The two teams of Percherons were at work six days a week. As soon as the clover was made and drawn to the mows, the big plows were put in to turn over the clover sod. This was raked lightly, rolled, and then the corn was drilled. The early corn was already up and under the second or third cultivation. Everything at Sunnyside was on the rush.
The cattle were on regular pasture. Twelve of the sleekest and oldest were held in the pens for fattening. They would be the first "commercial crop" since Hiram had come to Sunnyside sold off the farm, save a part of the previous year's wheat.
Following the plowing of the clover sod, the areas where oats had been and the cowpeas put in for a soilage crop were turned under, and corn was planted on that land. Hiram was planning for a real corn crop this year, and for the most part he used the seed corn he had raised from that of Daniel Brown. Another corn crib was built at this time to be ready for the expected harvest.
As soon as the corn was planted where the peas were turned under for manure, the regular haying came on. Such hay as there was on Sunnyside had to be harvested in a hurry. It was a thin crop, for it had been seeded to timothy and red top several years before. Hiram decided to plow most of this meadow land for wheat in the fall and seed some of the present wheat- and corn-land for meadow. He turned the cattle into the mowing fields, therefore, as soon as the hay was out of the way.
No further menace had attacked the wheat. The fields of grain on Sunnyside were a beautiful sight—now turning a golden yellow and with the heavy heads nodding to the harvest. Battick's new variety was at least a foot taller than that in any other field on the farm.
The man had watched the special wheat as a mother cares for her new-born babe. Night and day he hung about the edges of the field. He even crept over the patch that had been burned seeking for any of the insects that might not have been destroyed by the fire.
"I think that man must be more than half crazy, as Jim says he is," Sister said to Hiram in commenting upon Battick.
"Why does Jim—and you—think Battick is insane?" Hiram asked her, smiling.
"Why, he makes such a fuss over that new wheat."
"His whole heart is set upon developing this Staff of Life Wheat," the young farm manager said thoughtfully. "And so is mine, Sister."