The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-03-24
FARMER JOHN"
This Title Belongs to Miss Roberts
of virginia.

The Inauguration brought to Washing
ton an attractive young daughter Of the
| Old Dominion. who deserves, for one rea-
son. at least, to be ranked with Virginia $
! famous sons.
Her name is Miss May Alley Roberts,
and her title to distinction comes from
her having. when a girl of sixteen, taken
charge of a mortgaged farm of 167 acres,
| and in less than six years lifted the
encumhrance and so substantially i'm
proved it by fencing. ditching. and with
clubhouse and home additions that her ad-
miring neighbors have given her the
sobriquet of Farmer John"
Miss Roberts father died. leaving q wife
and several daughters IF whom May was
the youngest. Insteal of selling the
home stead. as is too often the case in ag-
riculturGl districts when there is no man
to manage the estate. the .plucky little
girl made UP her mind that she could
take up the work where her father left
ii if she We're given fair chance. Luck
lily she had her way, and there isn't a
farmer in her section of the country to-
day who is not proud of her success in
field that, in Virginia, at least, is al
most entirely new to women.
Farmer John" is winsome girl, with
brown hair and joyous laugh. and while
she enjoys her yearly visits to the Capital,
she is very certain that she prefers her
home in Orange County. on the Rapidan.
She admits that farming is hard work,
but declares that it pays if properly man
aged. Last year she harvested a wheat
crop of twenty-five acres, and her vaca-
ton to town was taken while her two col
ored hands We're blowing for the corn
crop, which she will begin planting, ac-
cording to her custom, on April g. In ad-
dition to grain, she raises a quantity of
stock, horses. cattle, sheep, and hogs,
which she ships to Washington. She also
sends dressed poultry to the markets here.
In busy seasons she rises before sun-up
and goes first thing to the stables to see
that the hands get to work. She hires
two men steadily and takes on extra
help at harvest and other busy seasons.
All day long she is on her horse, riding
about the fields to superintend the pow
ing and seeing that the stock is prop
erly fed. She Is particularly fond of
horses and breaks every colt she raises.
She has her own especial horse for road
riding; but her farm work has always
been done with old Betty WHO has be-
come so accustomed to farming in part
nership with her young mistress that If
she happens to ride her on the main road
the old mare considers il her duty to fol-
low every plowman she sees in neigh
bors field. The family have added to
their revenue the past few years by tax
ing summer bOarders, and in order to
properly cater TO them Former John
raises quantities of poultry and vegeta-
bles ana fruits of every sort. There was
no ice house on the place and this win
ter she decided to dig one When she
had superintended its building she haul
ed twenty-one loads of ice a distance of
five miles, which augurs well for the COM
fort of her summer boarders in the hot
days to come.
Miss Victoria Roberts who is two years
older than Farmer JOHN does all the
dairy work on the farm. She is equally
SUCCESSFUL in her special line and not
only keeps the family supplied. but sells,
at good profit, to the neighbors.