OUR HOMES. 109 



day, an evil that is giving our houses and land into foreign 

 hands. It is the childlessness of our homes. The home in 

 which there are no children is often a lonely one. They may 

 have no children to disturl) or soil their costly furniture ; no 

 little finger-marks on the window-panes or mirrors. They 

 may not be obliged to read or sing for their amusement, nor 

 be confined at home on their account ; but can have })erfect 

 order and neatness in the house, — enjoy amusements, money, 

 and, indeed, everything but happiness. With all their bless- 

 ings the greatest of all is missing. We may live without 

 children, but the best part of home is gone. Home is a 

 word that has a definite meaning in New Ens^land. It can- 

 not be defined in the dictionary, yet there is no word the 

 meaning of which is better understood ; but how often its 

 true meaning is i2;nored and forgotten. How often does the 

 boy leave his home and the farm, simply because it is in no 

 way made pleasant and attractive to him. In this, the 

 parents are at fault. When the country home is made the 

 dearest place on earth to its inmates, then we may hope to 

 keep some of the boys on the form. Home ! — the name, the 

 word, is very dear to all. There is something in the word 

 wiiich carries us back to our childhood, to the good old home 

 we left many years ago ; and while many of us have pleas- 

 ant and happy homes in cities and villages, still we cannot 

 help turning back to the good old farmer's home in the 

 country where we first breathed the pure air and drank from 

 the cooling spring that flowed down the mountain side, or 

 from the " old oaken bucket that hung in the well." In a 

 word, there is no home so pleasant, attractive and healthy as 

 the country home of the farmer. 



The Chairman. There is only one side to this question 

 and therefore there is no room for discussion. We are not 

 very often favored with the presence of ex officiis members 

 of our Board, — they have so many other duties to occupy 

 their time, — but this evening we have Lieutenant-Governor 

 Brackett with us, and of course we expect to see him on 

 the platform and to hear from him. 



