News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1891-10-15
The OIden Times.
sEyENTY-FIvE OR EIGHTY YEARS AGO.
Bv Aunt Susie Lampson.

By Aunt Susie Lampson.
EAST CAMBRIDGE, VT, Oct. 6, '91.
Pm goin' to tell the young folks what they
used to do when ! was gal. They didn't hey
mowin' machines, thrashin' machines, boss
rakes and machines to saw wood with as now.
Instead they had sithes to NOW the grass.
and it was a pleasant site to see three or four
men a-mowin' and one or two boys a-spread-
i'm the hay so it would dry. Then it was
raked ND by hand to get it into the barn, and
when the corn was in the milk, or, beginnin'
to harden they cut the top stalks and bound
them in bundles stocking them up in the field
to dry or cure so the corn would ripen, then
the ears was picked off and carried to the
barn and piled up on the floor ready to be
husked Then there was fax to pull. for
farmers raised fax in them days. When
pulled it was spread out to rot When rot
ted it was ready to take up and bind into
bundles, carry to the barn, there to lay till it
was time to brake and swingle it. After that
it was hatcheled and then the farmers wives
carded the tow into rolls with small hand
cards. for eve ry one, or most every one, had
a loom and big and little spinHin' wheel ;
the little one havin' a distaff to wind the flax
on so it could be spun very fine; it was turn
ed with the feet. perhaps the boys and girls
of these days never saw one.)
The big wheel was made to spin the
rolls and went by hand. The flax and
tow was all spun into yarn and wove into
cloth by the women to make their clothes.
The men wore linen and tow shirts and trou-
sprs and long frock for their summer wear.
The women wore linen gowns and checkered
linen aprons for every day, and both had
linen pocket handkerchiefs, checked; all spun
and wove by the women folks. The gals in
them days was ready to help do the house
work; not much time to play crokey, as they
had none as they donow; but the young folks
took as much comfort as they do now. and |
guess more. Why bless you, they took lots
O. comfort They had huskin' bees apple
parin' bees, SEWN bees, quiltin' bees, and in
the winter singin' schools, spelin schools and
debatin schools. They had large schools in
them days; most every farmer had a large
family of children, boys and gals, so had large
schools. School houses was very different
from now. They were large with large fire
places, no stoves in them days. and the
benches went around the school room with
writin' desks in front and benches in front OF
them and room enough to go out and in and
stand up, too, not hev to crowd in side ways
as in some school houses now. The school
houses were built of logs, too, but warm
Then they had jolly times goin' to the next
deestrict to spellin' school. The boys would
yoke up the oxen, for they didn't hev horses
and kerriges as they do now, and hitch on to
the sled and make box as big as they could
on the sled and as many scholars as could get
on the sled would go to the spelin' school,
choose sides and spell down 1t was injoy,
able, and we took comfort, lots o. comfort
But the young folks had to work in them
days; had to work to help as soon as they
were old enough to help any. Farmers didn I
hev machines to cut their grain with in them
days as they hev now, they had sickles and
cradles to cut wheat, rye and oats, and when
cut and ready was bound in bundles and
stocked up in the field to stand a few DAYS
then carried to the barn and packed away
till thrashin' time. They had fails to thrash
with then, made of two long hard wood sticks
fastened together with leather strings, to
strike with. Two men would thrash a good
many bushels in day. They would lay down
a barn floor full of the grain, unbind the
bundles and thrash it out clean with the
fails then bind up the straw in bundles and
pack it away for use, then fan up the grain and
putt in bins ready for market. Why they had
to pay store debts with grainl The first OF
January was the market day The fannin'
mills they had to clean the grain turned with
a crank by hand. Money was scarce and men
that bought farms and couldn't pay down
had yearly payments in cattle, so many head
in October was the pay days, when they were
priced. When they were clearing the land
they cut down trees, cut them into logs and
rolled them up into heaps to burn to get the
ashes which were carried to the potash house
to be leached to get the I've, boilin' it in a
great potash kittle, as they called it. to make
potash. The potash was carried to market
and sold for the money. Some made cole
pits and burnt cole for market. l presume
the boys and gals of these days never heard
of cole-pit Perhaps their grandfathers and
grandmothers can tell them about them if
they were old enough to remember about such
work. 1t was hard work, had to tend to
them day and night. They had little ca bin
built close to the pits so they could rest, they
were very warm all covered with sods some,
times it would take them one or two weeks to
burD tho cole and thew annlH laoua
1T was done. Then the cole was hauled out
and took to market and sold for money
Folks didn't hev so easy times gettin' money
as they do now and yet they took comfort.
lots o. comfort, | guess as much and more
than they do now. When it come sleddin'
they had to get up their wood-pile for the
year with the OK team and then had to chop
and split the wood, but not as small as now,
for as there were no stoves but large fire
places in the houses for most all the houses in
northern Vermont were log and block houses.
though a few were frame hous s. but all had
large fire. Iadcce with oven to blfKe III. and
when they split the wood the oven-wood had
to be very fine and about four feet long and
pile it up to dry for the year for the women
to do their bakin' with. The other wood was
not very fine, to burn in the great Dutch back
chimneys, as they were called They would
roll in the great backlog into the fireplace
and had andirons to hold thefore-stick filling
in between with smaller sticks and logs which
would make a blazing hot fire, warmingup the
whole house. They had long crane hung to
one side of the fireplace over the fire with
hooks on it for the kettles to boil their yege-
tables and meat if they wished. The crane
swung out and in so was very handy Then
they had an iron spider with legs to set over
the Goals with a long handle to it, it had an
IRON cover to put Goals on so you could bake
cake, meat or anything in that. They also
had tin baker to set in front of the fire to
bake bread or cake if they wished, but most
all the bakin' was done in the big oven once a
week. When Thanksgivin' came they would
meet together, fathers and mothers, grand
fathers and grandmothers children and
whole h ouse full, to hey a
happy time with all the good things, roast
turkey or spare-rib which was hung up
Dy string in front of the fire with a drippin'
pan underneath to catch the rich drippins'
some one settin' by it to turn it till done,
very little while bastin' it with the dripping
o give it flavor. Some of the boys or gals
would do this and injoyed it too, and YOU
would hear their merry laughter as they took
urns at this work. They would have chicken
ne, baked Indian puddin', sweet cake, nut
axes, (called doughnuts now. almost as
arge as your wrist; one was most a meal, and
UGH nut cakes, wish you could have some of
hem now; then they had pumpkin, apple and
ustard pies and ginger bread. The pies |
nddins, bread and cakes we're baked in the
vens. o, them were happy timesl Then |
anne Christmas, when the boys and gals were
ookin' for presents. Instead of Christmas |
rees as now they hung up their stockin's in |
be chimney corner. 1t was q merry time |
hen they took down the stockin's Christmas
forming filed with presents and some on the |
Inside. They were all very happy with their
bouts of laughter and MERRY Christmas
D all, old and youngl Then New Years with
S happy greetin's of Happy New Yearl''
ow boys and gals don't you think they
ook comfort in them days, as well as now?
ut this letter is long, so | will close and tell
on more next time.