The daily Alaskan., 1914-04-29
CORD BEDS OF OLD
Traps In Whose BuIbOus Depths
 Sleep Was Once WOOed.
PUTTING ONE UP WAS AGONY.

Ii Wrestling Match Was ChId's Play, II "I came across a bed wrench at 6 .f second hand curiosity shop uptown the x other day" said an old timer, land it |, took me back to the boyhood days al ] one jump.
 2 Don't know what bed wrench is5 { Of course you don't Nobody born of 1 this generation does. That's because ! they never had to put up a cord bed { stead-had the privilege of sleeping in ! tbc bed it held
 , "The cord bedstead was joy. Next to putting mp the stovepipe or putting down the carpet with the base of 0Hlirou for a hammer to pound the leather headed taclis in with, the as-
 scmbing of the cord hedstead of our
 d1idicS was the job that called for the
 most porrmptory giving of all the
 Christian virtues a vacation until the
 joh ryas done.
 "The rord bedstcad was the fuYorite
 hedstrad rr commerce in those days.
 H..udr described. there were four
 posts of any height or girth 10 suit the
 person OF his pocket Anywhere from
 three tu four feet from the floor hole
 WAS .ared in two sides of each post . ttr'v- each other when the foOtbOard l w.i .@Gboard posts were stood up to | rr ru.n.rrvd The holes were bored l with a thread to take the screw out on | ] rl.n un5s of the connecting pieces at | . ,a- sides aHd ends of the bedstead.
 "Thg,r cuuUe ting pieces were round. l auI ou what IS to be the top of them |
 wu.u .hr rr3 tend waS set up was a row of pegs si qpcl like so many mush-
 rooms X hul, about an inch m diame-
 tHr rau thrnu ya each of the four con-
 nn.fiu- pieces When the hedStead was
 ass"mn'rd b, the fitting of the con-
 Ur C.aG pieces into the holes In the
 H.S's and screwed up tight and in
 n.&.r ly me; Ds of stout stick thrust l
 ..rHrG fho holes in the round pieces t.r h.d 1v@s ready to be corded up, and
 ,hau tac wrench came into play.
 "Tbo led wrench was something like a stout wood au hand wise. The cord. a rope like ".otheS'iuc. but of better qualify. 1vaS ~ln around the mushroom like pegs. which were a few inches apart and lnngthwIse and crosswise $ from connecting piece to connecting | piece, like Uig mcshed net. 6
 "Bur the cord couldn't be drawn taut ' enough with the hands. and so daddy or big brother Bill. or perhaps the c hired nan. grabbed the wrench, tan V g.cd it uD somewhere in a part Oe the | cord where the tauteniug up process e WIS tn hn@iD and by persistent lever 1gc around gud about the bedstead at II last wreurhed the cord to a condition II Q. satisfactory tautness, and the tu- q nu. and tho shouting died b
 For don't go away with the idea that ! fl Inc work of setting up that cord bed ir stead was accomplished with the ease ti iuo in the brief time that 1t takes to .c.. about it. t generally required two ir Dr three capable persons to tackle tho Y, oh with my hope of succeeding with al {, for in iao way Uf refractory diSposi- ion and Grm0uiacal perversity the tE ord hedstead of the daddies had the co rrrchy COW in the garden skinned hi aiIc. l ha-e known the good wife to " lke the children and go down In the e.Iar while the old man and his aids .rrc daIlyIDg with the cord bedstead ) au sGo't to set it up and giving 1t .gjr opinion of it as it wabbled and Id and osreened and skidded at tense mi crir.r'I stages of the getting Of 1t '-ethor Al "Ihpr Ebeu it was all up good and ..id @0f the smell of sulphur got out the room mother used to come tn sd pTt thc straw tick on the web of 'd cHrG-the tick with the big slit in
 where We filled it with fresh rye Oe raw rntii it looked like a balloon all tor nd" t3 go mp. Then she tumbIed on eaE the tick the feather bed. two or three re1 at bi9I. with its swelling fun of live mt cse feathers and almost burying you bo, ( 1f sight when you slowed yourself t,,o ray on t after SurmOunting the bed fa 9 stepldder Then with the lAO 'cts and the blanket and the quilt d tho comforter and the big, bulbous dea low. the bed was ready to sleep in. Sal Ih9t's what bed wrench is, and troI rrs the cord bedstead it wrenched. vca q #.ueu l hear some reminiscent old Doo Ir marking back to the days of the .a,- wrench and the cord bedstead and H''tt '.re that when 1t comes to going to OH o at night sure Of a sleep in ease and neyI
 fort and of getting up next morn ing,
 never so refreshed give him every and " b,gosh. the old cord bedstead had n nothing between the ropes and ripr hut the straw tick and the feather d,
 instead of the new fangIed springs ~.
 hair mattresses, l greet him with DO'
 grasp his hand warmly and gently Surp
 firmly tell him he's a IiornGTsZy prov f. Grr, rg.,.