MR. URBAN AND A CO UNTR Y HO USE. 2 1 ^ 



degree that makes the consequent search a ludicrous 

 bore. One " charming place " is next to a great 

 reach of marsh land, where every informant is pale 

 and quaking with the ague ; another is so beset with 

 rocks that it would require double the cost of pur- 

 chase to clear a smooth bit of greensward at the 

 door. 



Such incongruities naturally shock a man of com- 

 mercial susceptibilities if he proposes to carry them 

 to the country with him. Mr. Urban does ; and, 

 fretted by an accumulation of mischances, and of 

 misdirections, as well as by not a little conscious 

 ignorance of his own, appeals to me for certain prac- 

 tical hints in way of guidance putting his appeal 

 indeed in the shape of a rambling talk, which I take 

 the liberty of digesting into this formulary of ques- 

 tions : 



1st. How much ought fifty acres of land, with 

 respectable farm-house, and out-buildings, within 

 accessible distance say not over three to four hours 

 from the city to cost ? 



2d. Will the possible or probable revenue from 

 such a farm be sufficient to keep it in good order 

 best of order, say so that it shall not become a bill 

 of expense ? 



3d. What crops or treatment will insure such 

 return, without destroying altogether the picturesque 

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