to be made, consisted of a hundred and sixty acres of land, all in
forest. A great deal of the land was mountainous and rocky, fit only
for woodland and pasturage. There were, however, a great many fertile
vales and dells, and at one place along the bank of a stream, there
was a broad tract which Albert thought would make, when the trees
were felled and it was brought into grass, a "beautiful piece of
intervale."

Albert commenced his operations by felling several acres of trees, on
a part of his lot which was nearest the corner. A road, which had been
laid out through the woods, led across his land near this place. The
trees and bushes had been cut away so as to open a space wide enough
for a sled road in winter. In summer there was nothing but a wild
path, winding among rocks, stumps, trunks of fallen trees, and other
forest obstructions. A person on foot could get along very well, and
even a horse with a rider upon his back, but there was no chance for
any thing on wheels. Albert said that it would not be possible to get
even a wheelbarrow in.

Albert, however, took great pleasure in going back and forth over this
road, morning and evening, with his axe upon his shoulder, and a pack
upon his back containing his dinner, while felling his trees. When
they were all down, he left them for some weeks drying in the sun, and
then set them on fire. He chose for the burning, the afternoon of a
hot and sultry day, when a fresh breeze was blowing from the west,
which he knew would fan the flames and increase the conflagration. It
was important to do this, as the amount of subsequent labor which he
would have to perform, would depend upon how completely the trees were
consumed. His fire succeeded beyond his most sanguine expectations,
and the next day he brought Mary Erskine in to see what a "splendid