When we had finished our delicious draught, we took our leave of Mrs. Johnson, agreeing that it was certainly a good thing for her that her husband followed my father’s advice about his allotment of land, as she seemed so happy among her cows that it was difficult to imagine how she would have lived without one.
Chapter VIII.
SMALL FARMING.
“See the results of the judicious application of capital,” said my father, one fine spring day, when I rode with him and Mr. Malton round the thriving property of the latter. After enjoying the view of the manifold tokens of prosperity which surrounded us, we were struck by the appearance of a field which looked by far less flourishing than any we had seen.
“What is the matter here, sir?” said my father. “What have you been doing to keep back this field while all the rest have been improving?”
“Pray do not take this field for one of mine. It belongs to neighbour Norton; and I am afraid that, cheap as he has bought it, he will find it a dear bargain.”
“I feared,” said my father, “that he would not have sufficient capital to keep his land in good condition.”
“Look here,” said Mr. Malton, “this next field is his too, and there he is among the labourers. You may know him now, poor fellow, by his shabby looks. Those labourers are mine, and they appear more creditable, every one, than he. And there is not one of them that does not live in a better house than that of his. That is his cottage yonder. What a tumble-down place for a landed proprietor to live in! Better call one’s-self a labourer, in my opinion, and have plenty to eat, and a whole roof over one’s head, than pinch and starve for the sake of owning a couple of fields.”
“Yes, indeed. But how does it happen that your labourers are at work in his field?”
“Why, you see the thing is this. He cannot afford a team to plough his field, and he has not sheep to eat off the crop of turnips, (if he had one,) and to manure it; so he meant to let the land be fallow. I thought this a great pity, so I offered to plough and sow it, if my sheep were allowed to eat off the turnips; by this plan he will have his land manured, and returned to him in a good state, while I shall have an equal advantage on account of my sheep.”