Town and Country. 221 



gious crops. All that was required to make this an absolutely perfect fruit- 

 farm was the planting of a dozen acres of berries. Some of these the 

 enthusiastic owner proceeded to set out. The plants throve well ; but the 

 season proved to be rainy beyond all former experience in New Jersey, and 

 the entire product of this his first year was so meagre as to entirely dis- 

 hearten him. He had lived too long on the pavements and under the gas- 

 lights to understand that every season is made up of varying vicissitudes. 

 He had relied on rich returns as being immediate and sure ; in fact, he had 

 expected too much. His moderate working-capital was exhausted, and he 

 now turns round and desires to sell. That accomplished, he goes back to 

 the gas-lights, not ruined, but, though with a magnificent establishment in 

 his hands, disheartened by the losses of a single unfriendly season. Under 

 as active a manager, if possessed of greater working-capital, the result 

 would satisfy any reasonable ambition. 



If this were called a failure, the term would be a misnomer. The same 

 long-continued deluge swamped the crops over a large extent of country. 

 But though loss was in many cases the result, yet it was not disheartening ; 

 for there was the sustaining power of sufficient capital to fall back upon. 

 Others, even with abundant means, have every thing to learn. Of small 

 things which sometimes decide the question of success or failure, they 

 know nothing : hence they lose time and opportunity, and the expected 

 profit fails to appear. Practice is to make them perfect ; but practice 

 requires time. Their neighbors gather uniformly good crops, thrive, and 

 become rich, yet work no harder, neither is their land of better quality. 

 But the practice of years has made them perfect in whatever they under- 

 take. These old stagers never expect too much. Another class will so 

 diversify their farming as to lose by having too great a variety to look after. 

 Specialties would pay them infinitely better; but even this rudimentar}' fact 

 they have to learn. If one class expects too much, another undertakes too 

 much. 



Every one who proposes coming out of the great city to reside upon a 

 farm, particularly he who desires to thus support his family, should determine 

 beforehand what he intends to do, — whether to go into general farming, 

 into fruit-growing, or into " truck " or market-gardening. In choosing, he 

 should consult his tastes as well as his means. If his object be grain- 



