Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1916-07-21

S~N-NO@3 y
of making maple sugar occupied the
energies of the farmer of the forties.
When the thaws of early spring be-
gin to dispel the sharp winter cold
of this northern region, our good
friend, Judge Markham, in the year
of our Lord 1912, repairs with his
hired men to his large sugar lot
mile or so from home. The sugar
house is opened, hundreds of sap
buckets are taken from the store
house where they have been packed
since the close Of the preceding sea-
SOP. The hoops of the buckets and
monster sap tubs are frightened by
driving them farther up the buckets,
which are widest at the top; but
there are few very odd ones mixed
in made by some backwoods cooper,
which are much wider at the bot
tom than at the top. If the SHOWS
are yet too deep for oxen to be
driven the buckets are distributed,
or as is more commonly spoken,
scattered through the forest, one
to each maple tree by the men on
snowshoes. Then the trees are
tapped by boring a hole in the side
of each and driving in wooden
spout some eight inches long. The
bucket is placed or hung upon nail
so as to receive the sap that flows
from the wound in the tree, through
the hollow of the spout and down
its seam to trickle from the end into
the bucket. Then when the days of
thaw, with sharp, frosty nights,
come in later March and April, the
deep SHOWS melt away and the sap
rises in the trees. A portion only a
small portion of this sap bleeds
from the wound and flows into the
bucket. In good sap weather the
trickling is rapid and the sap must
be gathered frequently, or the
buckets will run over. In these
sugar lots laid out up the hill sides,
it was usual to build a line of spouts
from the top of the lot down to its
lower end, the spouts being hewed
out of long, slender trees, spruce or
tamarack. Over this line of spouts
at convenient intervals troughs were
laid on stout posts. The sap gath
erer with his sap yoke and two large
pals wallows through the snow from
tree to tree, or perchance, walks on
snowshoes, collects the sap, carries
it in his pals to the nearest trough
and pours it in. The sap runs out
through a small aperture into the
spouts and flows down to the foot of
the lot or boiling place" where it
is deposited in huge tubs each hold.
ing several barrels. At the. boiling,
or to be just to the vernacular-
the bilin place" two large caldron
kettles were set on arches or rude
furnaces in the open air. Huge
piles of wood cut from dead anG
down" trees had been cut and col
lected to feed the fires, and as soOr
as the sap begins to run the process
of boiling begins and is continued
day and night The evaporation
carries off the water, leaving the
saccharine properties of the sap con
stantly thickening to syrup in the
kettles. The smoke curls up through
the thick, tall naples, the steam 0
the boiling sap hovers like a nimbu
OF sweetness over the camp, and it
odor waited through the woods vii
be remembered when most Of tn
impressions and pictures in mem
ory's canvas have faded. 1t is tn
incense of pure sweetness stored il
the cells Of the maple during tn
long winter months When tn
: sugar place is distant from tn
farm, the sugar makers have a hu
or place for sleeping in the suga
house Oft-times a large sap-holde
would be turned on its side in from
! of the blazing arch, and used 70
the purpose, bespread with buffal
robe; and their provisions are sen
: daily from the house. While goo
sap-weather' continues and tn