The Ocala evening star., 1915-10-04
UP-TO-DATE MILL
CHAZAL & SONS SMELLING AND
GRINDING AND HELPING TO
MARKET MARION COUN-
TY CORN

"That's what they told me at the
mill, but it went on a grinding"
We went to mill Saturday morning.
A commonplace trip, but it interest
ed US, for it was the first time in over
third of a century.
Last time we went to mill was some
time in November, 1881. We went on
foot, right up mountainside, along
a road that was old when America
was discovered, across a creek, thru
a valley and over hill and down to
the mill by little river. We couldn't
climb that mountain empty-handed
now, but we went up it then like a fly
up wall, in spite of the bag with a
bushel of shelled corn on one shoul-
der If the bag hadn't been full of
corn, we could have filled it with
chestnuts, which ratified down from
their frost-split burs with every
breeze. The mountain was not big
enough there to have a name, but it
would have overtopped Missionary
Ridge. The road along the top would
hardly have been passable for autoes,
but the moccasined feet of the Cher
okees had trodden it for years before
the white man came. We crossed the
creek on footlog, because we didn't
want to wet the only pair of shoes we
could have that year. Don't suppose
we could walk that footlog now; we
L, IL
we hadn't seen any other bridge than
footlog for months. The mill was
little log pen in front of a dam
across the river. We had to wait be-
cause there were two customers ahead
of us-two girls, who by virtue OF
their sex only toted half a bushel
apiece-twenty-e eight pounds over two
miles of mountain trail. They were
suntanned and unstylish, but theil
bright eyes CLEANED under and long
brown hair fell out of their sunbon,
nets, and their teeth flashed like
pearls, even if they did dip snuff
While we waited our turn, we played
fox and geese on the back of the toll.
box with one of them, while the Other
carried on harmless Irritation with
the miller. The weather was dry anC
before their corn was ground, the mil
had to stop until more water backed
up to the dam. When our turn came
the miller poured our corn in the
hopper, then took out his toll-disl
full. Then he pulled on a lever made
of hickory sapling, the gate rose
the water poured into the buckets Of
the big overshot wheel, and the little
building shook as the millstones be
gan to grind. ''The upper and nethel
millstones" were no mystery to /;
mountain child. Many times sirc,
we have been sorry we didn't stick t,
the mountain sides.
1t was different trip last Satur
day. We went in an auto whicl
whisked US to to the mill in brace o
minutes. The mill is in big, sheet
iron building, down by the A. C. I
crossing, at Adams street.
As we arrived, one Marion count,
: farmer had his wagon on the scale:
having his corn weighed. Others ha
been ahead of him, and big day
work was evidently to be done.
: When we shelled corn, we spread
quilt before the fireplace, on an au
tumn or winter evening, and poured
couple of bushels of corn in the ca
on it. Then we sat down on one col
ner of the quilt and with generally
friend on the opposite corner, shelle
the corn by hand. The fireplace fun
nished the only illumination; ais
! there were always sweet potatoes c
: goobers roasting in the Goals; or pei
haps another friend popped corn
the skillet. And we don't remembe
lany occasion when there wasn't pc