DANVIS FARM LIFE 73 



warns out the farmers to the performance of the 

 farce termed, by stretch of courtesy, "road-mend- 

 ing," which is played regularly twice a year, when 

 all hands turn out with teams, ploughs, scrapers 

 and wagons, spades, shovels, and hoes and make 

 good roads bad and bad roads worse. It is fortu- 

 nate for those who travel much upon the highways 

 that these road-menders do so little, playing at 

 work for a short time, then stopping, leaning on 

 plough-handle or spade to hold grave.consultation 

 concerning the ways of doing some part of their 

 task, or gathering about the water-jug in the 

 shade of a wayside tree, and spending an uncon- 

 scionable time in quenching their thirst and light- 

 ing their pipes and joking or discussing some mat- 

 ter of neighborhood gossip. 



But the young corn is showing in rows of green 

 across the dark mould that the time for the first 

 hoeing has come. The long-suffering boy be- 

 strides old Dobbin and guides him between the 

 rows while he drags back and forth the plough or 

 cultivator, held, most likely, by one too apt to 

 blame the boy for every misstep of the horse which 

 crushes beyond resurrection a hill of corn. It is 

 my opinion that to this first odious compulsory 

 equitation entailed upon the boys of my genera- 

 tion is due the falling into disuse of equestrianism 

 in New England. Who that had ever ridden a 

 horse at snail's pace among the corn-rows in the 



