Year: 1872

r. @. H." in the New Englan,
Homestead, it responsible for the follow


ing:


Start northward some morning and il
the course of the day you will strike tha
little cluster of green hills and fertil,
valleys, called Vermont. As you trave
on, you will find good deal of uphill
and some down, but never mind-lif,
has its ups and downs, and why shoulGn


Vermont Don't get discouraged; ons
cd fellow who had travellad good dea
in these regions said he never felt dis
couraged as long as the bills were per.
pendicular. Once in while, up Jamai-
ca way, he found one that leaned tow
ards him, and then it was rather hard
scratching for his old mare. But there
is some level ground. They say there
are two places in the State where they
can play croquet,--one is on the Connec-
ticut river, between Brattleboro and
Bellows Falls, and the other is over on
Lake Champlain some where. Well,
never mind the hills; cattle and sheep
get around on them first rate after they
get used to it, aud seem to do we'll. II
is true, imported cattle do sometimes
turn few sommersaults trying to feed
with their heads down hill till they get
the hang of the pasture, but then, they
the farmers up there-have knack
of raising imported" cattle, and they
take naturally to the slopes. There's
one advantage in having such farms -
One can cultivate or NOW both sides of
his land-having it set on edge SO. The
farmers contend it is not nearly 30 hard
work to plow or NOW up there as on more
level land--don't strain the muscles SO
continuously, you know. A soldier once
went up there who had had one leg am
putated at the knee, and took a farm
tie could do more work than any two
men in town aud stand up as straight az
a gun. They called town meeting in
that town to see if they shouldn't oblige
every man to have one leg amputated,
but it was good sugar weather on the day
of the meeting, and the only man pres.
ent was the doctor, and he didn't think
he had better decide. They are green
the hills | mean, not the folks-to the
very top-most of 'em afford good, sweet
pasturage. They never-as they do
over in New Hampshire-have to have
their sleeps noses steel-pointed to keep
them from wearing out in one season -
nor do they have to plant beans with a
rife, unless it's up in Stratton or Men
don or some of those places.


As you travel through the State, two
of the most prominent features OF the
landscape which you will notice will be
the wood pile and watering trough. The
former you will generally find about the
size Bunker Hill monument would be
should it blow down. IF you peep around
behind it, you will see snug red
farm house and barn, all nice and cosy,
but the wood-pile is the chief pride of
the Vermonter. 1t is so suggestive. In
every cord of it he sees big pitchers of
cider and pecks of butternuts, rosy cheek
ed apples, and possibly, if he is young
man, other roses bloom from the sturdy
beech, and something more sparkling
than cider beams from its chinks. A ha-
10 of quiltings and pairing bees hovers
over this structure, and as he contemp-
lates it, he thanks God he lives where
they have long winters.


About once in half-mile you can stop
and give yourself and your horse cool
drink from trough hewn from huge
log and filled from a spring on the
mountain side just above, or brook that
dashes down across or under the road.


This suggests ano ther picture too, that's
the saw-mill. As in Connecticut every
man goes peddling sometime in his life.
so 10 Vermont every one must, before he
can write himself man, learn to "tend
saw-mill." Now, down country at these
institutions, they just content themselves
with taking the logs and making them
into boards, joists, &c, and have some
vulgar things called "slabs" left, but up
here they do things more thoroughly
What won't do for timber is cut up into
lath and ribbon boards, and in some ca
ses they don't leave silver that is big
enough to make a shoe peg or pill box.
| have heard the following story told as
fact; / don't ask any one to believe it,
A man was riding along one day on one
of these mountain roads pas sing one of
these little mills, when he heard a crash
on the hill above him. He looked up
and saw huge hemlock log come tear
ing down the declivity. 1t rolled across
the road and into the mill which was on
the lower side of the road, and disap-
peared. He jumped from his horse and
ran down a path which led under the