Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1925-08-06

| lists and authors, whose works laid
! the oundatiOn for subsequent
structures, quenched early thirst
for knowledge in those cold almost
windowless log huts, with few
books, no maps or paper, no pen
| ellis or pens, except such as were
! made by the teacher from quilts,
dipped in home made ink.
Furniture Cumbersome
The furnishings, of the average
home were as crude as the home.
Tables, chairs, cupboard, and bed
steads were made of hard wood,
heavy and cum bersome. One style
of table was horseshoe shape so all
could keep near the fire.
A unique bedstead was fastened
to the side Of the room by heavy
hinges enabling it to be lowered
to the floor, where the outer end
was supported by strong wooden
legs, when in use. 1t was oblOng
in shape, with a network Of rope
that supported the bedding. It
was called a "sIowbonk" or sleep
ing bench and when not in use was
hooked up against the wall, and
concealed by doors or curtains.
This very much priced bed was
used by the father and mother of
the family.
The table furnishings consisted
chiefly of wooden trenchers. They
were made from round or square
block wood followed out by hand
work and were generally large
enough for two to eat from. 1t
was an elegant household that
could furnish trencher for each
member of the family.
Pewter dishes were occasionally
found in the homes of those who.
were considered able to afford
them, but they were too expensive
for the average family to use. Iron
was not in much favor among the,
cOIOnists, for household utensils,
except as candle sticks, fire dogs
pots and pans which they freqltent-
ly traded to the Indians for val
liable tracts of land. Leather was
used for drinking cups and bot
ties.
Drinking a Habit
Drinking was a universal habit
and many were the connections
brewed by the colonists from herbs
and wild fruits. Wild hops enter
ed largely into the different mix
lures that circulated under the gen.
eral name Of "bitters''.
The Puritans of the century of
colonial life, thought little and
cared less for any form Of amuse-
ment. The struggle and hardships
incident to the planting of the col
lonies in this bleak land, left no
time for dancing, declared Judge
Small.
The God of the Puritans was a
jealous God and many were the
EAST days" appointed to appease
his wrath. Thanksgiving was
movable festival which was APP
pointed whenever there was spe-
cial occasion for giving thanks.
Crude Tools
Farm work of all kinds was
performed with the crudest kinds
of tools. Oxen were generally
used to pull the wooden moldboard
plough and doing all the hard work
of drawing the heavy logs into pill
es for burning, as that was the
means employed, for getting rid of
timber that could not otherwise be
disposed of. The rocks were
gathered onto the wooden fiat
boats and piled up along the bor-
ders of the clearing into walls that
divided the land into fields and in
cienta71y making play grounds for
SQUIRRELS and chipmunks.
Hitched to heavy wagons, they
took the family to church, drew the
products to market, and faithfully
performed all the hard work of
clearing trees, stones and brush
from the land, requiring no equip
ment except a heavy yoke that lay
across the necks of the two oxen
that worked together. One did
not need a very extensive vocab-
ulary to drive them as the four
shortwords, "get-up, gee, haw and
whoa" were sufficient.
Doctors travelled by horseback,
carrying the medicine in leather
pouches called saddlebags.
Grain Cut With Sickle
Grain was cut with a sickle,
gathered and tied in punches, pill
ed in heaps till dry, when it was
then spread on a hard, clean tract
of ground and a yoke of oxen were
driven over it until the grain was
shredded. The straw was taken
off and the grain freed from the
chaff hv the tedinns nrncesS. OF