HAPPY HOLLOW FARM 281 



farming over the meal. The farmer's family 

 was living in most uncommon comfort; the 

 farm produced just about everything that was 

 needed. Remoteness from market towns 

 rather compelled that. There was a fine gar- 

 den, plenty of fruit, turkeys, geese, ducks, hens, 

 pigs, cows and mules, well fed and sleek. 



Out beside the house was a little patch of 

 Spanish peanuts, half the size of a small town 

 lot. The farmer told me the nuts would be 

 used in fattening the pigs he would have for his 

 own meat supply. 



"How many pigs will that patch fatten?" I 

 asked. 



"Oh," he said easily, "them'll fat up a right 

 smart of hawgs." 



"Have you any idea how many pounds of 

 pork a patch like that will make?" I persisted. 



"Oh," he said, "it'll make quite a consid'ble 

 meat." 



But I was after information. "See here," I 

 said: "Suppose you had forty acres in a crop 

 of peanuts like that, how many hogs could you 

 carry on the crop?" 



The question seemed to paralyze him for a 

 minute. "Fohty acres?" he said. "Fohty 

 acres ! In peanuts ? Why, man, dear ! Fohty 



