Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1909-11-18
THE DAYS THAT HAVE GONE.

AA4- D'Hi . inAl f1AVEiSxONE.
To our notion the days that have.
come are better than the days that
passed long ago-and yet there is a
kindly remembrance which clngs to
the old days. An Iowa paper tells
about the old-time hog killing which
aWakens again the remembrance of
things which have ceased to be-. The
world has changed, and we realize
that we have changed, too. III the
old days the hog-killing time was u
time of wonderful interest and excite
ment, a time of pleasure and feasting.
which appealed strongly to the boy
on the farm. But since then we have
changed so much that now we in
voluntarily vince when we hear the
killing of anything, even of wild
game, spoken of as sport. . We
never hunt, because the tragedy
of it's oppressive, Possibly this is
an abnormal and unnatural condition
we do not know, and hence we do
not condemn others who feel differ
emily.
But how about the old time of hog
killing? Surely in memory we recall
its interest. Away back then hog
killing meant much. Among those
oldtime Rooseveltiaa families to but
cher nine or ten hogs and a beef at
one time was common.
1t began before daylight. The big
iron kettle had been set in place the
night before. It was filled and the fire
started. Breakfast was eaten by lamp
light and the wash boiler, the kettles
and even the tea kettle were pressed
into the hot water service. 1T was in
yariably a cold day. The knives were
made sharp and there were famous
butcher knives made from files, by the
local blacksmith thatwere known and
noted even outside of the localitg. No
boy or girl went to school that day.
They stayed at home, ran errands,
carried water and were ordered ont
of the way.
One by one the porkers were drag
ged out to die the death. One by one
they We're sonsed into the scalding
barrel with it's hot water tempered
wisely with ashes, drawn out to cool
lestthe hair set and sonsed again for
the final loosening of the bristles
Woe to the butcher who failed to get
a good scald. He fell at.once to the
level OF the errand boys.
Out of the barrel the hog came and
knives moved by a half dozen hands
were swift in denuding him Of his
covering. Some SURVIVING boy brought
the gambrel stick. Up went. the pork
er with much straining and grunting
on the part of his slayers. The dress
ing was completed, the last pailful of
cold water carefully removed from
his skin by scrapng up and lie hung
in the crisp air and bright sunlight of
the keen December day white and
clean, a promise against famine. Side
by side.with him hung his slaughter
ed mates row CHASTITY but full of
promise to the boy whose appetite
looked beyond buteherin day to buck
wheat cakes with ham gravy. on EN-.
And when all was finished there
were washtubs of coiled links Of the
finest homemade sausage you ever
saw stacks of hams and shoulders and
barrels of picked pork and corned
beef. Down in the cellar these bar
rels stood, close to the bins of yege-
tables and fruits. That was long ago,
but some of us remember when we
didn't live from hand to mouth, buy
buckwheat -four in cartons aud san-
sage by the dimes worth and it is
worth remembering, toe.