The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1908-01-09
119E NEwsIiEAID HmLsBoRo OHIO THURSDAY, JANUARY 1908


these preachers and their wives was
very delightful to them both and they
always looked forward to their COM
ing with pleasant acticipations. and
do not remember of their ever being
too busy to be ready to receive tn, m
cordially on Saturday evening as they
often spent the night before preach.
ing with them.
We children too, we're always de.
lighted to see the old or the young
ministers, as the case might be, drive
or ride up, and come In. carrying his
saddle bags on his arm In which he
stored, what seemed TO US, a little
library of books; knowing that quite
likely father would buy one of them
for us to read, and that there was
very delightful evening in store for
US for We never seemed to tire, listen
ing to the conversat tion between them
and father and mother.
Even In houses where there we're
only one or two rooms, one room
generally had to be large to accom-.
modate the large family which was
the rule then as is the exception now.
The house was born in had Ave wood
FIRE places in 1t which could be used,
If occasion required 1t, but the sitting
room was large one and by its fire
side the family and visitors generally
sat together. The smaller;youngsters
could 60 into another room and they
generally preferred the kitchen
(which had Its big wood fire place as
we'll as it's cooking stove,) If they
wanted to enjoy romping until their
bedtime.
Father had been a school teacher
In early life, and was good scholar
for that time. Mothers education
was more limited, as she was left an
orphan at an early age. But she had
the highest appreciation of learning,
and determined with her indomitable
will to make use of every available
opportunity for increasing her little
stock of knowledge. John Wesley
was her favorite writer, and he said
ut cannot be that the people should
grow in grace unless they give them.
selves to reading. A reading people
will always be a knowing people"
And another has said, ITO need the
books one reads and to read the books
one needs, this Is the soul of culture" !"
Before I was near growo, my father,
with his axe, and assisted by his eld-
est con and hired help, had brought
down the sturdy oaks and elms until
he had nice sized farm in a state of
cultivation, which now gave him and
mother leisure to more frequently
visit friends and neighbors while crops
we're maturing, and to entertain them
in return, which they did quite roy
ally for those strenuous times; and
they could now also find more time to
spend in reading, though 1t was the
rule of their lives to do some reading
each day II it was possible and
think since l can remember this was
their greatest pleasure and recrea-
tion. They both retained their mem-
ories to the end of their lives-in a
remarkable degree-and have nc
doubt that their judicious selection
of the books and papers they read
had a great deal to do in preserving
them. The books and periodicals
they read we're always the best they
could get. They never read but few
books of fiction, as they thought life
was too short 10 spend In that way
when they could not find time to read
all the good books they needed, ant
counseled their children In the same
way. Mother always thought ''caks
could easily be ruined by putting toe
much spice In 1t, so she thought toe
much fiction would ruin our lives; q
little fiction might be needed to i'm
prove them, as a little favoring i'm
proved the cake, but that fiction, al
we'll as the aavoring, should be the
purest that could be obtained" Sucf
books as Harriet Beecher Stoves
"Uncle Toms Cabin" was read with
pleasure occasionally by them. Ny
first recollection of a magazine wal
the Ladies' Repository" which they
took for years, beginning, think
with its grst issue, about 1851 or '52
l believe 1t was edited at that time
by Bishop Clark. 1t was the only
literary magazine of note in the west
for many years. Mother scarcely
ever failed to have one of us girls Il
read nearly every article in 1t to her
whileI she would be busy with some
work If she had no time to read II
herself. She would converse with III
upon the topics and explain what wa
not understood by US, and in this wa'
endeavored to cultivate In US a low
for reading such pure literature, ant