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Streeter, John Williams

"The Fat of the Land The Story of an American Farm"

I will send out to-morrow some
Paris green and a couple of blow-guns. There is not much real farm work
to do just now, and you will have time for other things. The first and
most important thing is to dig a cellar to put your house over; your
comfort depends on that. Get the men and horses with plough and scraper
out as early as you can to-morrow morning, and hustle. You have nothing
to do but dig a big hole seven feet deep inside these lines. I count on
you to keep things moving, and I will be out the day after to-morrow."
The mason had finished his estimate, which was $560. After some
explanations, I concluded that it was a fair price, and agreed to it,
provided the work could be done promptly. The carpenter was not ready to
give me figures; he said, however, that he could get a man to move the
house for $120, and that he would send me by mail that night an itemized
estimate of costs, and also one from a plumber. This seemed like doing a
lot of things in one afternoon, so Polly and I started for town content.
"Those people can't be very luxurious out there," said Polly, "but they
can have good food and clean beds.


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