Anecdotes and Updates 1882-1982 - Virden Centennial ... - Manitobia

mind that there is no difficulty in buying any ordinary tools inCanada at reasonable prices.WOMAN'S HELP NEEDEDThere is an increasing demand for woman's help, and especiallyfor servant girls. The farther west you travel the greaterthe scarcity, and with the demand, the compensation is increased.FARMS A MILE SQUAREThe whole country is divided into blocks, each containingone square mile (640 acres). A block is called a section and isdivided into four quarter sections. This quarter section is the unitfor a single farm. In the West they do not speak of a farm as such,but of a quarter section, or half section, or a section.Some farmers urge that a half section (320 acres) is a bettersize than a quarter section, in that it allows enough land for a manand his family to work, leaving a considerable portion to besummer fallowed. Many work their land year after year withoutsummer fallowing, and find the crops satisfactory. The theory isthat the frost of winter helps to preserve the soil by preventing thenitrates from being leached away.The moment the crop is harvested the plough is turned on, sothat with the earliest April warmth seeding may begin. Nowhereelse does the first fortnight of spring count for so much. Farmerssow when barely an inch or two of ground is sufficiently thawed toallow the seed to be covered, and the hot sun forces on the grainwith great rapidity.11