war, single
| handed, gets to be tiresomei 1t is dinner
I time before John finishes the weeds, an
s it is cowtime before John has made mucl
!, impression on the garden.
Q This garden John has no fondness fol
f He would rather hoe corn all day tina
4 work in it, Father seems to think that
J. is easy work that John can do, because
e is near the housel Johns continual pla
e in life is to go fishing, When there come
S a rainy day he attempts to carry 1t ou
! But ten chances to one his father has di
n fereut views. AS it rains so that wor
g cannot be done out of doors, it is a goo
q time TO work in the garden. He can ru
il In the house between the heavy shower
v John accordingly detests the garden; an
p the only time he works briskly in it
v when he has stent set, to do so muc
i. wedding before the Fourth of July.
II he is spry he can make an extra hollida
3, the Fourth and the day after. Two day
d of gunpowder and ball-playingl When
g was a boy, supposed there was some col
a nection between such and such an amour
n of work done on a farm and our nation
Le freedom. i doubted if there could be an
k Fourth of July if my stent was not don
" I, at least, worked for my Indep' ndence.-
|. o. d. Warner, in Work and Pay.