The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1882-07-27
BILL ARP On FARMING.
Southern CDitiutor and Dirie F;rmcr.

easy aud innocent sort of business The,
think that there's nothing to do bu
plow aud hoe and gather in the crop
and there's no worry or complication
about it, except you can't get Il rain every
time YOU want it, and the crop is short
in consequence. had pretty much that
sort of notion myself, but know bet
ter now. I've been farming for five
years. and ike il better ara. better. .
like the freedom Of it, its latitude and
longitude aud its variety, but there is Il
power of little worries aud not few big
ones that man has to encounter and
provide for that these outsiders never
dreamed of. When man is running
hired labor it takes about half his time
to watch 'em aud keep 'em from wasting
things and losing things and doing things
wrong. l weut down i'll the field yester-
day aud stumbled OH the monkey wrench
in the grass hy the turn.row, and it had
been there for month, and had hunt.
Ell Tor 1T all over tho premises, and no
one could tell anything about it, but now
the darkey members takin' it down dnr
~ screw up the taps on the cu!!;"a:oT."
Not long ago found the hstchet in the
edge OF the bushes where ono of he
boys had cut poles TO lay OF by. | eau
l
the farm, in the corners of the panels
and on the stumps where they put 'em
when they change 'cm. My log chain is
missing now, and the little crow bar, and
one Of the hammers, for sometimes |
have to leave home for few days, and
although these niggers and my yearlin'
boys do thoir level best to surprise mo
with doin' a power Of work while I was
gone, they don't notice little things
they lose at tho bung hole while stopping
up the spigot, or rice rdrcg, US the saying
is. They bore the auger bit against q
nail, or dull the saw in the same way,
and let the old COW get into the orchard,
| or the hogs into the tatcr patch. I've
got good workin' boys and right indus
trious darkeys, but it takes n man with a
head on and his eyes we'll open to keep
up with 'em and watch out for little
things-little damages that aggravatc a
man and keep him in fret, that is, il he
Is but human and can't help fre!tiDg
wnen tnlpgs go wrong. Il nabor Dor.
rowed my brace and bit, and the bit came
back with one corner of, another one
borrowed my cross cut saw aud it came
back awful dull and will cost me new
| file. They don't like it if | don't lend
| them my mower to cut their clover, tho
they never have cleaned up the rocks
in it. A darkey will work mule some
times for two hours with the names out
Of the collar and never see it, and he
thinks it mighty hard if you won't lend
| him q mule 10 ride TO meetin' Of Sun
day. But | won't do that. They beg
me out of a heap of things, but they
shan't ride my stool: of Sundays, for /
hate to do it myself, and when Il darkey
gets on mule aud out Of sight he is like
beggar on horseback, hc'll ride him
and run him rs long AZ he can stand up.
like the darkeys, do, but l haven't
got much hope of 'em ever being any
thing but the same old careless, content.
ed, thoughtless creatures they always was.
If we don't own 'em as We used to we
have got - act like we do, for there is
no other way to get along with 'cm.
I've got one who took n notion he would
lay up half OF his wages in spite of him
self. and he told me to put it in the con-
tract that | wasn't to pay him but five
dollars month and keep the other half
till the end Of the year. And now no
tries to beg me out of the other five nj
the end of every month, but l won't pay
it, and he goes off satisfied. They all
want guardians just like orphan children
We board two Of 'em, and they cat more
than my whole family, and they want
coffee and buttermilk, and meat and
syrup, all at the same time, and it looks
like we can't get enough for 'em, but
they can 60 off on iroic and do with
out vittles for two days and half, and
keep fat. Nabor Freeman came home
the other day and found his nigger ten.
ants right smart behind with their crops,
and that they had all been off to three
days meeting snd an excureion besides,
and SO he got mad and hauled up Bob,
and says he:
"Bob, what in the dickens are you all
goin' to SO much mcetin' for? What is
the matter? Is the devil after you with
a sharp stick, and bug on the end of
itW
well, now, Mass Ed" says Bob, "I'll
tell you how it is; we niggers have been
seein' for long time dat you white folks
done got dis world, and Gen. Grant nor
nobody aint gwine TO Civ US niggers
any of it, and go we is gwine to mectin'
and prayin' and fixin' up to take dc ext
world as soon as we git dar, that's ALL"
and Bob stretched his mouth and showed
his pearly teeth, and laughed loud at his
own wit. Nabnr Freeman says he could
not abuse him after that
Me and Mrs. Arp both talked right
seriously to our darkeys abou. being
vaccinated for the small pox, and told
'em l could do it from the cbildrens
arms and not cost 'em n cent, but old
Tom, the Patriarch Of the family, is very
superstiti0us, and has got some suspicion
that the devil has something to do with
it, and he shakes his head, and says he
"don't know muffin about it, and if de
Lord gwnc to Civ 'em de small pox, dat
q man can't keep it away, and If de Lord
don't want 'em to have it, it won't come,
it all depends on dc Lord, anyhow"
It's right smart better to run n farm
with limited amount Of stock, and
have no separate carriage horses, and
every once in while the girls say, that
they are just obleeged to pay visit to a
nabor, or to go to town after some little
dry goods, and so have to stop a plow
for that, Gf it is possible and 1 alwaye
strain point to make it possible, and
then again some Of our kin write US q
note to meet them at the depot, and we
have to 60 after 'em and take 'em back
again, crop or no crop, and on the whole
poor man has to farm sorter on the
strain, and it takes smart man to do il
and make it n success, don't it? But
after all it's the best business know of
and the happiest.
BILL ARP.
GIRLS FIRsT.-The best husbands
c"c. &c. came CT: c. :. family where III;