Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1883-03-08

L received TOUR dollars IN OOIdDOSSs pork
and meal, and completed it in five
days.
MY LETTER TO GOLD MAN SMITH. -
Meantime I inquired and learned
more of cold man Smith," of Boston,
and in 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 a farm, and came along 70 the OLD
house just at dark one night, about 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 a job from the people
about. This young man would like TO go on
for a while living there, for ne has no other
abiGing place, He would take the farm of
you for the coming season, or IL 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
81 am the young man above referred to, and
CHARLES EPHRAIM WINDsER.
A fortnight later received the follow
ing characteristic letter from Mr.. Smith:
''Well, Charles Ephraim, have received yout
rather odd letter. That farm-which you seem
to haVeTaken possession of-haS cost me over
seven hundred dollars in one way and another.
But any man who will pay me nun ired and
fifty dollars for it may have it, do not sup
pose you have a cent to pay me. But it is not
much use for me to order you OF, for you will
stay If you have mind to, unless take the
trouble to come up, or send up, and drive you
OF, and shan't do that. So go ahead Charles
Ephraim; plant and sow aud reap to your
hearts content this year, and whenever you
raise the hundred and fifty the old farm IS
yours. And if you are in earnest (Which don't
believe), wish you success.
Yer truly yours,
DAVID @. SMITH"
Whenever felt blue I used to get out
that letter and have laugh
MY SPRINGS WORK.
The farmers about were now doing
their springs wOrk-planting and SOW
ing-and I borrowed a neighbor's 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. L 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 mended the fences about the
fields and the house; and 1 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 q friend and neighbor.
Indeed, they commenced, laughingly,
to call me their new neighbour" At
first, coming among them as did, they
distrusted me. But when they saw that
Twas not afraid to take hold and work,
and that I really meant business, they
turned about and treated me like fell
low-citizen. 1 was shown great many
kindly faVors.
HOEING AND HAVING.
It was no great task to do my own
work in hoeing, and was able to work
out enough to purchase q set of haying
tools, consisting of scythe, snath, fork
and rake. For there was q tolerably
good crop of grass in the fields and
down in the meadow, which [ resolved
to secure to the last straw. began my
haying on the first day of July. For
three weeks l 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 ''rack' which I
rugged upon pair of old carriage wheels
that found abandoned beside the road.
In these three weeks l got in about nine
tons. Seven tons of this hay 1 sold the
following winter, in the village nine
miles below, for seventy-six dollars. I
did every stroke of the work alone and
una;ded; 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 q week; and when the
threshing machine came into the neigh
borhood about q fortnight later l had my
crop threshed out. After deducting
thresher's toll, had sixty mine 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 a milk-pail and
four tin pans. This was my first invest
ment in live stock. After that 1 had
plenty of new milk and also butter
which l churned myself in twentY-cent
earthen pot. But did not let any one
see, nor know of, my dairying process.
On the twenty-fourth day of Septem-
Der, 1 began digging ny-potatOes; and
from my addressed field, dug hun
dred and seventy-one bushels of as hand
! some early Rose potatoes as one would
wish to see.
picked out barrel of the very best
and sent them to cold Man Smith, y
in Boston.
BUYING THE FARM.
In January l chopped ten cords Of
wood for Mr.. Cummings, and in pay
ment had his ox-team to draw my hay
down to the village, where 1 marketed
it. After receiving the money, 1 wrote
again to MIR. Smith, telling him that
was now ready to make a payment o.
seventy-five dollars on the farm. The
business of "deing the writings as they
call it in the country, was entrusted, or
his part, to a lawyer in the village, named
Robertson. To him l paid the money
and received a deed of the farm, bu
gave my note, secured by mortgage
for the second payment of seventy five
dollars, in one year.
l have a motive in writing this plait
little narrative. In New England, il
New York State and III the West, there
are scores, yes, hundreds and thousands
of abandoned farms like the one came
to my first night in A.. To the hun
dreds of homeless persons. young and
old, in the cities, these deserted farms
offer homes, and they may be improved
During the second year paid my note
for seventy-five dollars, with the inter
est, and took up the mortgage.-C. E.
Waader, IN Youtb'S Companion.