St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1885-11-19


many nights and some days in taking
care of these terribly sick people. One
day | left the sick chamber "a few min
utes and went into the garden east OF
the house to pick handful of ripe
currants, at which time two young
women were also picking currants, and
DIR. Lord came into the garden and re-
proved them for being there, and pick
ing his currants, when they Informed
him that they were gathering the ripe
| fruit to make wine for his own family
use. have referred to the affecting
scenes of that sick family during the
summer of 1915, simply because it
made me acquainted with the facts
about the ripe currants, which could
not have been there in such perfection
and great abundance if that season had
been as bad as represented by some.
The whole of that season was like
other seasons in that country, except
ing those few days in June, as above
described, which was a serious calam-
ity upon the people who had not as
yet recovered from the effects of the
war, which closed a little more than
year before. The effects of that
disaster were more severely felt in the
spring and summer of 1917 than other
times, for then all kinds of provisions
were very scarce and dear, and money
was extremely scarce, and many peO-
pie had no means for obtaining it, and
that state of things grew worse and
worse, until the new crops matured,
for before then, but little grain was
to be had. Josiah Thurston a rich
farmer, living at what is now the
eastern part of the village of Sum
merville, happened to have Il
which he sold in quantities from one
peck to one bushel, at S2.5O per bushel,
and as each were of the same price,
some people chose one kind, and some
the other. James Works of Water
ford bought a large quantity of corn,
at Charlestown No. 4, n. H., which was
conveyed on fiat boats to Newbury and
sold at $3.50 per bushel, and it went
in all directions.
Although provisions were very
scarce, and difficult to obtain, yet no
one starved or seemed to suffer very
much, for the people of those times had
a happy faculty of adapting themselves
to very trying exigencies. Nearly all
the people living i'll Vermont at that
time were the pioneers of that country,
or were their immediate descendants,
and many of them had been revOlu-
tiOnary soldiers, who were still in
their prime, and therefore were well
acquainted with privatiOns and hard
ships incidental to still earlier times,
of which later generations could have
no just conception.
| went to Waterford and bought two
or three bushels of very small, imma-
ture potatoes, at 75 cents per bushel,
which were used with a keen relish.
Beech leaves were boiled and used as
food, and oat meal and rice went into
more general use. Mrs. William
Chamberlin of Peacham, allowed no
warm or new bread to be used in her
house, but kept it until fully ripe. Ma
thaniel Bishop, living about a mile
west of the Plain, went through his
field of barley and picked the ripest
heads, which he shelled by hand and
dried, and brought it to Fairbanks
to be ground; but the miller was gone
as there was little or no grinding to
be done at those times, and therefore |
ground that grist of less than two
quarts of barley, it being the first grist
of new grain for that year.
People of the present times, who
have always been accustomed to the
varied, rich, superabundant and luxu-
rious feasting, may think this is Il very
trivial matter to write about; but to
us it was all full of very significant
meaning, and were part and parcel
of the history of the times, which
taught many valuable lessons. Then
the most exacting and systematic
economy was practiced and the genius
of Yankee continuance was fully illus
trated. That kind of history will
probably never be repeated in this
country. l presume there is more
ready cash in st. JOhnsbury to-day
than in all Vermont in 1916. If the
people of st. Johnsbury were to con-
sumo all their provision at their break
fast tomorrow morning, dispatch
could he sent to Boston and abundant
supplies lin respOnse) would be re-
ceived in time for the next days break
fast. If every kind of provisions were
suddenly exhausted throughout the
whole of New England, the stock could
be replaced by Chicago within a few
hours. HENRY LITTLE.
Kalamazoo, Nov. 9th, 1885.
A SAD REMINDER.
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