236 FARMING BY INCHES; 



passed along the sidewalk, I saw one of the men who sat 

 near us in the cars. He was standing at the door of the 

 market, and seemed quite at home there. We found three 

 hotels, and four churches, and these, together with the 

 factories and dwelling-houses, made up a thriving New 

 England village. A single covered bridge spanned the 

 river near the railroad that crept along under the river- 

 bank. Just over the river a lofty, wooded hill rose like 

 a great wall, and lifted its rocky crags high over all. 



The next morning we obtained the key, and started to 

 walk out and see Uncle Jacob's little piece of property. 

 We soon left the houses behind, and came to the open 

 fields. The day was' fair, and the March sun was shining 

 brightly. The scenery, though brown and bare, was lovely. 

 The walking was good, and to walk or even live was 

 a pleasure on such a day, while the pure and bracing 

 air inspired us with a sense of freedom and space to move 

 about in, that was a delight only city-bred people like 

 ourselves could appreciate. After passing several farms, 

 we came to our own little place, as we had already learned 

 to call it, though we never intended to occupy it. The 

 house was quite small, merely a one-story cottage, of 

 five rooms. Behind the house was a small barn. The 

 parcel of land we found to consist of a ploughed field, 

 having thick woods on three sides, but open on the street, 



