He was sorry for the moment that he was so large and strong
and was so useful with plow and hoe. Then he might be more readily
excused and could take his rifle and seek the depths of the forest,
where everything grew by nature's aid alone, and man need not work,
unless the spirit moved him to do so.
They planted the space close around the fort in gardens and here after
the ground was "broken up" or plowed, the women and the girls, all tall
and strong, did the work.
The summer was splendid in its promise and prodigal in its favors. The
rains fell just right, and all that the pioneers planted came up in
abundance. The soil, so kind to the wheat, was not less so to the corn
and the gardens. Henry surveyed with pride the field of maize cultivated
by himself, in which the stalks were now almost a foot high, looking in
the distance like a delicate green veil spread over the earth. His
satisfaction was shared by all in Wareville because after this
fulfillment of the earth's promises, they looked forward to continued
seasons of plenty.
When the heavy work of planting and cultivating was over and there was
to be a season of waiting for the harvest, Henry went on the great
expedition to the Mississippi.
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