The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1879-05-15
wHH HE vvOuE D NOT BE AFAR.
- @cT JDW MER. =. AiS

-r 10 ~ u m Err 4-a-s
1t ls spring, and the annual warfar,
begins. Early in the morning the jo
cnnd farmer HES him to the field ani
hunts around in the dead weeds ani
grass for the plow he left out ther'
| some time last fall. When he finds i
he takes it to the shop to get it mended
When it is mended he gees back into
the field with it. Halfway down thu
first furrow he lays he runs the plow v
fairly into q big live-oak root, the han
dies alternately break rib on thi'
side of him and jab the breath out o.
him on the other. and the sturdy root
looking up out Of the ground with .
pleased smile Of recognition, says
cheerfully: ed ~. .s.tl....s
.ssAh, Mr.. Thistlepod, at it again. oh :
Fifty feet further on he strikes Z
stone that doubles up the plow point
Hike piece of lead, and while the
amazed aud breathless agricultural
leansa limp heap of humanity, across
the plow, the relic of tha glacial pesisd
remarks sleepily: - - =
nsAh,- hal Spring here already
Glad you woke me up.' eya
And then the granger sits down and
patiently tries to tie up the plew point
with hickory .withe, and while he
pursues this froitless task, the friendly
crow swoops down near enough to
ask: ..,,..
'Goin' to put this twenty, in corn
this year, Mr.. Thistlepod2' q
And, before he has time to answer
the sable bird, . tiny grasshopper,
wriggling out Of q cloa so full Of eggs
that they can't be counted. shouts out
briskly: oizs hst sv 81
e 'Here we are again, Mr.. Thistlepod ;
dinner for 500, 600 .O00. .OO0l' Il
And then q slow moving but very
positive potato. bug crawls out into the
sunlight to see if the frost had faded
his stripes, and says: @+5,t, F...'
The old fashioned peachblow pota-
toes are the best for . sure crop, but
the early rose should be planted, for
the fret market Il.
Then several new bugs who haven't
made any record yet, climb over the
fence and come up to inquire about
the staple crops of the neighborhood,
and before he can get through with
them, Professor Tics sends him = cir
cular stating that there won't be q
drop of rain from the middle Of. May
till the last of October. This almost
stuns him but he is beginning to feel
little resigned when dispatch from
the Department of Agriculture at
Washington saying that all indications
point to a summer of unprecedented.
almost incessant and long continued
rains and 6oeds, and advising him to
plant no crops at alP While he is try
ing to find words to express his emo =
tion, n neighbor drops in to tell him
that all the peach trees in the country
are winter-killed and that the hog
cholera is raging fiercely in the north
ern part of the township. Then his
wife comes out to tell him that tho
dog has has fallen into the well, and
when the poor man gets to tho door
yard his children, with much shouting
and excitement, meet him, and tell
him there are couple Of cate, of the
pole denomination,in in tho spring -house
and another one under the barn. With
tears and groans he turns to the field,
but by that time it has begun to snow
so hard he can't sec the horses when
he stands at the plow. He is discour-
aged aud starts for the house with his
team, when he meets q man who
bounces him for using q three. horse
clevis he made himself, and wrung ten
reluctant dollars out Of him for II.
When he reaches the house the drive
well man is waiting for him, and while
he is settling with him clock -peddler
comes in, and a lightning-rod man,
screened by the storm, climbs up ON
the ten.dollar smokehouse, fastens $65
worth of lightning rods on it, and be-
fore the poor farmer can get his gun
half loaded the Bailif comes in to tell
him that he has been drawn on the
s,p,u