Iciskf'ts that h:v\ hud for yoars anioiior noi^Icclcd toys, afjain saw the li^^bt. These 

 were to he filled with Strawberries arul IMackberries, Tlie boys were makiiig whips; 

 the horses and cow were named, and the ownership satisfactorily divided among the 

 yoiiiiLj and zealous members of the family. 



My lii-st business, of course, was to select and purchase a " place," and I carefully 

 examined tlie advertisements in the daily papers, particularly the columns headed 

 '' For Sale,^'' and made several journeys to examine some " Mare Chances,^'' and 

 a number of " The most desirable bargains in Real Estate ever offered^ At last, after 

 becoming somewhat wearied in the search, I found a small farm, the owner of which 

 was anxious to go West to buy a larger one, and made a purchase. 



The extent of the domain was about thirty acres. The land was said by the 

 neighboi-s whom I consulted, to be " pretty good, but rather hard runP At this time 

 I had but little idea of the meaning of these simple words, "rather hard run." The 

 land I ])urchased had formerly been part of a large farm, owned by a person in a 

 distant city, and had been "rented out" as long as "the oldest inhabitant" could 

 remember. A few years since, the thirty acres constituting ray purchase was sold to 

 my predecessor. The land was beautifully level, and almost entirely free from trees 

 and stumps. On one part of the farm was a little uneven land — a pretty ravine, — 

 and here a few trees had been allowed to remain. This spot had been selected by the 

 former occupant as the site for his house, more, I imagine, for the convenience of pro- 

 curing logs for its erection, than from any appreciation of the natural beauty of the 

 place. He exhibited but little love of the beautiful in destroying so many fine trees 

 to make so poor a house. 



