In the centre of a basin a column of water rose regularly with the even
flow and volume of a brook. "It is one of the largest in the State,"
said the major, "and is the life of all that grows here during six
months of the year."
Pleased as the young girl was with those evidences of the prosperity and
position of her host, she was struck, however, with the fact that the
farm-laborers, wine-growers, nurserymen, and all field hands scattered
on the vast estate were apparently of the same independent, unpastoral,
and unprofessional character as the men of the wheat-field. There were
no cottages or farm buildings that she could see, nor any apparent
connection between the household and the estate; far from suggesting
tenantry or retainers, the men who were working in the fields glanced
at them as they passed with the indifference of strangers, or replied to
the major's greetings or questionings with perfect equality of manner,
or even businesslike reserve and caution. Her host explained that the
ranch was worked by a company "on shares;" that those laborers were, in
fact, the bulk of the company; and that he, the major, only furnished
the land, the seed, and the implements.
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