HOME. 63 



In order to rent such a house in the country, 

 if such a house can be found, which is very un- 

 likely, one would have to pay at least four or 

 five hundred dollars a summer, especially if it 

 was furnished so as to be comfortable for a 

 large family. A piano, for instance, and a good 

 one, is a necessity with us. Good lamps for 

 evenings, and ample fireplaces are also neces- 

 sary. By making our home in the wilderness, 

 if a lovely little village can be called a wilder- 

 ness, we are able to fit it with every con- 

 venience and comfort, for such things cost but 

 little money, after all. I do not suppose that 

 my whole investment, land and buildings, but 

 not including the furniture, rugs, and fixtures 

 that were brought here from the city when I 

 gave up work for sport, would represent an 

 outlay of more than $3,000, and in estimating 

 my yearly expenses, I put down rent as $150 a 

 year, that being the interest upon this amount. 



As I needed no large amount of land, for an 

 acre suffices amply for all my purposes, I was 

 enabled to buy almost in the heart of a village 

 where land always has a certain value ; and cer- 

 tainly with the improvements I have made my 

 purchase has not deteriorated. Had I been 



