140 BOAED OP AGRICULTURE. [Jan., 



Ms devotion to it, as is the German by Ms to beer. The endless 

 variety of pies that an ordinarily endowed farmer's wife can make 

 is a matter of wonderment to one foreign to the section, while the 

 list of a really talented pie maker would compare favorably in 

 numbers, I believe, with the stars of heaven. The mysteries of 

 the New England pie would severely puzzle the united talents of 

 a New York detective, the chemists of our experiment station, and 

 the best investigating lawyers of the star-route trial. The com- 

 bination of lard, sugar, and spice is enough to ruin the digestion 

 of a more than ordinarily active ostrich; therefore, it is no sur- 

 prise to us to find that it has this effect upon our farmer, and that 

 he is frequently found to be a confirmed dyspeptic, showing it in 

 his form, his face, and most of all in his disposition. 



One of the chief drawbacks to healthfulness on the farm, far 

 greater than the environment or dietetic arrangement, is the 

 unceasing and laborious toil to which the occupant subjects him- 

 self; labor that is too heavy for human muscles to be employed in, 

 and devoting to it so many hours of the day that it effectually 

 deprives him of all recreation and amusement, up early in the 

 morning, laboring for an hour or perhaps two before he partakes 

 of food, treating in this respect his brute beasts better than him- 

 self. The breakfast is eaten in haste, washed down with hot 

 coffee, and the rush of work commences again. The bright hours 

 of the morning have no beauty for him for he has no time for 

 their enjoyment. A short halt at noon enables him to catch a 

 hasty dinner, and while the team more leisurely enjoy theirs he 

 performs the midday chores, putting the muscles of his limbs in 

 active motion before those of the stomach can grasp their load. 

 The weary hours of the afternoon pass slowly away, but still the toil 

 is not over, chores again demand attention, and it is far into the 

 evening before the day's work is done. Is the sleep that follows 

 such a day of toil a restful one ? It is heavy and lethargic, and 

 brings no elasticity back to the muscles or buoyancy to the mind. 

 I know full well the strain and tension that human muscles are 

 capable of, their endurance is wonderful, and with proper food and 

 suitable intervals of rest and relaxation with quiet sleep, it can be 

 kept up for long periods of time, and the subject of it improve in 

 health and strength, usually accomplishing more in the end than 

 he who devotes himself to incessant toil. But prolonged muscu- 

 lar labor will wear oiit the body, which is like a machine; it must 



