30 THE FAT OF THE LAND 
a number of applicants secured one man. Sam 
Jones was a sturdy-looking fellow of middle age, 
with a suspiciously red nose. He had been bred 
on a farm, had learned the carpenter’s trade, and 
was especially good at taking care of chickens. 
His ambition was to own and run a chicken 
plant. I hired him on the same terms as the 
others, but with misgivings on account of the 
florid nose. This was on the 19th or 20th of 
July, and there were still ten days before I could 
enter into possession. The men were told to 
report for duty the last day of the month. 
