Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1871-11-01
farmers COLUMN.
DOYS As FARMERS.

ing were not so very differant from those
they entertain What passes for laziness
is often an unwillingness to farm in a
peculiar way. For instance Some morn
ing in early summer John is told to catch
The sorrel mare, harness her into the
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 90 the store for the
women folks" aud to attend TO other
important business and very likely he
will not get back till suudown. 1t must
be very pressing business, for the old gen.
tlernan drives off in this way somewhere,
almost every pleasant day and appears to
have a great deal on his mind.
Meantime, he tells John that he can
play ball. after he has done up the chores
as if the chores could ever be ''done up
on a farm. He is first to clean out the
horse stable; then to take Il bill hook and
cut down the thistles and weeds from the
fence corners in the home moving lot and
along the road toward the village; to dig
up ;he docks round the garden patch; to
weed out the beet bed /; to hoe the early
potatoes to rake the sticks and leaves !
out of the front yard in short, there is
work enough laid out for John to keep
him busy, it 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 run 'em
Yes, sir" says John, sis that all p
well, if you get through in good sea- |
son, 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 pleasant day,
it is rubbing the sprouts off potatoes, in
n dark cellar. And the old gentleman
mounts his wagon and drives away down
the enticing road, with the dog bounding
along beside the wagon, and refusing to
come back at Johns call. John half
wishes 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 to lie on the doorsteps at the
Corners-while his masters horse is doz-
ing at the post and his master is talking
politics in the stOre-with the other
dogs of his acquaintance. swapping a:
mutually annoying flies and induging
in that delightful dog gossip which is
expressed by wag of the tail and sniff
of the nose.
John looks after the old gentleman
driving off in state, with the odorous buff
falo robe and the new whip, and he thinks
that that is the sort of farming he would
like to do And he cries after his de-
parting parent:
"Say, father, can't / 90 over to the
further pasture and salt the cattle ?''-
John knows that he could spend half
day very pleasantly in going over to that
pasture, looking for birds nests and shy
ing at red squirrels on the way, and who
knows but he might "see" a sucker in
the meadow brook, and perhaps get a
..jab" at him with sharp stick. He
knows hole where there lie whopper;
and one of his plane in life is to go some
day and snare him, and bring him home
in triumph. 1t, therefore, is strongly
upon his mind that the cattle
want sailing But his father, without
turning his head, replies: t
mo, they don't need sailing any more'n
you do !" and the old equipage goes rat
Ting down the road, and John whistles
his disappointment. When l was boy
on farm, and l suppose it is SO now,
cattle were never salted half enough.
- John goes to his chores, and gets 7
through the stable as soon as he can, for !
that has to be done; but when it comes g. g
to the outdoor work, that rather drags. fc
There are go many things to distract the a.
chipmunk in the fence. bird 5
IN a near tree, and a henhawk circling
high in the air over the barnyard. John
oses little time in stoning the chip n
nunk, which rather likes the sport, and II
n watching the bird TO find where its
nest is; and he conyinces himself that r.
he ought TO watch the hawk, lest it pounce
lpon the chickens, and therefore, with an
,asy conscience, he spends fifteen min
ties in hallooing to that distant bird, and
ollows it away out of sight over the A
woods, and then wishes it would come "
,ack again. And then carriage with "
wo horses, and trunk on behind, goes
llong the road, and there is girl in the !
,arriage who looks ont at John, who is
uddenly aware that his trowsers are
,atched on each knee and in two places
,ehind and he wonders if she is rich, ly
md whose name is on the trunk, and how IN
much the horse cost, and whether that
ice looking man is the girls father, and .
that boy on the seat with the driver is II