1905.] MONEY IN LAMBS. 75 



in good shape. We used to take care of our fences and do some 

 work on the farm in between. Just Hving half the time be- 

 tween the flocks and the fields, and during that time we made 

 over some of the poor spots, improved the whole farm, until 

 we finally got it so that we could take care of a thousand lambs. 

 We kept hard at work, and finally, four years ago, there came 

 a good year, when we had a thousand lambs on the farm, all 

 as fat and sleek as they could be ; all in the best of condition 

 possible to send to market and realize good prices. I sold 

 them out, and, of course, when the checks came back, one at a 

 time, we were in a position to get out of debt. I never did 

 anything in my life with greater satisfaction. I took those 

 checks and laid them on the banker's counter and asked him 

 to take out what I owed him and let me know what balance I 

 had left. I knew him well. He used to come out to the farm 

 and look at things, now and then. I suppose he wanted to see 

 just how things were. I told him I wanted to pay every cent 

 that I owed him in cash; everything that I owed anybody I 

 wanted to pay in cash. We owed this banker a lot. I had not 

 figured it up to know just how much we did owe him, but I 

 said to him, " Now I have got money enough to pay that debt, 

 to cancel all the notes which you have against me, and I want 

 to pay that, and then I want you to tell me if I have anything 

 left." He figured up for a minute and handed me back a bank 

 sheet showing the state of my account, and showing me that I 

 was on the right side of the books. I had almost six hundred 

 dollars in clear money. I was surprised and delighted. The 

 farm was all paid for, and we were out of debt. We were all 

 right then, because we were out of debt. That was a happy 

 day. I went home and told my wife about it. When she saw 

 me coming she stood in the doorway waiting for me to come, 

 and when she saw my face she knew the story, and we were 

 both of us so happy we could not say a word. Then we 

 figured that night what we had made in profit on the farm, and 

 we found that we had made more than twenty-five hundred dol- 

 lars on that same farm, which had only given us a gross return 

 when w^e began of seven hundred dollars. And there has not 

 been a year since that we have not done as well. Cleared 

 away all the debts, cleared away all the poor spots on the farm, 

 so there are not any any more. We have moved the line fences 

 back, and have built two new homes on the farm, one for mv. 



