When it was built the weather was
unfavorable for laying cement, and I did not wish to wait for a more
clement season. The house and the fences for the runs cost $2100.
On the 6th of March Thompson called me to one of the temporary pens and
showed me a family of the prettiest new-born animals in the world,--a
fine litter of no less than nine new-farrowed pigs. I felt that the
fourth industry was fairly launched, and that we could now work and
wait.
CHAPTER XXII
THE OLD ORCHARD
March was unusually raw even for that uncooked month. The sun had to
cross the line before it could make much impression on the deep frost.
After the 15th, however, we began to find evidences that things were
stirring below ground. The red and yellow willows took on brighter
colors, the bark of the dogwood assumed a higher tone, and the catkins
and lilac buds began to swell with the pride of new sap.
If our old orchard was to be pruned while dormant, it must be done at
once. Thompson and I spent five days of hard work among the trees,
cutting out all dead limbs, crossing branches, and suckers.
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