OF HARVEST, WAGES, IMPLEMENTS 45 



the granaries, the odds and ends were all finished, 

 and we all bade each other a pleasant farewell. 



Within the month I was at South Qu'Appelle, 

 and, encountering him in a store, asked for my bill. 

 It was one hundred and twenty-five dollars. 



Already I had discovered that of all sorts and 

 conditions of wealth capital is the most powerfully 

 winged. At first sight the amount subdued me 

 even more than it annoyed me. It would have 

 bought three milch cows and two calves or four 

 sows and forty little pigs — or a horse. I took counsel 

 of my neighbour. 



" I knew he would do it ; they always do," he 

 said consolingly. " And if you buck at it he will 

 simply give you a time bill. Have you got his 

 estimate in writing ? " 



But the scrap of pencilled paper had fluttered 

 anywhere ; although even had I been able to pro- 

 duce it, the measurements which my neighbour had 

 taken were incorrect. I reminded him of this not 

 altogether without malice. 



" The writing would have been evidence, and 

 the difference easy to estimate on the figures given 

 for the given dimensions," he said. " I knew when 

 those men stayed on day after day so jolly well 

 pleased with themselves and their quarters that, no 

 matter what your estimate might be, they were 

 being paid by time." 



I paid fifty dollars on account, referred to the 

 estimate, and demanded a corrected account. Back 

 came an absolutely confounding misstatement of 

 time. 



I approached my friend the barrister, and deter- 

 mined to fight out the matter even if I had to take 

 down every shelf and small table to stand for my 



