Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1884-09-18
THE LANDsTREETs.
A STORY OF THE PEACH COUNTRY,
BY
OSCAR DALE.
CHAPTER iii.
oOpyrlshtea By Tho Evory nvonlns publIshIne co

A Farm BOUGHT.
By the time Carswell had finished hi
breakfast at the Jones House next morn
Ing he heard himself inquired for Ii
stentorian tones and going TO the door b
saw Tom Landstreet sitting In hi
''wagsin," as he called II, In front of tn
hotel.
"Good mornin'," said Tom, "I'vs lis
heerd tell Of q farm which l think nigh
suit ye, II ye don't mind purity good
sized one."
''I wouldn't mind looking at it,
answered Csrswell.
"Git right In, then, and I'll drive y,
over" said Tom, and after a noisy re-
monstranoe on the part OF the old mar
against Carswell's proposal TO get team
for himself, the latter mounted the some.
what remarkable vehicle in which his
new found friend WAS seated. It was
stout, well made 'no-top" wagon, not
differing In scat and running gear from
the ordinary vehicle OF its class called q
"no.top" or ''irotting wagon" except in
the matter Of springs. The latter were Of
Tom LAndstreet's own invention and
consisted OF stout hickory bars, the first
two running parallel with the axIes the
next two at right angles with these and
separated from parallel pair by heavy
block. Two more running In the same
direction rs the first pair were firmly
Joined at their ends to the pair imme-
diately below them and another pair we're
separated from the last by another block.
They were in fact hollow squares OF
hickory supported on each other at alter
nate centres, and the general effect was
that Of q ohild's cob house surmounted
by q buggy seat.
AS Carswell took his seat he remarked
on the great elasticity OF the springs and
Landstreet declared "they beat all others
holler," but added that they needed q
heavy weight to hold them down and as
he drove his fine span Of horses briskly
along he told his companion with great
glee Of the mishaps Of lean country
doctor who had been pleased with the
arrangement and got wagon built for
himself on the same plan. "He was
moonin' sort o. feller," said Tom, "nsver
thinkin' about what he was doin' nor
lookin' where he was Rgoin', and so one
day when he was ridin' along at right
smart pace he run over log. The next
thing that feller knowed he was shot out
Of that wsggin into the air and he come
down on his cheek aud shoulder In way
that astonished him."
"Was he much hurt 7" asked Carswell.
"No," replied Tom, 'ouly scratched
and bruised considerable. He didn't thy
that machine no more for while. He
kept 1t, however, and he afterwards mar
ried Sally Sordon, mighty fat gal, and
the two OF them have now got q top on the
thing and drive around in 1t some.
wouldn't advise you, young man, to try
one jist yet"
Carswell mentally vowed he would net
and the two drove swlfsly along the level
road and between hedges aud "worm
fenoes' with every now and then peach
orchard, and again corn field and more
rarely q wheat field on either side, till
they had passed Lsndstreers and were
on their way toward Iron City In the
neighboring district Of linooln.
"Why do they call the place Iron
City 2" asked Carswell.
81 dunno" replied Tom; "maybe be
cause there is no iron and no CITY,"
"But," he continued, at ye had asked
me why they called that new district
Linkin ! could have told ye quick
enough"
"Why was 1t, then," asked Carswell,
thus prompted.
''Beosuse," answered Tom, ga lot Of
d-n Radicals and niggers run this
district and q Dimmicfatio Lsgislature
hadn't enough sense to pay attention to
my protest against grantin' their request
to give their new district an Abolition
name when 1t was split of from Topgueo
teAgue."
''How came they to besplit off ?" asked
the young man. ...
"0h," replied Tom, 81 done that me.
self. l got tired o: foolin' with such
critters and they can't do no harm by
theirselves. Districts lay no taxes, ye
know, except road taxeH, and Il don't
cost nothin' to make rosds in this part OF
the country. Ys see Pm tellin' ''ye what
kind OF q crowd yen get amongst If ye
take the place, for IT'S only fair ye should
be warned. Now here we are. The
place is In good condition enough and has
a better house than bachelor needs Iu
fact that's why it's fer sale. A New
Yorker who'd got his head stuffed with
the idea that all man had to do was
come down here and buy pexoh orchard
Al then hire some niggers to pick the
fruit and sell It right of the trees at New
York prices, bought this place aud set
out powerful lot OF good trees. He had
enough money to git along with till the
trees Rrowed, but rothin' would do for
him but to build fine house for the city
gal he was to bring here as a wife. He
had hssrd tell that each tree would bar
four or five baskets when II was tour
years old and as he had 5000 trees he
thought all he had to do was to pick
haa ~ nh aall tn
dollar a basket and pocket 500, 1000
Accordingly he borrowed all the money
he oould on his place aud put up house
that outshinss any thing around here and
found he hadn't then got Il all paid fer.
The year his trees come IN bearin' there
WAS sleet storm and the buds got soaked
feller got about Thousand baskets out OF
his whole orchard. 1t was a bad year
for peaches generally, however, and his
fruit was fine, so he did git good prices,
his pt aches nettin' him, go he told me,
81 SO basket In New York"
1--WE ALL" Tom continued, "fslt sorry
for the ieller, who had brought his wifo
here, q purty little thing with city ways
and OF no manner OF uss in the country,
but we told him such things was common
in the peach business. He Oheered up
considerable and waited patiently till
next year, AMI then he did have big
crop and no mistake, but so did every
body else, and peaches sold at the station
for 80 o,.nts for primes while ormmon
couldn't be sold at no pri I've. There
weren't many onDnt iiek then, either, to
take the fruit TOO ripe for shipping off
cur hands and Mr., Barlow-that was his
nAme-let goood deal OF his fruit git too
ripe. so that with low prices and rottin'
fruit and good many peaches dumped
In New York hArbor on account OF glut,
he found that instead Of gittin' e20, 900
his crop didn't quite net him %, 600
Nov any Of us old hands, who don't dc
pend on peaches alone would have
counted this very fair yesr, but Mr..
Barlow got disgusttd and 81 he moved
back to New York aud went into some
other business in which he failed. His
property here passed into the hands Of
the man who had loaned him the money
and he is willin' to sell It now for about
the amount Of money II took to build that
fine house. II ye want that big farm
ye can buy It purity cheap"
The place was found to be In pretty
good condition. The outbuildinRs were
only fair and the fences were neglected,
but the house was q really handsome
structure with oaks and tulip poplars
scattered around in 3 way that showed
them to have belonged to grove which
had been partly out away to make room
for the building. A fine sodded lawn
stretched In front OF the house about