Rich Enough | Page 3

all we can by our own labors, and trusting to Heaven for a blessing on our endeavors! A reflecting farmer must be a wise man."
"I am afraid," said Howard, "there are not many wise men amongst us, according to your estimation. In all employments we find hurry and engrossment; we do not stop to reason and meditate; many good agricultural men are as destitute of moral reflection as the soil they cultivate."
"At least," said Mrs. Draper, "they have not the same temptation to become absorbed by business as merchants."
"I believe we shall find human nature much the same in all situations," said Howard. "There is one great advantage, however, in farming--that is, its comparative security:--we are satisfied with moderate gains; we have none of those tremendous anxieties that come with sudden failures, the fall of stocks, and obstructed currency."
"And this is every thing," said Mrs. Draper, with enthusiasm. "Nobody knows better than I do, how a noble and cultivated mind may be subjugated by the feverish pursuit of wealth--how little time can be spared to the tranquil pleasures of domestic life, to the home of early affection--" She stopped, and seemed embarrassed.--Howard's color rose high; there was a pause. At length he said,
"Every situation has its trials; those who best support them are the happiest. But we are growing serious. I want to see your children--how they compare with mine in health and size, and whether we can build any theory in favor of a country life in this respect."
The children were brought; they were both girls. The eldest was the picture of health, but the youngest seemed to have inherited something of the delicacy of her mother's constitution.
"I can scarcely show one amongst my boys," said Howard, "that gives evidence of more ruddy health than your eldest girl, Frances; but my wife's little namesake, Charlotte, looks more like a city-bred lady.--O, here comes my brother James."
Mr. Draper entered. A close observer would have been struck with the difference of expression in the countenances of the two brothers, although they were marked by a strong resemblance. That of the eldest was eager and flushed; the brightness of his eye was not dimmed, but it was unsettled and flashing; there were many lines of care and anxiety, and his whole air marked him as a business man. Howard's exterior was calm, and thoughtful;--the very hue of his sun-burnt complexion seemed to speak of the healthy influence of an out-of-door atmosphere. They were both men of education and talent; but circumstances early in life rendered them for a time less united. Both had fixed their affections on the gentle being before them. James was the successful suitor. There are often wonderful proofs of St. Pierre's proposition that 'harmony proceeds from contrast.' Frances and Howard had much the same tastes and pursuits. Howard's attachment was deep and silent; James's, ardent and zealously expressed;--he won the prize. Howard's taste led him to a country life. He was not rich enough to become a gentleman farmer; he therefore became a working one. For years, he did not visit his brother; but at length the wound was entirely healed by another of the fair creatures whom Heaven has destined to become the happiness or misery of man. Still the theory of contrast was carried through; his second love was unlike his first; she was full of gayety and life, and gave to his mind an active impulse, which it often wanted. Frances, in the midst of society, drew her most congenial pleasures from books. Charlotte, the wife of Howard, though in comparative solitude, drew her enjoyment from society. There was not a family in the village near, that did not, in some way or other, promote her happiness. Her information was gathered from intercourse with living beings--her knowledge from real life. If the two sisters had changed situations, the one might have become a mere bookworm; the other, from the liveliness of her disposition, and the warm interest she took in characters, a little of a gossip. As it was, they both admirably filled their sphere in life, and influenced and were influenced by the characters of their partners.
"Why did you not persuade Charlotte to come with you?" said Mrs. Draper. "Sisters ought to be better acquainted than we are."
"I invited her," said Howard, "but she laughed at my proposing that a farmer and his wife should leave the country at the same time. I have brought, however, a proposal from her, that you should transport yourself and children back with me; we have room enough in our barn-like house for any of your attendants that you wish to bring."
For a moment Mrs. Draper seemed disposed to accept the invitation; but she immediately added,--"I do not like to take my children from their schools."
"That is just