MY EXCUSE 9 
and at the same time not depleting my bank 
account. I wished to experiment in mtensive 
farming, using ordinary farm land as other men 
might do under similar or modified circumstances. 
I-believed that if I fed the land, it would feed 
me, My plan was to sell nothing from the farm 
except finished products, such as butter, fruit, 
eggs, chickens, and hogs. I believed that best 
results would be attained by keeping only the 
best stock, and, after feeding it liberally, selling 
it in the most favorable market. To live on the 
fat of the land was what I proposed to do; and 
I ask your indulgence while I dip into the details 
of this seven years’ experiment. 
You may say that few persons have the time, 
inclination, taste, or money to carry out such an 
experiment; that the average farmer must make 
each year pay, and that the exploiting of this 
matter is therefore of interest to a very limited 
number, Admitting much of this, I still claim 
that there is a lesson to every struggling farmer 
in this narrative. It should teach the value of 
brain work on the farm, and the importance 
of intelligent cultivation; also the advantages of 
good seed, good tilth, good specimens of well- 
bred stock, good food, and good care. Feed the 
land liberally, and it will return you much. Per- 
mit no waste in space, product, time, tools, or 
strength. Do in a small way, if need be, what 
I have done on a large scale, and you will quickly 
commence to get good dividends. I have spent, 
