188G 



(iLEANiNGS IN iifeE ciiittttuii. 



;3y 



repeatedly, but still qv\ite a freshet sends a 

 little flood doAvn among our honey-plants 

 and flowers. Well, before finishing up the 

 piece of work I have been describing, we 

 constructed open ditches on the west side 

 of the garden, to connect with large-sized 

 tile so as to empty all the water, from the 

 west, under this outbuilding, so you see the 

 effect of a rain will be to wash the contents 

 into my large underground reservoir, where 

 the roots of our plants and trees can help 

 themselves. If yoii look at friend Cole's 

 letter you will notice that in the last para- 

 gi-aph he suggests an arrangement whereby 

 our poultry -houses, pig-sties, and even sta- 

 bles, maybe so arranged as to allow the con- 

 tents to either drop directly into one of these 

 reservoirs, or so they can be washed in with 

 very little pains. Liquid manure and all, is 

 thus quickly and almost automatically sent 

 to the fields to fertilize growing plants. In- 

 stead of laborious carting and teaming, and 

 then more laborious plowing and harrowing 

 to get these substances into the soil, the 

 rains are taught to do this disagreeable and 

 laborious work. May be you will think 

 friend Cole and I are borrowing from our 

 imagination somewhat; but I think every 

 candid reasoner will allow that friend Cole 

 has accomplished a great deal, any way. 

 even if it should transpire that all he pro- 

 poses to do may not be secured. 



In connection with this matter of out- 

 buildings, there is another thing I want to 

 be excused for calling attention to. Many 

 such b\iildings are so arranged, or made so 

 loose with joints and cracks above and be- 

 low, that in the winter time there is great 

 danger of delicate people, women and chil- 

 dren, taking cold by cold drafts and ex- 

 posure. When it is nicely banked up as I 

 have described, and made close and tight, 

 no cold air can gain access anywhere, so as 

 to make a draft dangerous to the health. 

 I'^irthermore, if close-fitting lids are provid- 

 ed, and kept closed when not in use. no un- 



pleasant or unhealthful odors can escape ; 

 and as it is all a dark cellar below, even a 

 child would meet with no repulsive sight if 

 the little one should happen to look into the 

 dark depths. From motives of economy 

 and durability I would by all means have 

 the foundation of brick or stone ; then bank 

 it up and plant grapevines or other choice 

 fruit around it. A Niagara grapevine is 

 growing near the one belonging to our home. 

 After we get to the end of our under- 

 ground reservoir we shall have one pit con- 

 taining no earth, and there is none to put 

 into it. But the dirt from the first pit lies 

 where it was thrown out. This may be cart- 

 ed so as to fill up the last one, or you can 

 spread it over the surface and fill the last 

 with dirt taken from the surroimding soil. 

 We meet the same thing in ordinary trench- 

 ing for market gardening. Of course, where 

 we put in as much manure as I have men- 

 tioned, the heap of dirt at A will be raised 

 up much above the general level of the 

 ground. I propose to let this lie until the 

 frosts of winter work it up fine for use, and 

 this morning, Jan. 12, the thermometer is 

 6 degrees below zero, so you see I am going 

 to make this severe weather serve me. Our 

 potatoes and apples are safe from the effects 

 of the frost, in that new outdoor cellar I 

 have mentioned a few pages back. Our 

 poultry and bees and other stock have com- 

 fortable accommodations ; we have a large 

 factory at least tolerably warm by steam- 

 pipes this brisk morning, so we can go on 

 with our work in spite of the frost. 



Of course, I do not know what we shall be 

 able to raise over those reservoirs, and on 

 the ground between them. W^e have placed 

 them from 20 to 30 feet apart. We shall, as 

 soon as spring opens, test them with straw- 

 berries, raspberries, celery, cabbages, etc., 

 and we think it (|uite likely we shall be able 

 to get splendid crops on a soil heavily ma- 

 nured for two feet or more in depth, with a 

 reservoir of water underneath it all. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



Whatsoever thy hand flndeth to do, do it with thy mig-ht.— Ecc. 9: 10. 



Now, friends, if you will pardon the di- 

 gression which the advent of friend Cole's 

 book has made necessary in our new book, 

 we shall go on with " What to Do, and How 

 to Be Happy Avhile Doing It." The digres- 

 sion will, however, I hope, furnish many of 

 you something to do ; and if you are as hap- 



py while doing it as I have been during the 

 past three or four weeks, I think the chap- 

 ters which it occupies are right in place in 

 our book. A good deal that I tell you how 

 to do here I suppose will be done when you 

 would not otherwise do much of any thing 

 else. In fact, this book is wiitten particu- 



