When these Japanese people and Mr. Schnell came here, they bought the Graner place, complete with the house and barn and stable and privy. Except the way they do the privy is a sight.
   What they do is put a big wood bucket under the business-end of the privy. Every once in a while a couple of the men will open the trapdoor there on the back and haul the bucket out to the fields and pour the you-know-what on the ground. And then they will dig that stuff into the dirt. I couldn't get over that, but when I told my pa, he said that's exactly what his own pa did in the Old Country.
   It's fertilizer, Pa says. It makes plants grow, just like if it was cow-poop or horse-poop or goat-poop. I mention goats, since we have quite a few and sell their milk down at Gold Hill and in Placerville, too.
   Mr. Schnell brought along with him from Japan what looks like a million little trees. Nine big wagonloads full of stuff. And sacks of seeds. And roots. And tools. And they planted all this stuff, and now everybody is out in the fields hoeing and shoveling and chopping weeds and taking care of the plants every day. And especially irrigating. All these plants need a lot of water, and the canal is already pretty low because of the drought and the placers down at the Gold Hill digs.
    Mr. Schnell isn't out there digging and hoeing himself, except to walk around and give the orders. Everybody pays attention to him and does what he says. I always thought I would become a gunfighter or a grocer when I grow up, but maybe instead I'll become a rich farmer like Mr. Schnell.
   I go to school not far from here, except that it's vacation time now. In fact, you can see the schoolhouse from my place. We have nine students who come from all around here, but maybe more next year. I can read up through Book Five of the reader and I can do my tables up through the twelves, as well as any sum you want to give me. I am teaching Billy Veerkamp his fives, but he doesn't pay enough attention, since it's summer and in summer when you're not doing your chores you can do just about anything you want and you don't have to learn anything.
   (If you'd like to read the opening few pages of the book: CLICK)