The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1883-04-05

owns it?''
That's hard telling" he answered.
'Rlfe Bartlett lived there last. But old
man Smith to Boston had mortgage of
it; and [ guess the mortgage has got it
by this time"
"Do you think this Mr.. Smith
would care if l were to stop there
awhile?''
Can tlsay,'' replied the man.
l sat awhile and then asked them
whether they would not sell me peck
OF potatoes, or four quarts of corn meal,
and let me work in payment. 81 will
work allday for either one,'' offered
''and will try to do good days work.
But neither the man nor woman
answered, | sat ten minutes, perhaps,
feeling anything but comfortable, and
then bade them good-morning and went
out. While l stood hesitating in the
road, a boy came out into the yard.
"Ihe old man sez you can go to saving
this ere pile of woodr' he called to me
The next night was the owner of a
peck OF potatoes, and the day after l
went to several of the neighboring farm
houses, obtaining from man named
tawcett a job to pick up two acres of
stones on new clover piece For this
| received four dollars in potatoes, pork
and meal, and completed it in five
days.
MY LETTER TO GOLD MAN SMITH"
Meantime | inquired and learned
more of t'old man Smith," of Boston,
and in a few days wrote the following
letter to him:
DEAR SIR:-A young man in his twentieth
year, recently of Boston, is now living on your
Old farm in A, N. Fl. He was in search of
work on farm, and came along to the old
house Just at dark one night, about a fortnight
ago. Having nowhere else to stay, and the
night being rather cold, he went in there and
has been living there ever since, working
when he could get job from the people
about This young man would like to 20 on
Tor while living there, for he has no other
abiCtng place. He would take the farm of
you for the coming season, or if the farm is
for sale, would buy it if the price were not
too high, and pay for it as soon and as fast as
~ am the young man above referred to, and
my name is
CHARLES EPHRAIM wINDsER.
A fortnight later received the follow
ing characteristic letter from Mr. Smith:
"Well, Charles Ephraim, have received your
rather odd letter. That farm-whieh you seem
seven hundred dollars in one way and another
But any man who will paw me q hunlred aud
fifty dollars for it may have it. do not sup
pose you have cent TO pay me. BUTT is not
much use for me to order you of, for you will
stay If you have a mind to. unless take the
trouble to come up, or send up, and drive you
on. and shant do that. So go ahead Charles
Ephraim; plant and sow and reap to your
hearts content this year, and whenever you
can raise the hundred and fifty the old farm is
yours. Andif you are in earnest (whichI don't
NfAt car
Yer truly yours,
a Dawn C. SMITH
Whenever felt blue used to get out
that letter and have laugh. G
MY SPRINGS WORK.
The farmers about were now dong
their springs work-planting and sow
ing-and | borrowed a neighbours OK
team to plow three acres Of the old
.stubble ground, paying for the use of the
team by my own labor.
1t was all hard work. Every fair day
was day of toll. / used to sleep like a
log there in my straw. But, somehow.
| began to enjoy it; the world looked
brighter. After my crops were in the
ground I mended the fences about the
fields and the house; and worked out
and got new glass panes for the broken
windows. These l set myself on rainy
days.
By June. the people about had begun
to treat me as friend and neighbor.
Indeed, they commenced, laughinoly,
to call me their new neighbor" At
first, coming among them as did, they
distrusted me. But when they saw that
was not afraid to take hold and work.
and that really meant business, they
turned about and treated me like fell
low-citizen. was shown great many
kindly fayors.
HOEING AND HAVING.
1t was no great task to do nv own
work in hoeing, and was able to work
out enough to purchase a set of having
tools, consisting of scythe, snath, fork
and rake. For there was a tolerably
good crop of grass in the fields and
down in the meadow, which I resolved
to secure to the last straw. Ibegan my
haying on. the first day of july. For
three weeks | worked early and late. |
had no team for drawing the hay into
the barn. Every pound of it I hauled
in myself on a little 'srack'' which
rugged upon pair of old carriage wheels
that found abandoned beside the road.
In these three weeks got in about nine
tons. Seven tons of this hay I sold the
following winter, in the village nine
miles below, for seventy-six dollars. 4
did every stroke of the work alone and
unaided; and after that worked out at
haying eight days at dollar and a quar-
ter per day.
My oats were now ready to harvest.
This occupied me week; and when the
threshing machine came into the neigh
.borhood about afortnight later had nv
crop threshed out. After deductinr
thresher's toll, had sixty-nine bushels.
| then made trade with Mr.. Cum
mings and traded sixty bushels of oats
for one of his COWS. and Mrs. c.
threw into the bargain milk pail and
four tin pans. This was my first invest
ment in live stock. After that | had
plenty of new milk and also butter
which | churned myself in twenty-cent
earthen pot. But did not let anv one
See nor know of my dairuinoy v,rooa,,