The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1872-05-18

WorIsinGman's Homestead on
Mountain Top.

WorhInSman's Homestead on n
Mountain Top.
A correspondent of the London
Times writes from Australia
With fine climate and fair elbow
room, with how moderate an amount of
labor can life be comfortably sustained.
When travelling in this country we dis.
cover how many of our wants are
merely fanciful and Fictitious, when
we see, Wblthersoeyer we go, through
districts, mining, agricultural, or pas
toral, how much solid prosperity is en-
Ioyed by numerous families upon
means which at first sight appear to be
quite inadequate to the actual results.
we gradually wake up to the thought
how hard men will work upon their own
land.
Take, by way of illustration, a repre-
sentative case, which Will come home
TO working mems minds with more
force than would any general statement
as to the prosperity of any particular
class. At the top of mountain, about
three miles beyond Marysville, the
traveller comes upon little homestead
OF some five acres, with q wooden cot
tage on it of the most humble kind.
Its occupants are man and his wife
and four children, the eldest not more
than twelve years old The land, like
most of the hill lands of this country,
is a rich, brown chocolate soil, divided
INTO garden and plantation, and
paddock for the COW and the horse,
While geese, ducks, fowls and goats
range over the bush beyond In the
garden was growing fine batch of
potatoes, besides other vegetables, in
terspersed at short intervals with apple,
pear, plum, and peach trees. In a
paddock beyond was a crop of oats Just
coming into ear Here seemed to be
evidence of human industry far ex-
ceeding the force OF the little family
we saw.
The free and easy life Of the bush
secured us, although the owner was
from home, a frank and hearty vel
come, as we asked leave of the wife to
look at the garden, of which it was
quite evident she was very proud. The
husband, as we learned, occasionally
worked as "a carrier on the road, afid
when unemployed at that he turned to
his farm, where" as his wife said,
There was always enough to do His
life, however, was not one Of unmiti-
gated toll, as any one could see from
the gun and fishing rod resting on their
appropriate pegs. With the fishing
tackle he could get his dish of black
fish or Dream from the stream down in
the gully; and with his gun he made
play among Wild ducks; wallaby. and
oppossums at his discretion. The skins
OF the black oppossum he sometimes
OF an evening prepared for the farrier,
and, as there *as 80 church or chapel
within three miles of him, ] suspect
that a good part Of "the day of rest "
was given to an ACCORDION (Which was
on little shelf, and to the weekly
newspaper, left by the Woods Point
coach, as 1t passed his gate.
Here, then, was miniature home
stead, producing almost every necessa-
ry OF life within itself 4 few pounds
a year provided the whole family with
clothes, the bag of flour, and the in
dlspensabie tea and sugar ''Our poul-
Try and eggs pay for all that, said the
wife, and II we are not very rich, we
are at any rate very happy" eff any
of your children are taken III, where
do you get a doCtor?" we inquired.
They never are Ill" she answered /;
and if they were, there is no doctor
nearer than Alexandra, twentyrmiles
off. This sample of the very humblest
form OF Australian life is, Mt the least,
human, healthy, and hopeful, which is
more than can be said of the life of the
courts aud alleys of London, and other
large cities of the Old World.