The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1938-07-09
HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS
Tenth Article in a Series Leading up to Henderson
Coun.y's Centennial Celebration, July 3l-Aug.
By SADIE S. PATTON

man a right to kiss his partner,
and yellow ear denoted an ear
" marriage Of the newly plight
ed" couples. While the men work
ed and joked and laughed around
the heap of corn, the house was
buStling scene. 4 crowd Of wo-
men were busy setting tables and
preparing dinner. Cakes, pies and
bread had been baked ahead of
time. Hams, chickens, turkeys, all
kinds Of preserves and pickles,
with caldrons of hot coffee dis
appeared in a hurry before the
hungry workers appetites.
When dusk came. bonfreS and
torches would be lighted, for
sometimes it was late at night be-
fore the Job was completed. The
shucks from the big pile would
be stored in barnlOft and pens for
use as winter forage. Usually by
the time corn was gathered, frost
had killed the grass and the cat
tie had little grazing or roughage
until shucks were ready. This few
weeks when the stock was some
what limited in food stuff came
to be known as the time between
grass and shuck," an expression
which is still used in some places
to denote a scarcity, and adds q
colorful note to the folk EXPIRES
SionS Of the region.
In the agricultural communi-
ties Of the highlands. corn shuck-
ings are yearly events on most
of the farms, and vary little from
those of earlier times.
When small grain was first
planted in any quantities in the
mountains, it was harvested by
means of the Dutch sickle or reap
hook, Just as in Biblical times
or the days familiar to Millet
when he painted his pictures OF
peasant life. A ripening crop
brought a band of neighbors to
reap and shock it. A dozen OF
more men would cut through the
field, then hang their sickles
across shoulders, and follow back
along the row, binding the sheaves
as they went. These old sickles,
with their marked resemblance to
the ancient copper halberks OF
prehistoric Ireland-had long,
keen blades curved to a nice tit
when placed across the shoulder.
Boys gathered the sheaves al,
ter thew were tied and the old
men fashioned them into shocks
This was task which required
good Judgment and experience to
/ insure a shock that would not be
damaged from rain and winter
weather.
Threshing of the yearly grain
harvest was done by far different
means in those days. A large barn
floor, swept clean, was covered
with a thin layer of the sheaves to
be threshed. The binding on each
! sheaf was cut and the grains
beaten out with fails made OF
saplings eight or ten feet LONG
with the tip ends twisted and
broken three or four feet from
the ends. Grasping this by the
long end, the thresher would
swing it around, raining blows or
the grain spread over the straw
covered floor. When it had al
been beaten out, it was ready tt
be separated from the chaff, by
pouring the grain into windmill
j operated by crank to produce
strong current of air. The chat
was blown out of one end while
the grain remained in the other.
Another method of separating
wheat and chaff was by use O
the riddle" sheets being used t
fan away the lighter waste.
Cradles were introduced TO
use in cutting small grain abou
I845. and the English scythe
came into use a few years later
| along with the threshing machine
= This was known as a "groun
) hog" thresher, and required eigh
horses to move it from one plac
. to another, and to operate it.
The grain and straw came fror
the machine together and wer
: caught in sheets. The straw wa
= raked from the heap with woode
rakes or the limbs of trees, a
.4ooI ,;tob forGc yoro NOT 1sp