Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-04-04
MAPLE SUGARIN[s.
a Memory OF the New England THAT
Was--Joys OF sap Senson.
uIurtford Letter TO Shore Line Timos)

! Uiurtford Letter TO Shore Line Timos ,
AS the sun gradually comes back arain
after Its winter ,.bsence the man In town
begins to think more ana more of the
country. and among these thoughts come
first those OF sugar naples ana what
they used to mean to tho country hov
various learned people Will attcmpt 70
tell you why the sap rushes un OH the
first warm day but they fail niserablv
because. after all, II Is miracle past
explaining. How docs a tree change rain
water 10 sugar? Why does not the tree
crack and splinter to fragments when
sudden cold freezes the rising -ao III t,
or why is 1t not torn asunder by the
pressure Of the. rising food? After all
the wsest OF us can make but q thin
and ritiful prctense OF KNOWLEDGE and
are. after all. ignorant creatures who
move for q little time in world of il.vs-
terry and then leave It.
THE BOYS BEST FRIEND
Rat to get back to the maple tree. 1t
VAS the best friend the farmer boy had,
and on its account he would do twice as
much work cheerfuily as he would do
under any circumstances otherwise He
knew by instinct when the CAD started
even though some broken twig on the
tree did not give away the secret, and
he raidcd the nearest marsh ground for
elders from which the sep uuills might
be made. pushing out the pi,h from the
center Of each branch and tapering the
end which was Ia be driven into the
tree. 1t was. indeed. a bcnefcent provi.
dence which ordaired that the elder and
the sugar maple should grow In loving
proximity because. though Yankee IN.
genuty invented metal quilts the use 0!
them commercalizcd the business anc
implied that the farmer and his BOYS
We're making maple sugar for the pur.
pose of selling II: and that took al The
sport out of the work. II makes It as
Impossible as the notion OF colorec
brother raising watermclons or chickens
Tor the market. !sugar-malling is done
Tor the pure enjoyment OF tho business
After the q,iills were made the ncxt
thing was to secure :he pans, buckets
or troughs to hold the sap. The print
tive and honorable method was to new
the troushs ont of Eastwood with an
ad@e. Il labor!ous piece of work, but The
troughs were more in keeping than q
pan or bucket which March winds are
apt to toss lO1 feet or so from thu tree
No sooner was this psir of the work
done than the work of prov iding FOR the
process of reducing the rap to syrup OF
sugar mus, be begun. III far-off days
every farmer had Il big brass or iron ket-
tie. utensils now extinct and one OF
more Of these kettles was set in frame
work of stone daubed with clay. Next
came the collection OF dry wood, CEDAR
or chestnut. and then all was ready and
It needed only the first warm dey tc
start the work Of boring I,oles In the
trees and the sugar naling was begun.
SWEETEST OF THE YEAR.
How good tho first running of the sar
tasted. II was the sweetest OF the year
and mother used to use it In making
Il cup OF good green tea which some 100
scientist now declares poisonous. Wher
the work was on. 1t was no slight task
to carry the sap from the trees to the
kettle and feed the dry wood into the
primitive furnace but presently the ket-
tie held quantity of golden brown
syrup which could DO made into sugar
II You dcsired-and you did. No modern
~
syrup and sugar which q healthy country
boy would and did consume when the
season first opened, but there are YET
things the doctor don't know and maple
sugar never killed any boy.
But. after all tho keenest enjoyment
lay In the start OF the season and In
watching for tho days which brought
the greatest now OF sap. Generally those
were mornings after light snowfall
but now and then they came along with
4 rainfall which wasted tho whole days
work, There were, too, disccuraRements
for some good days were accompanied by
gale of wind which would blow tie
sweet blood of tho trees anywhere and
everywhere but into the pan or trough
and would upset these after they had
been emptied and would FIJI what sar
was saved with bits of bark or with
leaves or other rubbish, In those days
there were no bacteria. and those terrors
were spared. The length OF the season
depended on the depth Of frost. for when
the frost was out OF the ground the sea
son ended and the tree began to turn IT'S
store Of sugar into leaves and blossoms
Also as the season came near Its close
sumed n ciouded appearance If 1t stood
for any length OF time before beins
boiled. 1t was next to impossible to turf
this product into sugar and II was len
syrup, of which no household ever hae
enough. After "A few days of this the
season ended. The pals or troughs wer'
collected and stored and it was all over
until the next year.
One wonders II there is much maple
sugar made in the State now, most OF
thai up this way comes from Porto Rice
or New Orleans by way OF Vermont and
is only family reminiscent of the ole
days North Brandford used to he &
famous suSar-p producing town, but t Is
altogether possible that the trees and the
farmers have alike disappeared. II the
new stock, the Pole and the Italian, have
not caught the trick Of sugar making
they have missed something worth saw
ing and worth knowing.