The Robesonian., 1910-01-27
WITH AUNT LECKY.
Farmers Busy and Hopeful =
Whaat Injured "reminiscences.

] Whaat Injured-Reminiscences.
Correspondence OF The Robesonlan.
Old Fork, Jan. 2O-Robert
! Blrns, the famous Scottish bard,
never conceived a tluer idea
than that: The best laid
plans Of mice and men aft gang
aglee." When Monday came it
was my intention to sit down and
have chat with The Scottish
Chief and The Robesonian, but
owing to a chain of unforeseen
circumstances I did neither.
Housekeepers in general can
never be sure of what a day
may bring forth, and are often
disappointed in their premeditat-
ed arrangements.
Everything is quiet in the
Fork and our. farming people have
settled down to work, many of
them, taking advantage of the
favorable weather of late, are
turning up the soil for a new
crop; Duoyant and hopeful from
the success achieved last year,
they are starting in with renew
ed energy and spirit.
The severe cold weather expert
enced about the holidays injured
some of the young wheat in this
section, and the Squire tells me
his stand is very much broken.
He was reared in the grain-grow-
ing section of Virginia and has
always been a successful wheat
farmer. raising plenty to supply
us with good homemade flour
every season; but | fear he is
going to miss it this year.
! In the olden times wheat was
; extensively raised in these parts
2 and previous to the war I do no
; recoIlect ever to have seen &
8 barrel Of ''boughten" flour ir
7 our home. Steam mills had moi
8 been invented, and almost ever!
5 water mill was prepared to grint
. both corn and wheat. We ha(
S an old neighbor in those day
! who owned the poorest farm il
? this section, composed mostly O
5 white sand hills. Commercial
> fertilizers were at that time al
a most unknown, yet this thrift,
= old gentleman raised wheat, ry
g and corn for sale, also quantitie
a of homemade meat, from tn
20 proceeds of which he mad
4 money, and every few year
IS would invest in negro propert
y 2 until he grew Independent an
Is accumulated fine property, bl
= could never be induced to abando
% the big log house in which he live
IS and died at the advanced age G
30 80 years or upward. This hous
is still in existence aud in q stat
of good repair. In my childhoo
~ it was curiosity to me. especia
es ly the chimney, built Of clay an
sticks. and the wide-mouthe
- fireplace, which easily accomm'
IS dated full length fencerail 8
fuel. The building consisted {
s5 two huge rooms, two saed room
very wide open passage betw weel
20 and a piazza in front. with
so small room cut off at one en-
= five rooms altogether, and it W;
~ comfortable, as the logs we
hewn and the rooms were ceile
os on the inside. This ancie1
27 house, which is perhaps now g
most a cetenarian, stands in ru
" ged defiance of the ravages
rs time, and is still giving shelf
to a portion of the human fam
IS ly. The original owner intr
duced into this section the fir
20 scuppernong grapevines ev
2s known hereabouts. His san
o7 hills were the ideal paradise f
them and he soon had propagate
54 quite a vineyard, from which
&c manufactured quantities of fir
wine, from the sale of which
20 20 made quite a profit, as his win'
W ~ had quite famous reputation al
rs were much in demand. Wht
the Yankee ''bummers" can