THE OUTDOOR WORLD 



V 



these amounted to nothing more than 

 the threat of a sparring match between 

 Lncle Dan and Joe, who kept their 

 scythes on the roof of the henhouse. 

 Uncle Dan, as he sometimes admitted, 

 was not "as spry as he used to be," 

 and a fall backwards over the chopping 

 block brought forth a general yaw-haw, 

 and the favorite witticism that he 

 "wouldn't stand it till noon; got 

 knocked out before the battle began." 

 And so it has been from time im- 

 memorial ; the hayfield, especially in 

 the morning, is commonly regarded 

 as a place in which to "outdo" some 

 one, or to "get knocked out." This 

 feeling is common to all, but Fred and 

 John were regarded as especially 

 piominent opponents. Indeed. John 

 confided to lncle Dan that he had 

 "better look out. Joe's got it into his 

 noddle that he can do you — just a big 

 fool idea Fred's got that he can 'wind' 

 me on the first turn. I rather reckon 

 he'll find out along about 'leven a thing 

 or two he don't know now. Didn't 



you notice that I just stuffed it into my 

 shirt — about all 1 can carry?" In hay- 

 ing time, it is now generally believed, 

 and years ago was even more generally 

 thought that the amount of work de- 

 pends on the quantity of food eaten or, 

 as it is often expressed, "stored away 

 in the shirt." 



Consequently, along about ten in the 

 morning, we had a hearty luncheon, 

 really a dinner. Every day in haying 

 time, and the single day at Thanks- 

 giving, were rivals in the supply of 

 food, without haying time far in the 

 van, with its four meals, each of which 

 in amount and variety, easily sur- 

 passed the single shrunken and half- 

 forgotten Thanksgiving Day. 



So the contesting mowers prepared 

 themselves, and every man regarded 

 ever}' other man's hand as being 

 against him. No employer need urge, 

 because ever}- man was keyed to the 

 highest pitch and was read}' for the 

 real or supposed contest. 



A REST AFTER A FROLIC IN THE HAYFIELD. 



