EDUCATION OF FARMERS' SONS. 7 



cash, and that he has little occasion to be particular about his 

 accounts. This is comparatively true. But while a farmer is 

 to be encouraged in never buying but for cash, there arc times 

 when in selling he must accommodate his neighbor with credit. 

 And so, in this and other ways, it happens that there is not a 

 week, hardly a day in the year, in which there should not be 

 some memorandum made, some charge, some credit, something 

 in the end involving dollars and cents. It is no kook-keeping 

 by double entry, no complicated system of accounts that is 

 required. The law in this respect is liberal. An old barn door, 

 with its chalk scores, unhung and brought into court, would be 

 allowed to justify a suppletory oath. But barn doors and kitchen 

 ceilings are unsafe and clumsy journals. Paper and pen and 

 ink are much more trustworthy and quite as convenient. All 

 that is wanted is ordinary penmanship, a knowledge of the 

 simplest rules of arithmetic, and that habit of punctuality which 

 will record tlie transaction at the time of its occurrence. If the 

 farmer is advanced in years, and his hands cramped l)y toil, let 

 him use the nimbler fingers of his wife or daughter, only let 

 him have the account kept. But let his son, when he begins 

 farming, start fair in this respect, and accustom himself to keep 

 his accounts regularly and correctly. It will not only save hira 

 money, it will save him much annoyance, vexation and strife. 

 It may be said that this is a small matter. Be it so. " Take 

 care of the little things, and the large ones will take care of 

 themselves," — or, as the tradesman has it, and he knows the 

 value of poor Richard's maxim, " Take care of the pence, and 

 the pounds will take care of themselves." It has been said by 

 good autliority, " More profit is made on a farm from trifles than 

 from the large crops." The sooner the young man learns this 

 invaluable lesson, the better will be his chances of success. The 

 Dutch have a proverb, " No one is ever ruined who keeps good 

 accounts." They will not only enable a man to understand his 

 whole affairs, and avoid being cheated, but their moral effect is 

 important; — they prevent habits of irregularity, procrastination 

 and indolence ; they induce habits of order, promptness and 

 industry. 



Among those things which attract the attention of an outside 

 observer, tiiere is no one which so excites his surprise as tlie 

 indifference manifested by farmers in availing themselves of the 



