1846.] Mr. Green and Keighhor Soles. 107 



and sunshine almost, but here if you expect to be neighborly 

 you must drop the idea of paying and being paid for every thing. 

 I put up your fence because the cattle would have destroyed all 

 your clover before you would have been up, as I thought. I be- 

 lieve you do turn out earlier than I expected. I did it for sake 

 of a neighlx)r. I would not have been hired to work out as long 

 as I did in that rain, for five dollars." 



I felt that I had done neighbor Soles great injustice in my 

 thoughts at least. I made a full confession and an apology, and 

 expressed the satisfaction it would give me to meet him on his 

 own ground. 



" Don't you think " said he, " that most of the difficulties 

 among men are owing to their not understanding one another ? 

 Now we might suppose something like this. You supposed that I 

 put up your fence in order to get something out of you. I might 

 have supposed that you said nothing about it, in hopes to get clear 

 of paying me, and so we set one another down as rather close fel- 

 lows. Then my cow goes in at your gate, which I see you leave 

 open half the time (just put a pulley on it,) and eats up your 

 garden stuff. You send me a rather short word to keep my cow 

 at home, and I send you word back to keep your gate shut. 

 Things go on so, till there is a regular quarrel, and for want of a 

 right understanding in the beginning. Is'nt it so?" 



I signified my assent by an inclination of the head, and looked 

 at him as much as to say, " go on." He understood me and con 

 tinued. 



" I find it best to understand a man, and then if I find him al- 

 together unsound to let him altogether alone. We can't get along 

 without having some dealings with men who have some bad spots 

 in them. But if a man is altogether unsound, I let him alone 

 But there are some that are crooked in some things, but in the 

 main, are upright men. You must bear with such and try to 

 bring them round. If a man has only some good things about 

 him, you may cure him of a great many bad things. Persever- 

 ance in being neighborly will generally bring such a man to. 

 There is Salmon who lives at the fork of the roads. When he 



