The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1910-09-29
Things That | Remember.

me Following interesting paper was
leao ny well known citizen At a meet.
ing OF Eastern Star Grange, Calais
"nen the domestic rate of postage or
.e''e's was five cents and the mail was
carried from Calais to Houlton and RAN
gor with horses. anu Dali
f, Mneh the saw mills on this river mann.
az large quantities of deals for
do az D'.tlsn market and they were floated
| NM n,,t u, 70 tne Ledge in large RATS, and
paJ vi BOARD ships to cross the Atlantic
sa aa /. y I'VE was grand sight on Sunday to
Jse. nan dozen or more of those ships
' Ss m iuli suit of colors, and when
sea Dvy lying nv down river how l enjoyed
snd ~ .ne snlps coming in under full sail
anu listening to the merry song of the
Jolly tars as they furled the sails. for at
tnat time there were no tug boats 70 tow
vessels up river, but those shins sailed
right up to the Ledge and anchored and
ioaueo at anchor, the deals being showed
on DO I'd from the RATS. 'N''eo
When there was no railroad from this
"hen a large per cent of farmers used
oxen instead of horses to do their farm
work and to haul their produce to mar
/ ket, and farmers wives would take their
/ oaoles IN their arms and ride in an OK cart
to visit their friends.
/ When carriages with springs were
/ rarity and bed quilts were used for Ian
ropes when driving in cold weather.
When girls wore night caps; and some
tunes we INDUCED in hiding them lust to
/ get even with the girls for some previ-
Gus joke played on US.
"nen farmers wives and daughters
would take the wool as it was sheared
from the sheep, and wash. pick, card,
SPIN aye and weave into cloth which
they would make into dresses that they
would attend church in, and that would
wear almost indefinitely and they also
would weave cloth that they made into
coats, vests, pants, shirts and under
! wear Tor the men of the household, and
from yarn they spun, would knit stock
lngs ana mlttens for the entire family
and some Tor sale, beside manufacturing
WOODEN blankets to sleep in. There was
not the ready made clothing in those
Gays that We have at present
When We had no moving machines
hay tedders, horse rakes or horse forks
and the hay was harvested by hand and
men would go to the field with their
scythes at sunrise and work gathering
hay until dark.
When there We're no threshing ma
chimes and the farmers and their sons
would pound off hundreds of bushels of
grain with two sticks called fail and
winnow it in the wind.
When'our boots and shoes were made
and repaired by the country shoemaker
and the boys and girls went barefoot in
warm weather
When the village blacksmith made the
horse and Oy Shoac ho mood and copo
times the nails he fastened them on
with.
When we used to heat our houses and
boil our pots and kettles with fire in an
open fire place and we got down on the
floor to study our lessons and read the
news by fire light, and our bread was
baked in the brick oven.
When the tallow candle and fish oil
lamps were our source of artificial light,
and our lanterns We're made of tin with
fine Sits cut in them to let the light of a
lighted tallow candle shine through, and
our streets were in darkness.
When the potato planter, sprayer and
digger, were unknown and most of the
potato cultivation was done by hand.
When there were no reapers, and men
= and women cut grain with sickles and
) tied the sheaves with bands made of the
grain.
When our schools were supported by
subscription instead of direct tax, that
means, that those who had children to
educate would subscribe so much per
scholar, and pay it direct to the teacher
and the teacher would board around with
the subscribers in proportion to the num-
Der of scholars each sent to school, and
the subscribers furnished the wood for
fuel, which was apt to be scant in quanti-
ty and inferior in quality, and the school
boys prepared it for the stove, generally
with a dull axe which furnished physical
exercise that would eclipse a modern
gymnasium.
When our schools were not graded and
each pupil had the privilege of advancing
in knowledge to the extent of his capac-
ity, and did not have to wait for those
who were less ambitious.
When if a, man had predicted that in
the near future we could talk over wire
to our friends at a distance, he would
have been judged mentally unbalanced.
] When women and girls wore sunbon-
A nets in summer and hoods in winter ano
, even wore their hoods to church.
When railroad locomotives burned
wood to generate steam and carried
! monstrous smokestacks.
| When the men that afforded overcoats
were the exception instead of the rule
When the wearing of hoops came ir
fashion, and sometimes we robbed the
-four barrel of hoops to make over fol
some unfortunate girl who had none.
= When the shaker bonnet was in style
and if you were curious to know VIII
carried one you would have to run arounc
and peep in.
When the girls used to sit on one side
of the school room and the boys on the
. other, and each desk accommodated foul
, or five, and the seats had no backs, only
i those the scholars brought with them.
When one dollar in gold would buy two
5 dollars and sixty cents in greenbacks
I while at present men are 10th to swal
even, and consider gold cumbersome
medium to do business with.
/ When silver was so scarce that we hae
; to use shin plasters and postage stamps
! for change.
When the village wheelwright made
our sleighs and carriages, and factory
made carriages were unknown in this
section.
When farmers would raise flax and the
: females of the household would by hanc
; hetchel, rot, card, spin and weave If
pretty designs linen for tables, beds
towels and WEARING apDarp1 and cnir