A B C OF STRAWBERRY CULTURE. 7 



although they were plentiful in maiket. I could not buy more 

 than a quart or two at a time, and even that went against the 

 grain. My bringing-up on the farm had been of another kind. 

 I could not buy them freely. It was either raise them or go 

 without." 



Again, a well-known agriculturist sat with me at a hotel 

 table. He had been a farmer all his life, and is well off. For 

 a wonder, there was some really good cheese on the table. Our 

 farmer friend helped himself several times. He seemed to like 

 it very much. I said to him : "You do not get good cheese 

 down your way, I guess, judging from the way you take hold 

 of that." 



His reply was : ' ' They have it at the groceries ; but, to tell 

 the truth, as we do not make cheese we do not have it on our 

 table one week out of the fifty-two." 



Now, this farmer lives in a house that cost at least $5000, and 

 has no lack of funds ; but, although evidently fond of cheese, 

 he goes without it because they do not produce it. His bring- 

 ing-up clings to him, and he can not use freely what must be 

 bought for money don't you see ? If this is the case among 

 such well- to do farmers, who can draw their checks for thou- 

 sands of dollars at any time, and have them honored, how 

 would it be likely to be where there are two or three ways for 

 every dollar to go? Well, I visited such a farmer last winter. 

 They are not really poor, but are not yet out of debt, and said 

 they had hard work to pay their interest and. make both ends 

 meet. The wife told me she had tried every spring to get her 

 husband to set out some strawberry-plants. He had always 

 said: " Oh ! we can buy strawberries cheaper than we can raise 

 them." " And now," she says, " how many do you think he 

 bought last year ? Not one single quart ! ' ' 



Now, this looks a little against that friend ; but I know how 

 it was. He thought in the spring it was cheaper to buy than to 

 grow them ; but when it came time to buy he hadn't the money 

 to spare. He felt as though he must pay his debts for all of 



