Evening star., 1914-04-25

just as I had seen farmers do. Fine!
As lad the reins on. and wouldn't have
to depend for guidance on gee and
"haw." I counted on fine ride. But
the stones that had made so sore trial
Of plowing hadn't disappeared over night
The harrow struck one Of them and
stopped dead. l kept on going. Did
You ever see spike-tooth harrow? It's
something like the letter A. with iron
spikes driven through the sides and
crosspiece and sticking up about two
inches above the frame. Any one who
thinks that affords a pleasing surface
upon which to dance the tango just
ought to try it once. Tangoing is ex-
actly what I had to do to keep from
getting all mussed up among those
spikes Solely in obedience to the lan
OF momentum. and by no election of my
own, l tangoed toward Bill" i reckon
he must have thought wanted him for
a partner. for he started to turn around
Just as l got tangled up with his trace
Then ''Bill'' got excited and began to
tango. too: and when the dance was
done found myself on the ground with
Bill sitting on me. He got up-after
ne mad rested bit-and I founi | had
suffered no serious damage except to
my dignity I don't know that I even
suffered in "BilPs" esteem He'd helped
me plow Tuesday night, hadn't he?
IA Ai,er l mad gotten the tangles out of
put Tor my own weight substituted cord
wood. l thought 1t would be less likely
to get seasfck when we struck the next
rock.
The Job We made of it wasn't much.
partly because the ground was too wet
and the rest because "Bilr' didn't know
much ABOUT blowing, anyhow, but at last
We got it in shape where I judged that
seeds which were not overly critical
might consent to grow.
Sent "Bill' to the Barn,
When 1t came to making the burrows
FOR planting I wasn't willing to trust
TO "Btll's' devious meanderings, SO
sent him to the barn and used my wheel
hoe. BY driving stake at each end of
the intended row and stretching a string
between. I managed to get something
that looked a little more like a straight
line than it did the trail of a drunken
man. With the ployblade attachment
fastened to the wheel hoe made a nice
little furrow about three inches deep,
which Is deep enough, they say, for
early spring planting The theory is that
seed planted early in the spring, while
there is still lots Of moisture in the soil,
should be covered shallow, SO that the
sun will warm up its surroundings and
induce termination. As the season ad-
vances the seed goes deeper, up to a
moisture which is as necessary as
warmth to its future career. When a
depth has been reached where 1t Is dan
gerous to go farther. lest the plants
grow down instead Of UP, the profess
sors tell US to firm the earth about the
seeds and that will conserve the mois-
ture.
My first planting was of early peas-not
the big wrinkled kind. but little. hard
round fellows which the experts say just
dote on cold, damp soil. Sometimes they
plant this variety in the fall. letting them
stay in the ground all winter. to sprout
as soon as the snow meltS. 1t would be
plain murder. now, to treat a bean that
way, but though the pea is the bean s
first cousin, 1t has tastes and peculiarities
of temperament as different from those
Of the bean as day is different from night.
The hotter it gets. provided there is suf-
ficient moisture. the better beans thrive:
but peas want a parasol as soon as the
suns rays begin to make the mercury
ambitious for altitude records. The man
who can have peas in July and August
Is the envy OF his neighbors. Back in
Salem days they would have hanged him
as a witch.
Plan for Summer Peas.
But think have the pea game beaten
in advance-at least, I'm going to try
The piece of ground 'Bill" and plowed,
with much protesting of muscle and
lamentation of spirit, lies to the east of
the barn. where it is low and damp and
very rich. The first paintings made at
the easteriy edge OF the strip. and in sue
cessive paintings I shall work toward
the barn and the west This engineering
will put my late paintings, which should
produce edible peas in the anti-pea
months Of July and August, up close to
the barn, where they will be shielded
from the heat of afternoon suns. If this
program doesn't place my family in a
class with those plutocratic mortals who
are enabled to eat peas regardless of the
season. why, it won't. and that's an end
ont.
Peas are about all my planting SO far.
but did put in a small bed of radishes
and I have space reserved in my plowed
plot for two rows Of tho very earliest