St. Paul Is Now A Place Of So Much
Mercantile Importance And Competition That One May Buy Provisions,
Furniture, Or Agricultural Tools Cheaper There Than He Can Himself
Bring Them From The East.
The professional man, however, will do well
to bring his books with him.
Let us assume now that the settler has got his house up, either a
frame house or of logs, with a part of his farm fenced; and that be
has filed his application for preemption at the land office in the
district in which he resides. Let us suppose further, that he is
passing his first autumn here. His house, if he is a man of limited
means, has but two rooms, and they are both on the basement story. He
has just shelter enough for his stock, but none for his hay, which is
stacked near by. The probability is, that he lives in the vicinity of
some clear stream or copious spring, and has not, therefore, needed to
dig a well. The whole establishment, one would think, who was
accustomed to the Eastern style of living, betrayed downright poverty.
But let us stop a moment; this is the home of a pioneer. He has been
industrious, and everything about him exhibits forethought. There is a
cornfield all fenced in with tamarack poles. It is paved over with
pumpkins (for pumpkins flourish wonderfully in Minnesota), and
contains twenty acres of ripe corn, which, allowing thirty-five
bushels to an acre, is worth at ninety cents per bushel the sum of
$630. There are three acres of potatoes, of the very best quality,
containing three hundred bushels, which, at fifty cents a bushel, are
worth $150. Here then, off of two crops, he gets $780, and I make a
moderate estimate at that. Next year he will add to this a crop of
oats or wheat. The true pioneer is a model farmer. He lays out his
work two weeks in advance. Every evening finds him further ahead. If
there is a rainy day, he knows what to set himself about. Be lays his
plans in a systematic manner, and carries them into execution with
energy. He is a true pioneer, and therefore he is not an idle man, nor
a loafer, nor a weak addle-headed tippler. Go into his house, and
though you do not see elegance you can yet behold intelligence, and
neatness, and sweet domestic bliss. The life of the pioneer is not
exposed to such hardships and delays as retarded the fortunes of the
settlers in the older states. They had to clear forests; here the land
is ready for the plough. And though "there is society where none
intrude," yet he is not by any means beyond the boundaries of good
neighborhood. In many cases, however, he has left his dearest friends
far away in his native village, where his affections still linger. He
has to endure painful separations, and to forego those many comforts
which spring from frequent meetings under the parental roof, and
frequent converse with the most attractive scones of youth.
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