Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1875-01-15
Experience Of a BrattIcboro Family in


Mr.. Sylvester Il. Grout, who, with his
family, removed from Brattleboro to Kan
sas some three years ago. in late letter
10 friend, wrltos as follows:
do not know what to write unless
give you u little history of myself in the
past year. We had been obliged to live
pretty short the two years before, because
We had no land broke TO raise anything to
sell TO get any groceries, so went without.
At one time we had four or five letters in
the house two or three weeks, waiting for
stamps. Sometimes provision would run
50 low as to be obliged TO eat corn bread
and water gravy. l rather think tho diet
agrees with us, for we have all been pretty
healthy since we have been here, The
second year l broke twenty-five acres of
prairie, making In all nearly forty acres.
In the fall l would have sUwn some fall
wheat, but could not raise the money to
buy the seed. In the spring 1 sowed six
10 seven acres OF spring wheat. The chinch
bugs took II all. planted twenty acres of
corn. The cbinch bugs and grasshoppers
got fully three-fourths of that. got some
over one hundred bushels OF corn, such as
1t was. 1t took nearly two bushels to make
one by weight. The grasshoppers came
when the corn was in the milk, and took
the stalk, ear and all, sometimes. What
was len just withered away. 1t would
keep hog alive, but hard work to fatten
one. had four or five pigs that tried 10
iatten, but found that / was not going TO
have corn enough 10 feed the whole, so
killed three OF them wen they weighed
about forty pounds. Then were not fat
enough 10 fry themselves. 1 made out to
fat one so that 1t weighed about 175 pounds
very passabTe. Planted potatoes enough
to have raised over 100 bushels; had about
% bushels Of Early Rose the late potatoes
have not dug yet. 1 put half an acre into
garden vegetables, such IS cabbages, tur-
nips, tomatoes, squashes, beets, parsnips,
cueumbers, etc. Raised about three bush.
els OF onions from sets. They were ripe
before grasshoppers came. After the grass
hoppers had gone by there were no more
signs Of garden there than so it had not
been planted So you see we have not
much variety from the garden. Sold the
onions toget groceries. A few Early Rose
potatoes In the cellar, but trying TO save
them to plant. 1t was our good luck one
year ago TO SOW three acres of rye. If 1t
had not been for that we should have been
out of provision before this. The first of
January, 1875, found us with 200 pounds of
hour and 800 pounds Of corn meal. We
then should have been obliged to look
some where else for some more. We were
30 much better off than some Of our neigh
bors we thought we were pretty well off.
We have nslghbors not mile Off who have
not had anything TO eat only as their
friends or neighbors have given it to them,
and without hardly any clothing. We are
pretty we'll off for clothing. H and
j sent us barrel 1t came Christmas
day. have eight or niue acres Of fall
wheat sown this fill will come good an
other fall. Perhaps you would like to know
how grasshoppers look when they come.
They look like big snow storm. When
they begin to strike tue house they make
Noise like bail. They just make a corn.
field look black. Some stalks will get so
loaded they will fall over with their bur-
den. They eat the leaves off the peach
trees. Amer the grasshoppers left they
leaved out again and blossomed. Straw
berries did the same thing. One of our
neighbors raised two crops of early pota-
toes from the same ground. He dug the
hrst crop, and happened TO leave some in
the hill; they came up and blossomed ;
raised potatoes as big as turkeys eggs
good TO eat. In one place the tomatoes and
eucuu, bers leaved out the second time,
and raised tomatoes and cucumbers, better
crops than the first. The prasshoppsrs
fooled them they forgot what time of year
II was,