just as well never have
been written. There is an absolutely fixed law of nature that denies
to man anything that he does not receive from some kind of labor,
except to such as live by favor and robbery, and not by work. There
are many examples of those who are said to 'live by their wits,' but
the problem as to how it is done may never be solved. Nor does it
need to be solved, as no man should justly expect to enjoy anything
which has not been procured by his own labor. Those who most
appreciated the comforts of life are those who create them for
themselves. In knowing how what we have is obtained, lies its chief
value to us. Men naturally take pride in the possession of a
treasure in proportion to the trouble involved in securing it.
Whoever would thrive in his farming must bend his whole will and
purpose to it. Nothing which can be done to-day should be put off
till to-morrow. To-morrow may never come, and should it come, may
not changed conditions and difficulties render set tasks impossible?
Under some circumstances men trust to fortune, without serious
errors, in postponing the execution of appointed tasks. The maxim
that 'procrastination is the thief of time' points a moral implied
in itself, and is unquestionably true in a majority of instances.
Men of business are often careful in some matters, to the neglect of
others more important. Different men have different methods of
business, which, considering differences of constitution and manner
of application, is only natural; not dangerous, but rather
beneficial. No two men go to work in the same way, notwithstanding
they may have both learned of the same teacher, or been instructed
upon the same principle. The greater trouble lies in improper
application and inattention to details. Trifles make up the sum of
life, as cents make dollars. An overanxious man, he who makes great
haste to be rich, seldom prospers long in any undertaking.
Possibilities, not probabilities, should be the guide. A sanguine
disposition may or may not be useful in business. Disappointment
often follows sanguine hopes. A good business man calculates
closely; does not allow anticipation to run away with his judgment,
nor imagine that any good result can follow a false move.

"For these reasons, the farmer needs to think and to reason more; to
attend more strictly to business rules and methods, and to exercise
a greater courage and persistency in applying them. 'Work while it
is day,' says