Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1882-03-17
0ld.Tjmc Farmers.

/ =
Fifty years ago and more the farmers
were simply farmers and nothing else.
| They depended almost wholly on the
| products of their farms for their living
! They raised nearly all the Supplies for
their own tables, and largely for their
clothing, which was manufactured from
| the raw material in their own homes.
Wheat was much more generally grown
| then than now, but not in sufficient
quantities to furnish-bread for the house
hold. Flour was rarely bought by the
barrel, and barley, rye and Indian corn
were extensively used In those earlier
days flour-bread was, with large num-
bers of families, dignifed with the name
of "cake," and considered u luxury for
use on extra occasions, when company
was entertained. A story is still told in
one of our old Rockingham county
towns, which illustrates this fact. A
high-toned gentleman known as the
esquire" called ut u farmhouse one
day on some business, and when he had
finished his errand, and had remounted
at the door, the good housewife, wish
ing to impress the Squire with the dig
nifty and thrift of her family, said to
him: Esquire, won't you stop and
have some flour-bread and butterP"
thinking it now too late for him to ac-
cept her invitation. To her chagrin the
doughty Squire replied: "Thank you,
marm, l don't care if L do;n and
promptly dismounted and entered the
house. The poor woman could only en-
plain that 70 her surprise she found the
tlour-bread all out, and offered him the
best she had-some Indian hammock,
Whena boy the writer has often seen in
the house of u neighbor n string of these
bannocks, eight or ten in number, set
up on tins in front of the fire in the
broad fireplace, there being room then
left in one corner for him 20 sit and
look straight up the chimney into the
blue heavens. There was very little
market for farm produce in those days.
except in the larger towns, and long
journeys had to be made, mostly to such
rs were known as "seaportsh sh--as there
were no interior towns of sufficient pop
ulation to be centers of much trade.
Every farmer kept flock of sheep, and
wool constituted n large proportion of
the clothing of the family. 1t was
carded, spun and woven mt home, and
made into garments for both sexes. The
best clothes for the men and boys were
made of what was called ''fulled cloth"
This was made ut home, of the finest
material, and taken to the mills known
as "fulling mills where it was put
through process of thickening, dyeing
and finishing. The women used to wear
gowns of cloth which was called
spressed woolen.h This was simply
home made flannel, taken to the mills
above named, and pressed, so rs to pre-
sent a glossy surface.
Every farmer had small patch of
flax. This was pulled and spread out in
rows on the ground, "rotted, p" and then
"broken" and swingled," and was
thus prepared for the combing, carding
and the "little wheel,' as the machine
was called on which the flax was spun,
to distinguish it from the larger machine
for spinning wool. 1t was woven into
cloth for table covers, toweling, sheeting
and shirting. The "tow,h which was
the coarse portion combed out on the
hetchel,n was spun into a coarse yarn,
of which cloth was made for summer
suits for the men and boys. The tow
shirt, so commonly worn, was, when
new, an instrument of torture to the
wearer, as it was full of prickling spines
| left from the woody part of the stalk.
The tailor of the old days, with his
goose, travelling from house to house, to
make up the clothes for the men and
boys-or to cut and fit them for the Cos
slipping "tailoress to complete, is not
known to the present generation. The
old-fashioned shoemaker, who used to
perambulate the country round with his
kit, taking the families in turn at their
homes, andworking till the whole house,
hold was shod, is almost forgotten. That,
however, was common thing in the
olden days. The writer calls to mind an
anecdote of one of these ancient cord
wainers, who was as noted for his wit
and the geniality of his disposition as for
the excellent quality of his work. He
used to make shoes for all the leading
families of the town, and his visits were
occasions of much fun and jollity on the
part of the youngsters of the households.
One of these families had black woman
in their service as a slave, and when her
turn came the young people thought they
would have some fun at the shoemaker S
expense, when he should come to meas
ure the 90 long heel" Phillis was called
in and all the boys were there to see the
sport, but the willy old cobbler was equal
to the occasion. He ordered the poor
darkey to thrust her foot into tub. She
obeyed only after stern command and
stamp of his foot, when he told her she
might go. He then measured her wet
track on tho floor, and cheated the jolly
youngsters out OF their fun.-Boston
| journal.