The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1881-09-08
RURAL PHILOSOPHY.
,.n ooncs from the Pen of Arp.

ten weeks drouth is not calculated to
5oluce much hilarty in farmers fam.
nevertheless We haven't put on
~ synurninp at my house. The bottom
arn is pretty good. The barn is full of
Az that was cut aud cured IN the early
smmer. About ten thousand bundles of
dder will soon be added TO the stock of
s:nr forage. There is agood lot Of oats
81 The sheaf, and wheat straw in the
lck and SO reckon We will pull through
a ripht. We never planted any cotton.
IN are that mucli better off than our
Sbors. They talked about making q
ESIf crop a few weeks ago, but now they
ssye got down q quarter, and their up
.nd corn is burnt up. Already there
sRe lot, of second class mules and horses
seLirg purchasers, for the farmers can't
Sn,er 'em and nobody wants to buy,
adj they will go for song. | tell you
Is real collapse, and the people had
1atter begin to set their house in order
q hard times. From Richmond To San
Xntonio. from the Ohio river to the
Elf its generally bad failure of crops
.eitL the exceptions. III was Il specula-
s5r and could find partner who would
srnish the money and take all the risk
would buy cotton futures right now,
1,nd give him half the profits, for the crop
#on't reach five million bales this year
asrtain. Corn will be $l.50 bushel be-
S5rc January. Every farmer ought to
s5w some rye Or barley right away, an
Ere anyhow for early spring forage. Sow
lcnty Of oats for later supply. Plow
sep. manure richly and use the har-
5w. Sow some grass orclover seed with
he oats. Let the farmers in upper Geor-
I Ia compost all their cotton seed so they
Cont have any to plant, and maybe in
BIO years We will gain all that We have
Sst by the drought.
n When feel blue at home hunt up
be children and go to frolicking with
Am. There are children and grandchil-
Sren all mixed up together, and they
up to all sorts of sport and mischief,
hd keep Mrs. Arp in Estate of maternal
hxiety, but they love US and We love
hem. They keep us amused aud per-
leycd, for we wonder what they will do
,ext for dcvilment. Three Of 'em were
ading the old mare without bride and
saddenly she took notion to walk into
liable and then into her stall. The top
II the door Just rakcd 'em all oil in pile
Ind from their screams was shore they
9ere killed but the fertile soil they fell
"a was soft and no bones we're broken.
shey caught the Tom cat and one Of 'cm
box him by the forclegs and another hy
s1c hind legs. and was trying to pull him
d two, and such yqualling l never heard
Chen suddenly the hand holt give way
snd old Tom took his revenge by scratch
Dc other boy into squall of a different
Sind made cm little dam across the
ssranch under the willows for 'em to
lathe in and they wanted to stay in all
Jay, but Mrs Arp cut down their time
b half an hour in the shank of the even
3bg. The other morning | missed 'cm,
Snd SO in pcrusing around heard 'em
q the bathing hole and saw their clothes
j little way OF on the grass. I managed
p slip up and steal 'em carried 'cm to
Irs. Arp with as much solemnity as
3oscph's brctheren carried his bloody
ssoat to their father. Mercy on me,
Chat shall do with those children" she
Exclaimed. "They wilcatch their death
"A that branch. William you must get
q c three switches and then go out and
1Sall them. | will not stand It," So 1
2sDt half dozen sizable ones from peach
Zee and brought 'em to her when she
ave me one OF her curious looks and re-
9arkcd: "Did you expect me to beat the
Ioor little things 20 death? diden't
'Yant but one," and she broke off about s.
9ot and half Of the little end and throwed
he others away. I called 'em awhile
gnd it was pitilul to see the little chaps
;lunting around for their clothes and
inally coming like funeral procession
% the house. They hid behind the cabin
9nd were taking on powerful when Mrs
"a. met 'em with their clothes in one hand
And the switch in the other. They begged
pnd promised and cried. Marry lick wa:
struck that heard Of and in ten minute:
fhey all had biscuit andsyrup on the door
Step and peace and harmony prevailed
w hat is home without mother.
The other morning my big boy wen
lown to get some water melons and the
aEatcr melons were gone. Just over il
Che corn field close by was the sign oil
There the everlasting rascals had Gu
'ppen and gutted about dozen of the
sanest ones in the patch. It's u sortcr O
4 sickly feeling that comes over a man
zShen he goes out to look at his melon.
1lnd they not there. the rascals take ont
and leave two it's not so bad, but whel
Rhey take all the best ones and cut 'em w
2nd waste more than they eat, the aggra
cation is of very lively character
There is no religion that know
pf that will enable man under such
circumstances to 60 back home serene
4or the next fifteen or twenty minutes
sehot guns will come into his mind il
spltc of all he can do When nabol
CELLS me about the rogucs stealth hi.
melons | can give him Christian advic,
1nbout patience and forgiveness and sane
ltlhcatlon and all that, but when they
Sleal mine its a very different thing
Pays pay to my boy, them are niger tracks
and they will come again." So thai
night we agreed to killa nigger whether
ne come or not There were two
darkies on the place and we loaded the
guns and tied up the dog and my boy told
she darkies he wanted 'em to still hunt
with him and lie in the corner of the
Ilehce and watch. l fixed up bcttlt
oi spanish brown and just before nigh
Is:hpped down in the field and sprinklec
~ along for hundred yards to the creek
|oahE knocked down few corn stalks ant
come back. l was to get over the fence
lia.G the melon patch that nigh. and tho
uafKies was to see me and give the alarm
anu my boy was to shoot over me and
was TO run round lie fence to the house
anu my boy and the darkies was to run
aller y me to the creek and the next morn
lng they was to find the blooo
.aand 1t was to be norated that We
Inaa mac Killed niger and he was
drowned in the creek besides. Well il
WORKED very nice. The darkics saw me
an9 thought | was shore enough THE
and my boy shot of mo and 1 hollered