The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1900-09-14

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: and open places so that no time ha
been lost in drawing water or driyin,
to the water, and no beast has been al
lowed to suffer night or day for thi,
great luxury of life and essential I,
health.
What luxury ii was to walk over
and examine this farm, so perfect in
all its appointments, and what plea.
sure II must be 10 work and live Oh
such one.
Mr.. Blacker does not cultivate a
plant of tobacco and grows no wheat.
Corn, hay and oats are his leading Gull
tvated crops, while horses and cattle
are raised for market.
1t was novel, and to your core.
spondent, a most refreshing sight.
right here in Southside Virginia, in a
sister county of Prince Edward, to find
grazing on our fields cattle equal 10
any ever saw IN Tazewell or Pulaski.
and horses like those of Kentucky
Every head and hoof of the 10 steers
had been raised right there, and the
same was true of the eighteen young
horses. Fat and sleek and satisfied, il
did my heart good to look at them in
the early hours Of goodly September
morning. The cattle were in two
hundred acre field, whose bosom had
not been torn by pillow for more than
a quarter of a century, and though We
have been passing through a most de-
structive dry spell, the grass was green
and luXurlant. The pasture was to me
an ideal one, made up of about two.
thirds rolling land, the rest bottoms
and woods. Food and water and shell
ter in happy combination and happy |
hearts enjoying it all.
The horses were in an adjoining field |
not quite 80 large but IN all other re-
spects the equal of its companion.
Mind you, these fields have not been
cultivated and sOwn with grass seed.
but have been grazed year by year and
have grown better as the grazing has
been going on, and the years have
come and gone. Native grass on duty
and gaining every day victories. All
this in SOuthside Virginia, when so
many farmers are SO busy with tobac-
co that they have not much thought of
other things.
Besides Mr.. Blacker's three year-Olds
he has a herd of younger cattle pre-
pairing to take the places of the older
when they have gone to market, and
so the work goes on year by year.
What is sold from the farm is born aud
raised on the farm, and no cattle il
bought to be grazed. The horses are
bred for the saddle and many of them
will no doubt follow in the chase Of the
deep Run Hunting Club" of Rich
mOnd.
The corn on this farm is grown Oh
high lands, without the use of com
mercial fertilizers and an average yield
a good year is 10 bushels to the acre.
At one time much attention was
devoted to ensilage but this has been
abandoned and fodder and hay subst-
luted. Hogs too, were once raised for
market but "a "all roads once led to
Rome" 50 all energies Of "AbeTcorn,u
for that is the name Of the place tend
10 horses and cattle.
enjoyed my visit to this highly inn (
proved aud well ordered Southside
Virginia farm, and am indebted to Mr..
+. Mitterer who is the efficient man.
lger for Mr.. Blacker, and his family /
for many cOurtesies received.
| called AZ bachelors establishment
It | | a. M, of a very hot day, fed my
horse and prepared for good rest in
he shade, with no hope Of dinner a.
he aforesaid bachelor was no where to
De found and not another living soul
IN the place. At II o'clock, however,
ne put i'm an appearance, and said be
would give me dinner in twenty min
ties. He was true to his promise, and
you can imagine my surprise when, on
)eing seated at his table, found well
,oiled shoulder. cabbage and potatoes,
uppor ed by quick hOe-cake, tomatoes,
"tO burn" aud other good
hings. The wonder to me was where o
hey all came from, and the mystery
yas only solved when he introduced [
ne to his kitchen and to an open fire
,lace. Before leaving for his work i'm
he morning he pat that shoulder, cab II
age aud potatoes in a pot To bile
,ut that pot on bed of live Goals and
here the billing" went on till noon, q
md by noon they were done through
md through. When he came in from
work he had nothing To- do but bake Il
hat quick hoe cake, and he had din
Ter fit for king During the heated p
ERIN | have been wasting a good de- r
rec of sympathy on cooks but now | r
earn that there is no need to stay i'm
he Kitchen while the meal is pTepar. b
NJ. AT least that is the bachelors NJ
way OF doing, and bear willing testi- II
nony to the fact of its being a good NJ
way. The dear girls will "catch on \,
During this last visit to Amelia had
he pleasure Of shaking hands with IA y
,roud grandma, who, when ! last saw d
Ter, was my classmate at school, stu
wing Virgil together. The grace and
harm of the maiden have ripened into
he glory Of the matron.
The drought has been very destruc-
i've i'm the lower portion of Amelia. D.
can't believe that more than a third "
f tobacco crop will be cut and the
orn is sad failure. The farmers,
owever. are cheerful and ready to try 81
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