Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1873-04-11
A Young Lady Farmer.

We lately had the pleasure of ''inter-
viewing" Miss A., of Illinois, who for
some years past has been engaged in car
rying on-a farm of 1870 acres; and, deem
ing her example worthy of imitation in
these days of unhealthful and lackadaisi.
cal womanhood, we have made a few
notes for the benefit of our readers.
Miss A. was teacher, but at the time
of her commencing farming was student
in a leading young ladies seminary, OF
the country. Her father died.. leaving a
widow and, we believe, two daughters
and boy, of whom Miss A. was the eld-
est, and the boy had Of ten or a dozen
years old. The farm was, we believe,
incumbered with considerable amount
of debt. She found, the health of her
mother, who was endeavoring to manage
the farm with hired help, failing, and
concluding, as she expressed it, that she
would rather keep her mother than get
an education, she left the seminary in
1868 and commenced farming. The farm
at that time consisted of eighty acres of
the home farm, about. half OF which was
in cultivation. and st-of which was
bottom land, rich. but was more or less
subject to overflow, and at little dis
tauce were forty acres more, al in culh-
walton. The home farm had pretty
good house, but the barn had recently
been burned, and the fences were not
good. Twelve acres had been planted to
apples of good varieties. She had one
| horse and got the loan of another from q
friend, who also aids and is aided in turn
by lending implements, etc. She has
now good team of her own raising, be-
sides horse tina. does duty in the mar
ket wagon. ssol~cI hC.n I.Q.
So she went to work with the aid of
her then little brother, and to some eX
tent of her mother and sister, who also
took charge of the housekeeping. They
hired butlittle labor, and, as far as posi-
BILE, did their own work. She learned to
do nearly all kinds of work. She does
not plow much, but she can do it. She
took out 80 to 100 stumps in one year
th'spade and ak, at the same time as
sisting her brother who was drilling
wheat. She bound and shocked wheat
and can drive team well. She can use the
ak pretty well; formerly she. could chop
better than her brother, but nowhe chops
as well as she can herself, and she does
less of it. She wears a gymnastic suit
when at home, and at work, a broad
brimmed hat, gloves and boots made tc
order. She wishes to look as well as
other girls, and thus protects herself from
the exposure resulting from outdoor
labor. See likes the open air life and out
door work, and is healthy and strong
quite a miracle of vigor from the modern
young lady's standpoint.
Most OF. the home farmsis cultivated, II
corn, though she has eight acres in srasl
and twelve in orchard. She raised twenty
three acres of winter wheat in 1872 i
was fine crop, but she lost from three
to five acres from the failure of the mar
she had engaged-to cut II IN time, Ever
then, with scarce and inefficient labor by
that feeble class of men that are slway'
willing TO take advantage of those who
cannot help themselves, II cost her $50
to harvest and thresh the wheat Ye
she got 450 bushels Of wheat, weighing
sixty.two pounds to the bushel, "a
The young orchard bore a good deal OF
fruit in 1872, and she sold one hundred
barrels of summer apples and hasonC
hundred and fifty bushels of apples
I now in the cellar She took most Of tbs
apples to market herself, selling some Of
them as low as seYenty;fye cents per bar
rel and some as high as a dollar D
The live stock has been the most troub
lesome. She had one horse drowned arC
another stolen, A colt died ana the pig
did not thrive well But still this femi
nine venture in farming must be pro
nounced a success The debt is gradu
ally disappearing. Forty acres OF whea
! are eeoWn for the coming year, and sthI
,, farm is much improved in condition.
Prairie Farmer