THE LAND AND THE MAN 297 



" That's real kind, if it won't be taking you off 

 your job." 



" Got no job. She's handed over my team to a 

 green Englishman." 



The ploughing seemed to go well the first day 

 or so and then between my many chores and 

 household duties I failed to go and examine the 

 work every day. Hoping and believing it was going 

 well I arranged that Mr. Oliver should have every 

 other Saturday afternoon off to go down to the Fort 

 for tennis. But every day there was a bad quarter 

 of an hour at the start. Between Roddy McMahon 

 and Adam I had become the champion early bird 

 of the neighbourhood, and to see the new man play 

 with his five o'clock breakfast when I knew he 

 wouldn't get another meal till twelve, made me 

 perfectly wretched. 



At the end of his month Adam passed into the 

 domain of Danny McLeay. I was awfully sorry to 

 part with him but I didn't like living in a quarrelsome 

 atmosphere ; and I felt sure that when Mr. Oliver 

 realized that he was entirely responsible for the 

 work, he would rise to the occasion. Besides, it is 

 the greatest mistake to imagine that because you 

 are paying a man a low salary you can't lose much 

 by him in Canada where labour is so expensive and 

 so scarce. An extra hand outdoors always increases 

 the indoor work, and no man is kept for nothing. 

 The cheapest labour is the best labour and the best 

 system of all for the woman-farmer is to train herself 

 to do all her own chores and hire her field labourer 

 at special seasons by the day even if she has to pay 

 the very highest market price. In Britain we grow 

 up with the idea that kitchens and bedrooms are 



