St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1889-03-16
IN DAYS OF LONG AGO.
Quaint Customs OF New England
In Olden Timea
1sfsy Food. Dsshes and Eat
anG savoEes-A Fatal Indian Pud-
aia.-Origin Of the Town Meet
inG-Churches with
out Heat.

The Quaint Customs Of New Eng
land in Olden Times" was the subject
OF a recent address by Rev. Daniel Dor
chester. The speaker said: How gro
tesque and cOmical many of the GUS
toms OF our fathers seem to us, seen in the
light of the present. We forget that
our fathers were in advance of their
fathers. whose customs seemed odd to
them. and that future generations will
entertain themselves in reviewing the
usages in which we pride ourselves
Such is the social evolution. How re-
auctantly does every generation relin-
quish its past We have heard our
fathers 60 back in story to their boy
hood days, contrast the slow-going life
Of that time with the swift whirl of the
present and lament the degeneracy Of
our times Their fathers did the same
If we 60 back to old England. the time
of the old families living in strong cas-
ties, described in history and in the ro-
mances OF Scott, We will find them liv-
ing in course style. Massive edifices,
great halls, lofty ceilings. enormous
freplaces and stone hearths, without
a chimney. the smoke escaping from .
hole in the roof At one end of the hall
was a kennel for hounds, and . perch
for hawks and falcons overhead. In
the same hall were the heavy oaken
table and oaken benches, where the bar
on and his guests ate their venison and
quaffed their ale. No carpets, but mats
and skins in winter, and green rushes
in summer, covered the floor. which
was used for sittings when benches
were wanting. There were no backs
on the benches until the days of Henry
VII 1t was at a later day when guests
first carried their own knives to use at
dinner. to be sharpencd on a milestone
hanging in the dining-hall. and sat
down to pewter plates and pewter
spoons. The host, in carving. held the
joint of meat in his bare hand. and
transferred the slices to the plates of
the guests with his fingers. forks not
yet having come into use as . part Of
table furniture. In 1911 an English
gentleman travelling in Italy made this
entry in his journal: Il observe a GUS
tom not used in any other country =
they use little fork when they cut their
meat" He purchased one and carried
it to England, but when he used it he
was greatly ridiculed by his friends.
That little two-tined article of table
furniture brought about a fierce discus
sion. 1t was regarded as an innovation
unwarranted by the customs of society.
and ministers preached against its use.
When the great and powerful Lord
Howard in the time of Elizabeth Vas q
student at Oxford he had but one shirt
The seamstress who made it received
half a penny for her labor! Later in
life, when LORD Howard was high ad-
miral and in command of all the war
ships of England sailing to destroy the
Armada of Spain, he had but four shirts.
and he paid the seamstress sixpence for
making them. What an insight this
gives US into the condition OF the great
majority of the people Of England in
those years. There was no labor-saving
machinery. and all implements of labor
were OF the rudest and most cumber-
some character. From Barton's table
we learn that the wages Of farm labor
ers at the time the Pilgrims set sail in
the Mayhower were shillings IL 1-2
pence per week-abOut 81 l-2 cents.
The price of turkey at that time was
&l.O8. and a pound Of butter cost Il
cents. To obtain a pound OF butter a
laborer must give the wages OF a day.
Such were the good old times, the
golden age. to which many are every
day referring. and for the return oi
which some are signing. We see Out
of what circumstances the early settlers
of New England came when they sought
nm ASYLUM on oar shores With these
facts before us. we are prepared to ap.
preciate the quaint. curious and simple
customs of the colonial times in New
England. The first dwellings of the
earliest settlers were such as could b<
most easily and conveniently made
LOGS were piled together. and the in
,er,tices filled with moss and clay. 1r
Massachusetts some of the poorer OF thu
,r,t settlers dwelt for awhile in tents
anl booths.
Many makeshifts Of The wildernss'