630 State Board of Agriculture, &c. 



Last spring, a farmer in a neighboring town said to hia 

 hired man, whom we will call Sam, though that is not his 

 name: '' Sam, do you know how to raise melons?" Sam 

 answers : " I have had good luck raising melons." " Well, 

 Sara, I want to make an arrangement with you. I wnll fur- 

 nish land, manure, seed and time, and you shall raise the 

 melons. Next fall we will take what pleasure wo can, eat- 

 ing them." Nice arrangement, j^ou see. Sam agreed to the 

 plan at once. Last August I saw the man, and Sam, and 

 the melons. The man told me how Sam did it, and gave 

 him all the credit for the success of the experiment. It was 

 a success. There was nearly a cart load of melons on a 

 piece of ground twenty-five or thirty feet square. I was so 

 glad to think that Sam would have a happy anticipation all 

 the long summei' through, every time he thought of the 

 melons, that I did not regret they were not ripe when I saw 

 them. I should expect the man who understood and meant 

 to obey the injunction quoted above, would now and then 

 make some such arrangements with a hired tnan as this that 

 was made with Sam. 



Lastly. The laborer is worthy of his hire, and he must 

 have his pay promptly when his work is done. This obliga- 

 tion, although last in order, is -ftrat in importance. If you 

 owe more debts than you can pay, be sure you pay the man 

 who has earned his wages. That is a kind of a first mort- 

 gage. 



There is many a poor man who is too proud or bashful to 

 tell you that unless you pay him that night for his day's 

 work, his family will have no breakfast next morning ; or, 

 unless he can have his pay to buy him some undershirts, he 



