leave us very little time for 
regular daily work, chores, etc., 
development work of any kin*. To feel and clean up after 50 head 
of stock, milk, get fuel and tend to the many things "ditch cone 
up day by day take a lot of time and re are keeping no help. 
It is a nice neighborhood, hots of neighbors and tney all 
Been plain, hardworking people, many of them the descendants of the 
original settlers, and a 1 •"ays ready to give one a day's wrrk in tine 
of need. Very feu of them keep any help, but trade work among them¬ 
selves as the need arises. The boys and I have net many of the men, 
as they all ioined us m getting, in our crops, we paying in work 
or cash as it was most convenient for both. A few nights ago one 
of the neighbors and his wife called on us and invited us to a 
surprise birthday party to one of trie neighbors, wool they 'escribed 
as "the r ist helpful neighbor in t ie .community* As ne tad already 
given ris he'Jp m an emergency H e could endorse his pinion* We all 
went and -we had • a most en-jovable time. caught the man in his 
working clothes, fust as he had come in from his day's work and we 
surely did overwhelm the family. There were so/ tthing over 70 of 
us, all old friends esscept ourselves and they very quickly male us 
perfectly at home. bach of the neighbors brought something to eat 
end as the affair had been carefully planned there was a great var¬ 
iety of o kes, sandwiches, salads, etc*, and "hen suppertime came 
each an was given a card with a number and was told to hunt a 
partner -with a similar number* It was midnight when we finally drove 
home. The man's mother, a sprty little old lady of 70 who had lived 
as a girl or, our plo.ce was there and she had me re fun than anyone 
else- 
I am looking forward to spring and the flowers and I ex¬ 
pect to call on you for help to identify many of the new ones. I 
shall t y to send you some ealypsos, they tell me there are lets 
of them, also a big lady slipper, yellow, which I have never seen. 
Te used to have a big pink me in Nr Hampshire, I remember. m le 
