FOREWORD





We are not tied to a desk or to a bench; we stay there only because
we think we are tied.

In Montana I had a horse, which was hobbled every night to keep him
from wandering; that is, straps joined by a short chain were put
around his forefeet, so that he could only hop. The hobbles were
taken off in the morning, but he would still hop until he saw his
mate trotting off.

This book is intended to show how any one can trot off if he will.

It is not a textbook; there are plenty of good textbooks, which are
referred to herein. Intensive cultivation cannot be comprised in any
one book.

It shows what is needed for a city man or woman to support a family
on the proceeds of a little bit of land; it shows how in truth, as
the old Book prophesied, the earth brings forth abundantly after its
kind to satisfy the desire of every living thing. It is not
necessary to bury oneself in the country, nor, with the new
facilities of transportation, need we, unless we wish to, pay the
extravagant rents and enormous cost of living in the city. A little
bit of land near the town or the city can be rented or bought on
easy terms; and merchandising will bring one to the city often