Homesteading 



The end of the threshing was now rapidly 

 approaching, for a time at least, for we turned 

 out one morning to find that the thermometer 

 in the night had fallen to twenty degrees below 

 zero, and there was much difficulty in getting the 

 gasolene to vaporize enough to start the engine. 



Then came a snowfall. Nevertheless, after a 

 delay of a day, we made an effort to go -on by 

 digging shocks out of the snow, and persisted 

 until one or two were frostbitten in the bitter 

 wind that swept across the open prairie. It is 

 only fair, however, to say that before this time 

 came we had a few glorious autumn days. 



With the coming of frost the mosquitoes had 

 disappeared, the wild ducks and geese had long 

 since gone South, the latter flying overhead, far 

 up towards the blue, in wedge-shaped squadrons. 

 Here and there they may alight on a lakelet or 

 river to rest, but not many fall to the gun of the 

 busy settler. 



On several mornings, as the brilliant sun shone 

 on work the frost wrought on every particle of 

 moisture deposited on grass and shrub, our eyes 

 rested on a vision of loveliness which for the time 

 made us forget the day's labour before us. 



Indeed, on a still and clear autumn day there 

 was a certain joy in the work for its own sake, 

 and we did not at all hanker after the British 



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