13 



meal time, the nighty raid the Lord's day, each brings to 

 the mechanic ; for carking care sits by his side in the 

 home circle, flaps its dark wing o'er his nightl}^ slum- 

 ber, and too often follows him to the house of God. 



Moreover, if either he or the mechanic, lays aside his 

 toil ; if he remits his exertions, whether voluntarily, 

 from sickness, or from want of customers, the sources 

 of his income are checked ; and, as his expenses con- 

 tinue, he must break in upon the stores he has laid 

 by in his busy and prosperous seasons ; consequently, 

 like a bird in the air, he must keep his pinions out- 

 spread and in motion, or he begins to descend and is 

 threatened with a fall. 



Now is it unreasonable to affirm that, in these re- 

 spects, the farmer's lot is preferable to that of either of 

 these men ? We all know that he has to do some very 

 hard w^ork — that there are seasons when he must be 

 astir, both early and late, and bend to the task before 

 him with a right good will. We know that there are 

 disappointments, from drought and mildew, from cold 

 and wet, from blighted crops and sickly cattle, enough 

 to try his spirit and test his character severely. More- 

 over — as we may have occasion to note somewhat at 

 length — his calling demands thought as truly as that of 

 the manufacturer or the merchant. But Avhen all these 

 things are taken into consideration, it still remains true, 

 that, having breathed the pure air of heaven through the 

 day, he lies down at night to the sweet sleep which God 

 gives to his beloved. Then, again, he has his seasons of 

 relaxation, when plough and hoe, scythe and flail, bush- 

 hook and axe, may all be quietly housed together, while 

 he enjoys, with physical rest, the pleasures of the intel- 

 lect and of social life to the full extent, without one 



