The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1879-07-31

and had no money, he must turn out and
work Tor it. There are plenty of
men here who own large farms, that
wouldn't do a lick Of work on their own
land if they could find somebody else to
work for. | hired a young fellow who
lives as renter on an adjoining farm, to
make me 1000 rails. He left his own
work, went and got his father, two of his
brothers and a brOther-in-laW to help him.
His father lives about four miles from here
and owns and lives on 800 acre tract,
only tl1snty-tUs Of Il iH culiUdtiOH That
man would walk over here with his two
sons and soH-in-law, and back, every day
while the rail-making lasted. The old
man and his son who live near here own a
mule apiece. The old man owns a wagon,
and when the son wants to haul anything
he goes after the old mans wagon and
mule, and when the old man wants to haul
he comes after the sons mule The only
agricultural implement the son has is a
buli-tOHgua pillow. and you can imagine
what kipd Of alarming hecarries on. It new
eF occugs to theold man or his boys to
go to work on the home place and clear
it up.
"The children have been going to school
since the 1st Of May. 1t is a sub
scriptiOn school, and will cost 80 for three
months. The school levy here is not suf-
fieient for two terms a year. The public
schools generally begin about the lst Of
August and last three months.
"Half of the people live in the cabins
their fathers were born in. Many of them
have no windows in their houses. There
are two new splendid log cabins down the
creek, below US, with brick ehimneys and
shingle roofs, but no windows or cook
stoves either. The cooking is done on the
"hath." 1t seems like there's no ''get up"
or gO-ahead about them. They never
think Of cutting up bushes or sprouts in
their fields, but let them grow up and bull
tongue around them I have seen many
cultivated fields that could not be
plowed within from ! to rods from the
fencel Around part of our place the fence
has been moved and set in fully rods, so
as to leave the bushes outside! The bull
tongue is the favorite implement of hus-
bandrv, though some of them use mold
board plOws, but have yet to see the first
tWO-hOrse one.
"I have been told there Is a deposit of
lead on our place, but i haven't hunted
for It vet. 1t is said there is also
coal bank on the next place up the branch
above us, but the only man who knows
where it is refuses to tell unless the owner
will furnish means to develOpe it and give
him half of the proceeds.
"Our roads have been dry and smooth
since the 25th of February, except for a
day or two after a rain. There is no cOun-
try where good roads can be built with as
little expense as here.
"Our spring here was about weeks Ia
ter than usual. Not much plating done
in April, the usual planting month here.
1t may be interesting to you to
know what kind Of timber we have here.
There are various kinds Of oaks, black
walnut, hard and soft maple, black gum,
sweet gum, chincOpin, hickory, dog wood,
sassafras ash, elm, &c. &c.
stJune Sd. The DakOtah man I spoke
of has bought, and gone back for his fam
ilv. He paid one dollar per acre for land
nth iapTOUemeRtl A Michigan man
bought this spring in the woods near Sum
mertOwn; paid 87& cts. per acre. The two
Ohio families I spoke of in the fore part
of this letter reached here the second week
in May, 1t took them some time to get
fixed, but now they have corn high enough
to plOw, and they said the ice wasn't of
Lake Erie when they left there.
LAND has not advanced much in price
since we came here. 1 loaned a young
man THRU tUs dollars for months, with
/ which he purchased a qUit-elaim deed to q
tl5O Hundred acre tract, part Of It cleared
and a well dug on it, It is expected now
/ that lands will 60 up in a short time, on
| account Of the favorable railroad pros
/ poets. I will sell 100 acres Of mine now
| for the same I gave for it So. so per acre.
/ We are building a house It SummertOwn
for church and school purposes. At pres
| ent, school and preaching are held in box
that was put up for a cOOper's shop.
| ssWe have had fire in the house for three
evenings. To-day has been very hot part
/ of the the time, but fire feels comfortable
at night. Tell Bob and Maria this
/ is the greatest place for snakes I ever saw.
. We can't go along the creek without
! seeing them everywhere. L went away
| from home one day and was gUne till 2
/ o'clock. The children were at school and
| Lib was alone. When got home snake
| had Lib ''treed'' on a chair, in the corner.
! She looked pretty badly scared. She said
| she was out in the kitchen and heard a
| rustling in an apple tree tnaJ hangs over
| the door. She stepped to the door to see
/ what it was, and there was big black snake
| in the tree, right over her head. 1t got Oh
| the tree on the roof, and got through the
roof inside the kitchen. She started to run
| into the house, and there lay one right
/ across the door! She ran around to the
other door, and went in, when the snake
ran back and got under trunk in the cor
uer, and so she had company tai came
/ home"