The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1878-12-26
lCgue Between two
Farmers.

- ~-
took place between two farmers,
that | shall call Messrs. Slack
and Thrift, in order not to be
personal.
The former-astradle Of an
old weather beaten cavalry sad
die, mounted upon a tall, blind,
rawbone gray horse, hat looked
"a if he had waded through the
fifth part Of a century, with but
little assistance from either the
corn-crib or curry comb-in his
shirt sleeves with disheveled
hair and a face almost entirely
obscured by a huge growth Of
dingy beard, of no particular
color, rides up to the gate; when
the following coiloquy began:
Sla k-"Good day to you,
Mr.. Thrif-how dus you do, and
how is yer wife and de leetle
ONES p
Thrift -"Tolerable.' Giving
Slack a suspicious glance; for
he had been much bothered by
such characters.)
olack.-"Don't We have hot
weather? The drout has nearly
ruin'd my korn, its almost as
yallow a q fox tale from ground
TO t&ssii'.
Thrift. -"The weather is quite
warm indeed but | am sur
pr;-ed to hear you speak Of
drouth. | heard that you had
a fine rain in your section, just
two weeks ago-you certainly
didn't prepare your land well, or
the cultivation has been wrong"
Siack.-"No, its de drout. |
CHECKED eff my land both ways
4 by 4 with a short shovil, and
then redged with al Ain plou,
running fully three enches deep;
and when it begun TO bunch for
tassil | socked III Aim plou,
AID we it plenty of dirt and
burs,ed the midals deeper dan
at fust that's jist the way my
daddy used to do in his life
time, and he always had bakun
and korn to sell.-if you don't
believe it, ask old unkle True.
Ihrift.-The roots of the corn,
great and small, ramity through
the soil in every direction, and
during dry weather every little
rootlet is kept busy in collecting
what moisture it can to sustain
the growing crop; in cutting
these, you shut off the supply of
sap, impre.nat9d with both
moisture and plant food-your
corn then began to starve.
Slack haint got no educa-
ton, and kant understand sum
of yer jaw-brakers but dady
sed it was a good idee to cut de
rutes-it kept de stalk from run
ming too high and what didn't
90 into stalk went into korn.
Thrift.--Well, if your corn is
ruined, what will you do?
S!ack--(Scratchcs his head
vigorously, and looks up with a
vacant stare.)--Well, [ rally
don't no what in de world / am
to do. My crap is ruined and
not lade by at that; and | gin
de last year of korn dat | had
in de world to my boss this
mornin. | am now poking
round to sea if kan git a leetle
korn from you; but | tell you
now in time, | haint got no
MUMMY
Thrlft.---It's a bad chance
then--laws have been enacted
hat enable debtors to evade
their p%ecuniary obligations
true there is no law yet upon the
Statue book to hang a man for
paying his just debts; but old
Mrs. P%artington says, that will
be the next move just as certain
as we are living OH a fiat world.
SIack.--I always did pay my
honist diets, and my dady before
ME paid his, but now the lawes
are sich, that a pore man kant
git credet--welI, | see planely,
that jist sch ~tomfoolery is gwine
to starve Us poor people to deth !.
Thrift.--1our family is Very
sma!l-whv is it that YOU have
been SO tightly pressed the LAST