The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1908-03-30
WHEN HE WAS a LAD BACK IN
DAYS GONE BY.
HOW They SPENT SATURDAY
Afternoons and Sunday Mornings in
Fishing and Going to Church
and Sunday School and
Visiting the Girls.

The colonel was in another of his
reminiscent moods yesterday morning
when we approached. and as soon as
we entered instead of railing as we
thought he would do met
us with a kindly smile. We'll Colonel,
how are you feeling this morning, and
It raining?' The colonel replied. My
boy, | have never felt better in all.
my life, and this balmy spring wealth.
er, we have been having makes me
feel thirty years younger. You know
was out driving with my old lady
a few days ago and we took quite
a lengthy ride behind old Nell, view
ing the country, ! found the farmers
were well up with their work, and
could see the early planted corn peep
ing out from the sod, and the trees
We're beginning to look green and the
birds We're singing, all harbingers OF
spring. During the ride began to
dream, dreams of old days, long since
passed away. | began to think of the
days when | was on the farm, along
in the early part of the month of
May, when work was at its height,
and how we toiled hard all of the
week until Saturday. 1t was the rule
of fathers overseer to give all Ot
the hands of the place every other
Saturday off; that is, one half OF the
hands We're off for a half day one
Saturday, and the other half off the
next Saturday, provided we were up
with tasks, and for us youngsters we
had TO complete ours to get off when
our half holiday would come around.
Our overseer, Mr.. Adams, would tell
us when the half holiday would come
around, Now, Bud, (referring to his
som you and Jack may go fishing
this afternoon, provided you get all
of the stove wood in, get the orchard
corn plowed over and the fence jams
cleaned of weeds" The orchard was
about four or five acres square, and
the lot contained about two acres,
and 1t took generally two hours hard
wood cutting to get IL. enough stove
wood TO last through Sunday. Well,
Bud and myself would get to work
and work like Trojans all of the fore
noon, and perhaps get through plow-
ing the orchard and Immediately af-
would begin TO chop wood, or If pos
sible we would get some one of the
negro boys to chop the wood for us,
promising 10 give him dinner from
the kitchen and a piece of tobacco
from the big house. which we would
filch. Well, the negro would begin the
would get aorund the old negro cook
and beg like the dickens for dinner
for our helper, finally succeeding in
getting her to give the boy dinner
by promising to bring her a hand
kerchief when We next went TO the
village. Then Bud and myself would
begin to clean out the fence jams
and would, If lucky get through by
about four o'clock in the afternoon
completely tired out. But Bud and
had made up our minds that we were
going fishing and off we would go
Our fishing place was mill pond
about mile from the plantation
by the big road, or If we could ge
out through the woods it was abou
three-fourths of mile We woul'
take through the woods, never mind
ing the briars and underground. w
would finally wind up at the pond
and after setting our lines on tn
bank, we would first take a dip wit
number of other boys who ha
gathered there in the race back of tn
old mill house. After bathing 10
some little time we would get ou
and visit our lines and perhaps du
ing the afternoon catch a few perc
or one or two small cat fish, an