Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-01-31
OUT ON THE PRAIRIE.

OUTON THE PRAIRIE.
The Experience ofG st. Paul WIDOW Who
+ With Three Small CAildres. is Making a
Farm Home.
The following letter to the GLOBE is written
by widow lady who formerly resided in St.
Paul, but who. finding her means insufficient to
rear her family in the city, sought farm on
the prairie.
70 the Editor of the Globe.
STEVENS County, Mimi. Jan. Is, 1871 have
| thought that it might be of interest to some
| of your readers to take peep into the home of
| new frontier settler. So they, while sitting
around their bright, comfortable coal fires, in
homes that scarcely a breath of the bitter
north wind is allowed to enter, may imagine
low unfinished house l4x30, with basement
beneath, or as the boys call it, "a dug OUT
yet it is not properly Of that sort, but we do
have them out here, and people living in them
too. But more of that, subsequently. At
present we will contine ourselves to our oapn
home, for we can tell you more about that than
| any other. Being on more intimate relations
wit its inmates, have therefore, a better knowl-
| edge of the general management of affairs in
side. In the first place, house is built
simply Of grooved siding, with shingled roof,
! which for summer living was quite comfort
| able. But as fall approached with its
| piercing, chilling south winds, we were re-
minded that soon from the north would come
a breath that would chill the very blood in
| our veins, and that preparations must be made
| for his coming Therefore, did we set our
selves at work-am speaking for the boys now
to make ourselves as comfortable for the win
| ter as possible. Then was basement kitchen,
and cellar begun, thinking that down in the hole
| we could stow away and SO fortify ourselves
| against any sort of weather.
| So when digging was completed, to the near
est town we went, to purchased material for
was to be had, that or none, that had to be
taken, and the kitchen went up, or rather down,
underground you know. All went we'll for q
WHILE for the ice-king, 10th to shackle us with
his glttering chain, withheld his icy letters for
many weeks deluding us, with the thought
that we were to be spared the many discomforts
incident to a winter on the prairie.
| But at last he came, preceding Kriss Kringle
| by several days, and to us it seemed, bringing
the frosts of several city winters, all bundled
together, for the walls of our sleeping room,
which before had only g'istened with icy cry
boy of ten years, said on going up to bed with
him, ON the night Of Jan. 2, Mother, it is
! Just like sleeping out doors only that the wind
| does not blow u.s." It did seem on that
| night that the temperature might be that of
the north frigid zone, it thirty-cight degrees
L
at pisht which are made to fall we'll FOYER the
forehead, as sure protection against cold were,
| on the following morning, pendant with
icicles-to say nothing of the condition of
! flannel sheets and comfortables, which during
the night had come in contact with our breaths
but then those have to be dried every morning
around the fire, even when it is no colder than
at the present writing, the thermometer sixteen
belO% zero in the morning and bright beauti-
full day following. Now about this time, the
! boards of which our kitchen had been built had
become SO warped that it became necessary to
beg in the work of stufiing with rags all the
seams in the boards, or we would not be likely
to keep warm even in our underground house,
for were there ever such winds as those of the
prairie, penetrating every nook crevice and
flaw in the boards, and the nail heads, and even
pannels of the doors, white with FROST We
are never without decorations on our walls, ex-
cepting when the winds are in the south, then
} we have "dissolving views"
The south winds are the hardest we have here.
though of course not the coolest, yet they are
cold enough in winter. cord of wood must
be brought to the door every month, just to
keep the kitchen fire going.
| With a kitchen lHxl3, as large as any woman
wants to keep clean, land what woman does not
want a clean kitchen) and furniture consisting
of stove, seven chairs, table, closet for dishes
etc., sewing machine-and last though not
least-a small mirror, for that YOU know is an
important piece Of furniture, in estimation of
woman. Also q comfortable carpet to cover
the floor. Then there's the cellar ad Joining the
kitchen, being indispensable q convenient
place for storage etc., and am glad to say con-
tains variety OF vegetables, sufficient to carry
US through the winter, though not of our own
planting, for you will remember that we are a
new frontier settler.
Now as have opened the doors of nv prairie
home, that you might get q view of the interior,
I will show you the exterior of some of the
rs, ,rp1,h
what is called the dug out, occupied by a young
couple, who not very long ago, started together
on their journey of life 1t is a cellar without
boards even at the sides, only brown paper to
keep away the dampness. The roof is of boards
with dirt thrown on the top, taking the place
Of shingles. Another family with means
limited like the rest Of Us, have house so low
and unfinished that in the extreme heat of
summer it is almost intolerable. For winter
comfort, it is sodded at the sides and ends to
the very roof.
+ Now you may ask, is there not bright side
to your picture or is it all dark as You have
painted it. Well, if there is brighter side, it
must be the sunny side," that of the spring
time, the days when the birds are back to
us, from their winter homes. Or when the
work of seeding and gardening is in operation
| Having come too late to experience that part Of
farm life scarcely do it ;the Justice it de-
serves. But surely, after: being imprisoned in
Toe and snow, may almost say one-half the
year, what can be more cheering than the
bright sunny spring days, with the chirping
and song Of the birds, for it we have no
trees out here they say we do have birds innum-
cradle. When Tennyson said: ''In spring a
young mans fancy lightly turns to thoughts
of love- it must be he meant the love of nature.
| for when is mature as lovely as in spring time
| Then why may not woman s thoughts turn in
! that direction we'll. But am DEPRESSING
My own Introduction into this, to me, very new
life, was the most unfavored time of the year the
month of July, when musquitos were the thick
est, aeas the sprightriest The first night of nv
arrival it seemed to me those blood thirsty in
sects had not had where-with to satisfy their
appetites for whole month, so ravenous were
they-and yet enticingly sweet were their
songs, that it was o'clock the following morn
ing before closed my eyes to Sleep will only
say about the flea, was only too glad to fee
away to my own home, beside which, there is
| no lake, the sands of which they say are full of
them. But to me it seems more probable that
those animals that frequent their waters are
the fullest, and 40 bring them to our homes, to
80 torture US poor mortals, that we cannot sleep.
l am sure. if had to live six months beside
lake, at the expiration of that time would be
ready for 81. Peter, for who can retain her
| senses, that cannot sleep?
JENNA
l. TTEE 0N TIJE