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Oscar spoke up soles to the oes wrong, it's the men that are held responsible"

"Yes, of course," Lou broke in "Everybody knows that Oscar andand we've neveryou should hold the land and have the good of it, but you got no right to part with any of it We worked in the fields to pay for the first land you bought, and whatever's coot to be kept in the family"

Oscar reinforced his brother, his mind fixed on the one point he could see "The property of a fas to the men of the family, because they are held responsible, and because they do the work"

Alexandra looked fronation She had been iry "And what about my work?" she asked in an unsteady voice

Lou looked at the carpet "Oh, now, Alexandra, you always took it pretty easy! Of course anted you to You liked to e round, and ays hureat deal of help to us There's no woman anywhere around that knows as much about business as you do, and we've always been proud of that, and thought you were pretty smart But, of course, the real work always fell on us Good advice is all right, but it don't get the weeds out of the corn"

"Maybe not, but it sometimes puts in the crop, and it sorow in," said Alexandra dryly "Why, Lou, I can remember when you and Oscar wanted to sell this homestead and all the improvements to old preacher Ericson for two thousand dollars If I'd consented, you'd have gone down to the river and scraped along on poor farms for the rest of your lives When I put in our first field of alfalfa you both opposedtaken in then, and all the neighbors said so You knoell as I do that alfalfa has been the salvation of this country You all laughed at me when I said our land here was about ready for wheat, and I had to raise three big wheat crops before the neighbors quit putting all their land in corn Why, I re wheat-planting, and said everybody was laughing at us"