Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1890-02-14
OLD-TINIE FARM FUN
Lament of the Pioneer That Old-Time
Customs Are Passing Away.
INDIANAPOLIS News

It is the lament Of the pioneer farmers
that country life isn't what it used to be.
In chorus they ask: What has become
of the spelling bees. the corn huskings the
log rollngs the outings, the apple-paring
and all the other gatherings that once
made country life in Indiana the happiest
on earth :"
One by one the customs of our early
life in Indiana have been abandoned. -
said an old farmer to a News reporter,
until country life has lost all Its charms.
No wonder the young men and women of
the country are constantly drifting to the
cities, and strange it Is that more of the
mlddle-aged people in the country are not
discontented The trouble Is the people
of the country have, in late years, become
possessed of false pride, which prevents
them from lndulging in the Publications
that gave health. happiness and noble
characters to their fathers. | shall argue
as long as | live that country life will
never ba what it should be until we get
back to the spellin school, the corn husk-
ms. the cuttings and the apple-parings.
The log rolhn' days, of course, are past,
never to return again.
How | wish the young folks of to
day could only have taste of the enjoy
ment we got out of those old-time gather
ms. I'll warrant they would be as willin'
to get back into the old path as | am
anxious to see them there. Lord. but
what times we used TO have continued
the old gentleman, his face lighting up
as the visions of bygone scenes passed be
fore his mind Those corn-huskin' s!
What times OF love maxim! Young and
old could hardly wait until the season for
them came around and think everybody
weeped in private when the corn was all
husked. None of your little cliques in
society controlled those gatherin 5.
Everybody was on an equality then and
no one IN the neighborhOod was sighted
when there was to be huskin'.
"As soon as the corn was ready tc
harvest there was a race in the neighbor,
hood to see who would get his crop 'jirk,
ed first and consequently open the husl1in
season. Whenever a man got his barn
full he fixed his day for the gatherin' and
the word was passed around over the
neighborhood. Men, women and children
all attended, and the labor of husllin' the
corn was always forgotten in the froIic
Often have | seen a hundred men and
women, of all ages. husk all night. and
never one of them complain of being
tired. How the boys and young men
would hustle the shinin grain. looking
for a red ear. 1t was st,.4Idin' custom
that whenever a young man found a
yellow ear of corn he should have a kiss
from the girl seated nearest to him. and
the girl who found the most red ears was
to be married first, and to the young man
who sat nearest her. To make the sport
lively we would mix just few grains Of
red corn with the seed corn, 50 as to have
only a few hundred ears of that color in
the whole crop. When the crowd was
large a fellow was lucky if he got many
kisses and luclier still if some good girl
perhaps just the one he hoped forgot
the largest number of red ears and sat
nearest him. What a sight it would be tc
see a young fellow find an ear which entitI-
ed him to kiss some bashful girl. Girl-like
she would jump and run as soon as she
saw what was coming, and then began
the chase, up and over and around the
barn-yard, until she was caught. generally
in some secluded corner, where the fellow
could steal half-dozen kisses instead Of
one. -