New Iberia enterprise and independent observer. (New Iberia, La.) 1902-1944, 1910-09-10

peeled oranges into the b3lllnG
syrup and set them over night IN
, the frost for my chiEe 5 good tas
in de mornin'."
O, halycyon days! o, opal
days Of sugar making season, from
the dawn when the whistles from
the sugar houses blew the end Of
the last watch. and the first sun
beams awakened one to a new de
Light in this beautiful land! The
grey msts of morning floated up
from the blue. blue river, laden
with the perfume Of crushed cane.
The amber autumn sun shone
down at early morning on the
frosty green fields, and later on
the long beautiful rows of purple
cane with golden roads between.
Our dear, beautiful Southern land.
and the sunshine that touches all
the china trees to gold, the sumach
hedges, and down on the coast,
the orange groves.
The men come trooping in from
the night watch to breakfast, whit
Ting little paddles for us "to tas
the new syrup with when we go
down, telling us of the strike
which does not mean an uprising
of labor, but the number Of bar
rels of sugar successfully taken
off," Those banquet-spread break
fasts, topped eff with buckwheat
cakes and "LaQutte,r' would
seem TO the modern menu makers
enough for a week. All is excite
ment; we set the housemaids to
work Smelling pecans and walnuts
for pralins. Then the neighbors
begin to come in-all, all is sugar
house news. "There has been
crevasse across the river, and
somebody cane field is flooded. ;"
"Why don't they keep hIp the
levees." GLOW was our strike 2"
"Theirs was pretty fair, pretty
fair With these small words
one could scarce know that for
tunes were made or lost.
| You ought to hear eta tante"
tell about the old days. She is so
stately and sweet, presiding over
an old Southern home, its very
gallery shaded by great magnolia
trees, and her roses, ah! She has
gathered three generations Of
lnieces' and nephews, children
about her, and the gentleness and
love Of the present day take the
place lOf the g1,ry behind her.
She who, received I'M Paris,
was the friend and correspond.
ent Of Lamartine and Voltaire.
She tells of the days Of the slave
owners, who seemed princes on
their own lands, and lived like
them. The aristocrats of Louisi-
ana, Bonnecaze, Villeneauve, Al
lain, Dubroca, Favrot and dozens
of others. Prince Murat, Cover
nor Claiborne. How they used to
ride down to the sugar houses in
their stately coaches, with little |
Triggers" up behind to open all
the gates, generally hoary-head-
ed kerridge driver and
young darkey to see that all the
harness was in order. They
danced stately minuets and quad
rifles on the sugar house floor to
the tune of the cold horse came
danced in their Paris sprigged-
raeking out de wilderness, cold
Suckey Blue-Skin, She's in love
with me, )" "Uncle Ned,"-
muslin and soft Dutch velvet,
slipping vim de cane, wine and
fruit cake. The baby put in and
said, fruit cake was made of |
sugar and spice and every thing
nice" SO everything of the past
is, through the golden haze Of
memory. II
Our young times were pretty
good, even if we did walk over
% the sugar house in the day
ine, and ride in the big blue
sugar wagons at night. So we
Ill hurried down after breakfast
md begun at the beginning,
the long purple-laden
carriers lift their royal sburden
o the shining rollers, from the
lark pool of new juice fresh from
he rollers, turn muddy, boil and
'oil from one kettle to the other
ntil it foamed into amber syrup.
Ne never tired watching the men
nth the paddles skimming and
piping until the last kettle was
LaQuite' ready to turn to SUI
ar, to follow down and see it
our into the great wooden
roughs or boxes, three by ten
eet, ready to granulate, this pro-
ess taking from one to two