The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-04-05
FARMING by PROXY.
A City Mans Experience with a Farm
He Did Not Want.

Boston Transcript.
Much has been said and sung about the
adventures of the countryman with gold
brick men and bunco steerers In the city,
and his innocence and large-hearted simple
ity have furnished the joke factories OF the
country with an almost endless supply of
material; but there is another side TO the
picture which places the countryman in an
entirely different light and makes 1t a mat
ter of grave doubt whether or not he is the
guileless creature he has been represented
to be by certain unreliable comic papers.
This is the experience Of the city man when
he, in turn, visits the country and tries his
hand at farming, and especially at farming
by proxy. There is Boston auctioneer
who is known to nearly everyone in the city
for his clevernesS and business sagacity;
but his experience with farm which he
bought out in western MASSACHUSETTS has
kept him guessing for the last two or
three years as 10 what particular variety
of deal the innocent and uniettered agri-
cuiturists whom he hired to run 1t were
going to engineer through next, ard as far
as his personal experience goes he is ready
to give a prompt and decisive answer to the
old question, docs farming pay?"
In the first place he did not want the
farm which he had bought. He was driving
by it. during a summer visit to the section
was for sale, went in to look it over, merely
from curiosity He returned to the city, and
before long the owner of the farm appeared
testations that he did not wish &c buy
farm. it was sold to him The wou.d,be
abode there until he became a nightmare to
the auctioneer. In desperation the latter
finally offered half the lowest price asked.
and this was accepted. A short time after
this the owner of another large farm which
adjoined the newly acquired property, died.
and on his death it was found that his
affairs were in such state that the farm
would have to be sold to satisfy mortgage
which was on it. The holder of the mortgage
had evidently been in communication with
the seller of the first farm, for he soon made
his appearance at the Office of the Boston
man, and brought with him an unalterable
determination to sell the farm. which he
finally did by pursuing exactly the same
tactics followed by the first man. t5{
1t had been the intention to use the farms
simply as summer residence at first, as the
second one had been the home OF a man sup
marvel of landscape gardening But the
owner of the first farm, who had been en-
gagged to look after the combined venture.
Thought that IL was pity that little
and suggested that they be stocked. The
auctioneer was not averse to making a little
money, and the former was commissioned
to go ahead and buy stock. II must have
that farm. for. judging from the results. he
ravaged the whole State to collect the tost
tired. the scrawniest: hungriest animals tnat
could be found. and when he had finished
making his collection he had some sixty
sheep and twenty-five COWS. in comparison
with which the seven lean kline would have
appeared Ike delegation OF aldermen.
When the bills came in they figured up to
in the best OF condition, and there were also
bills to the amount OF $50 or 500 for the
feed which had been required by the abnor-
malIy developed appetites Of the lean kline:
going on. the stock buyer wns summarily
elected from ONCE. and q man from Provi-
dencs Was hired. The last man had been q
nnancior. but this one Wos meohanic He