When I
went into Mr. Heywood's store, he had one hogshead of New England rum.
That was sold, and there the business ended. As a general rule, the
farmers used rum daily during the summer season, and drank freely of
cider during the winter. On my father's farm, rum toddy was drunk
three times a day during the haying season, which lasted from the 4th
of July to the 1st of August, or a little later. There was no general
use of liquors at any other season.
At old election*--the last Wednesday in May--at Thanksgiving, the 4th
of July, and when my grandfather visited us--which seems now not to
have been more than three or four times a year--a pitcher of West
India rum toddy was made, seasoned with nutmeg and toasted crackers.
The poverty of farmers with respect of tools, made it almost impossible
for farmers to prosper, except by cattle-raising and the cultivation of
small grains. Farming is now an art, and the slavery of farm labor has
in a degree disappeared. Formerly the business of farming was limited
by the home product of manure, but the manufacture of phosphates has
enabled the farmer to enlarge his operations in every direction that
promises a return.
The railway system had driven the eastern farmer from the cultivation
of wheat and corn, as it is not possible for him to compete with the
new and fertile lands of the West.
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