The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-04-29
HAD BACKWQ0DS COOKING.
BOASTS ~ TBE PHILIPPINE ~ nA"h
coon ~ PENNsYLVANfA'
New York soldier Visits a'Comrades nome !"
the Pennsyivaula Mountains ana Learns
Something of the Satisfactory "ou' "
Iife There The COOKING WAS "o"o'

at was on the firing line Just out OF Manila
aid , r.,,rned New York soldier. now con-
vale ,ccn, that frs, me, n PENNSYLVANIA
men olso , priyete. Between skIrmlshes
and while eating soldiers rations. my iriend
would frequently refer to IN" good nome no
Ind ler, in the PENNSYLVANIA backwoods and
the fine country cooking OF his dear old mother
He made nm. tired OF his talk about b~nckwoods
cooking and [ told him so. Then he said that
II we ever got back to the States, and that II |
cared TO visit him. he'd be glnd to prove all
TINT he had said was true. My friend was very
Swing and very slick. lie sent every dollar
OF his nav to his mother and was slick enough
10 win all the spending money he needed from
the boys who played skin-euchre. Well we
reached Frisco all safe. together. l let my
friend in Harrisburg and came on 10 New iork,
After reciperating | wrote 10 my friend
in the Pennsylvania mountains and he promptly
invited me 10 spend Easter week with him NJ
his home. | went, and after a long Journey by
rail. stage and wagon. ] reac'iei thu double
log house Of my friends parents. IL was in a
romantic glen In the South Mountain. Several
fine streams came down from the rocks. The
air was pure and cool, Hello Jimmie, was
the reception l got from my friend when
reached the house. Why didn't you let me
know when you'd get here. Id have met You
at the station He came out from the garden
where he had been planting stick onions and
we shook hands, l told him | wanted TO sur
prise him. His little gray-ila!red mother came
out smartly with q smile and shook hands.
I don't think any woman in the world ever
had n kinder smile for a stranger. She said
she was glad I had rome al Bob had mentioned
my name 80 often. | washed my face and
hands in n tin basin on n bench back or the house.
and we sat down for q bit. Then Bob's older
sister Emma came in from the bake-oven.
II was Friday and bake day. She was a mat
ter-ot-fact, easy going plain spoken girl. Dads
down TO the mill. said Jimmie, as he finished
washing the garden dirt from bis hands.
We chatted a while. looked at the rich soil
in the garden; Mt the radish beds salad patches,
onion rows. currant bushes patches of rhn-
barb: several rows Of herbs. and a few hot
beds with tomato and cabbage plants Just
sproutine. Then we walked out 10 a mall
bridge over a stream OF pure water when Jim
ME said. That's the kind OF water | meant
cut at Manila Water cross was growing
in the eddies. Suddenly Jimmie turned md
pointing upward said See that thieving spar
row hawke lie had no sooner said that when
bang went a gun from behind the house and
down came the hawk. Jimmie said That WAS
was Em.' Sure enough his sister had shot
the bird. We sat dow on the moss-covered
rocks below the bridge and talked, The
air was balmy and cool and the robins
were piping. | noticed some snipc down IN
the meadow Just mp from the South. and finally
| said: Well. Bob your Philippine trip was a
variety in life, wasn't itY' lie said yes; that
he had been glad 10 get away, and glad 20 get
back homo. whore he had lived twenty-five
years. He said he'd never 60 away again.
The time passed quickly.
Bob looked at the sun and said he thought
dinner was ready. We started for tho house
and soon heard a bell ring, That's dad,
said Bob. indicating a man who had inst put
away u pair OF horses at the barn. He was
a well-built. ,black-n hiskered man, about %,
Strangers every day OF his lie, We were
soon at the table In a large kitChen with an
open fireplace at the other end Even The
smoke from the hickory Goals was "a appc-
tizer. or course, ] was hungry. The Lack
woods head OF the house said grace, aud Miss
Emma waited on the. table. They had a big
plate of chicken hrOiled ON the Goals, plenty
OF short cake, as ligh, as a leather cr.amrd
mashed potatoes; several plates OF crisp, green
water cross Just out OF the spring; elbow DGi-
Of the mountain grasses and herbs the cows
had eaten, They had rale green pickles, but
rs / alterward learned. they wtrr, solid and
good A ilsl OF DNiIi'l lFC DtsllN, lhsit NllAF'i,
With butter gravy completed tine r"getaGiss.
There was some rye bread a week old. The
new bread was too fresh 10 cut.
nor I never once referred 10 the r%a;Gns We
ate in the trenches outside Of Mania. They
talked about nay inmilH, my home. the great
CITY came IRON; wages. modes ol ~ &C.,
and the coffee and creatl topped on a good
meal. The dishes and cloth were clean. |
told Bob's mother 10 excuse mo II ! had eaten
TO-, ,,,,,I al har GOOD dinnnT MO lAlnnph
about the bridge, smoking ior an hour when
Bob said he'd finish up in the Garden. ] took
lessons in onion plantins linen We TOOK
md In two hours We had shot eleven sn,Js.
We walked back 10 q ciun,I Of stumps az q
woods, sat down on 4 loe; picked me .,rdt and
ut tho cr,rk and took them To the house:
They'll put EN- in a kettle in ihr, spring.
like birds cold before they re cooked.
lag work; led the horses. We hunted eggs. and
the afternoon was well sIcni. Hobs iather
had been doing some ploughing for corn plant;
out ten acre, Of ine rye 10 sell 10 an old dis
tiller,. IN all they had iiity acres OF lIN-
side land. Well, sir. those BIRDS came un the
table broiled on hickory GOALS. They had toast
wheat bread and tea, After ! had finished
two Of the snipe | tell like a Dclmoulcu man.
| don't think ever enl"le 4 u twilight like that;
o. course We smoked on the irOut porch. ind
Bob's father explained al about charcoal burn
ing in that n-ighborhoud Bob went into The
house and pretty soUu came out Handing
me en- Instrument he said: You always spoke
about banjo play ne in the trenches. Give us
atune, now. Well, pla, cd some and pleased
them. ! complimented, Emma on her fine
shot. They explained that her beau, a great
marksman, had given her lessons Tor q wear.
Bob aud slept IN he attic under the shingles,
in two single beds, My bed siucIlcd sweet and
clcaa. Tint night it %rained. Well, sir. talk
about music. That rain on the roo! trat he
banjo. When | awoke next morning l looked
around AT me things stored in me. aiuc,
saw an old-faskioned cradle, Bob's cradle
hanging 10 the ~raiters, carpet raHs In boils, seed
corn on the cob, bags Of other seeds. n big hoard
full Of home-nade soap, n pile OF red onions
and BOb's soldier clothes on a nail. Well.
sir. | enjoyed IL better than n show. For break
fast we bad eggs and broiled bacon, rye broad
and buttor, coriee andcrcar. with spring onions
AZ a side dish. For an appetizer, locks WIN
me every time,
Bob said he wasn't going to work
rods from the wall and of We went
fishing for trout In one Of the mountain ~sl.rtngs,
Fly fishing was a revelation TO me. but ! got
tired calling for fisb, more so than living IN
the trenches, But i was rare sort We
running cold water, Fresh trout must br cold;
II not. They curl up in the pan. We had a boi Il
dinner that day. They said It was a peEnsyi-
vania dish made with sweet apple 'sn.tH ana
We'll. sir, II was great. Then they he'd u fresh
rhubarb pie. | ate a half one, The coffee
and cream was simply out Of sight. We SCENT
two hours that afternoon fishing Tor Trout
went to a card mill To See them make yarn
for homespun; Sampled some rye whiskcy
twenty years old laid up IN q barrel in u neigh
boris barn, II was like oil. Wen sir, those
Water cress was served with them. The faug-
iE were great water drinkers NJ meals. II