The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1903-04-21
Communicated.
LIVING IN THE COUNTRY.
The Cultivation of Crops By An
Amateur

dccustOuleu tOlt he DrSt season Is one
OF pure delight and sweet anticipation
We think OF the early. crisp radishes. the
tender lettuce. the fresh laid eggs for
breakfast; the pure, clover butter-no
oleo- -margarine-but the home. churned
yellow as gold and as sweet as a nut
printed with sheai of wheat or n Jersey
COW on 1.-THE cold, rich milk, and. most
important, pure spring water Then
there are the carols of the song-birds in
the trees around the house: the April
showers that bring forth the beautiful
flowers; the hyacinths. daffodils the
sweet carnations. and many other old
fashioned flowers to be found in the gar
dens OF the old farm houses Then there
are the clarion notes OF chanticleer
That walked the priest all shaven and
shorn,
That married the man all tatterei and
torn
When you hear his reveille YOU sprin,,
out OF bed to do lot Of little Jobs that
you had planned the evening before. anu
lind it raining, aud il continues raining
every morning until you forget all about
the little Jobs, and they are never done
There IL one thing. however, that did
not forget. Peaches, in the city market.
usually sell for fifty cents peck. and
sumption IL is just a. well to have some
Tor sale. and set out one hundred peach
trees, and all lived. Now. for counting
the profits. Each tree ought to Weld
two bushels, and making allowance for
losses aud home use. there will be one
hundred bushels to dispose of-equal to
5000. Well. the third year after plant
ing, the orchard bore a small crop
enough Tor home use, and To show the
quality OF the fruit-but then il was an
on year, and peaches were high Next
year Is the time TO look for full crop
and then-"tell it not in Gath. nor pub
lIsh II IN the streets ef Askelon "A min
ping frost came and killed all the peaches
BUT, as we are not living in Delaware.
surely this will not happen again for
many years. And sure enough the fifth
year there were no killing frosts ia spring
and the crop was abundant Now for
marketing and big prices: hut .unfortu
nately my expectations were doomed tn
be blghted, for the crop matured lust
when the great glut came on the market
and the wholesale price for peachee-as
good as ever saw-was fifteen cents "A
boN-hve cents a peck This wouldn't
pay Tor gathering and hauling to market.
After canning all wecould. aud the neigh
bors got all they wanted. free. the rest
rotted on the ground.
The second year of my sojourn in the
country my chief clerk called him so
because he dictates what must do. and
assumes all the management, only hay
ing to furni h the neces sary funds-toli
me that ought to raise a crop of tobacco
| bought the Peruvian guano to ferti-
lie the plant bed, and it took two men
live days to prepare the bed and in Feb.
ruary-l forget whether in the dark or
light OF the moon-the seed were sown.
We had beautiful bed-enough plants
to have planted forty acres-and when
the season came for planting. my chiel
clerk had hired two men u help him
and two neighbors Joined the force to
help, in order to get some of the plants
that would be eft over had prob ABLY
three acres to plant, and the Job was
completed in about three hours. That
ended my planting, but was not the end
OF the plants. One of the ueighbors went
to the bed with his two-horse team and
hauled away all he wanted The other
contended that all the remaining plants
that did not use were his; and that, af-
ter giving them 70 him, had given them
to another man, and that neighoor grew
very cool with me after that, and it was
months before found out the cause
ing, and where there was any strength
ln the land it was very fine. The prob
lem was solved. Ii the land wouldn't
yield corn it would bring tobacco. and
tobacco would pay better, and in future
tobacco was to be the money-crOp
Everything went on well until it came
time TO cut 1t, and the night before il
was to be cut there came a biting frost
and cut it for US
The chief clerk went over the field and
said 'scme OF it could be saved and went
Immediately to saving. He hired more
help and cut aud hauled the tobacco to
the barn. He wors ed at it all winter at
odd times, and in August, after asserting
1t into three grades, he hauled it to the
city and sold the entire crop for S11-be-
ing about one hall of what the plants
had cost.
My chief clerk said no more about rais-
ing tobacco, but suggested crop ofcab-
bage, that would not be hurt by the
frost. aud "terbacky Ian" he said, lis de
bes ian' fur cabidge. Cabbsge it is then
The varieties selected were Flat Dutch
and Drumhead. He only wanted a little
'guano' to put in the hills, and when
this was obtained he laid OFF the ground.
made the hills, and planted about an
acre-some five thousand hills. The crop
did not start off very brisk, but finally
commenced to grow and there wasevery
prospect for fine cabbage; but nv nearest
neighbor our house being about five
hundred yards apart-was raising tur-
keys at that time, and when the cabbage
were about hall grown his turkeys found
them out My chief clerk called my atten-
ton to the situation one dav. and told
me ought to speak to Mr.. r. about
dem turkeys" ! went to the patch 20
investigate and found it was too late to
speak. There was not one left that had
the slightest show OF making cabbage.
am out OF the tobacco and the cabbage
business. Can any one tell me If pay
ing crop TO raise on poor laud2 I have
raised "Old Harry" at timcs, but that
don't pay.
have new chief clerk now who
plants " in the moon and when the
bugs get through with HE potato crop
be digs about a. many as he put in the
<~ro..nA hnf not ....ffa a L. -.