One of the needs was shoes for the family. Each child got 2 pairs a year - a summer pair and a winter pair. Those new shoes were for special occasions, which meant mostly school and church-going. They walked bare-foot to school until cold weather, but all rode in a long-bed wagon to church. They couldn't wear the shoes until in sight of the church, and had to remove them when they were re-loaded in the wagon. This care was to preserve the shoes from "scuffing." Shoe polish was a mixture of lard and soot removed from the underneath side of the cook stove caps. Mother said that every speck of dust clung to the shoe-polished surface and looked terrible. But they were forced to polish them by the parents, hoping to preserve the leather. Brooms and mops were treasured. The handles were hewn from small sapling trees, and whittled until smooth. The broom-head was wheat sheaves or crushed corn stalks; trimmed to a desired length and tied to the handle. The mop heads were usually made from old worn clothing, cut into strips and tied to a handle. These lasted surprisingly well, mother said. Occasionally, the boys were allowed to have an old "handle" to ride as a stick horse. That was a sought-after toy. If they didn't have a stick horse, they rode the rail fence, which was the only type fencing material in their area. You might consider some of the ideas for entertainment to be "brain storms," as they did have to create their play. In the summer the girls' play houses were under shade trees. Moss was plentiful and they used it in their "houses." Sticks were positioned to resemble partitioned rooms and the moss was placed for their dolls to sit on. These were rag dolls, made by my grandmother, or one of the older daughters. Their balls were made by stuffing an old sock with discarded clothing. This play-time included mud pies, with the mud being placed in old, worn one piece canning lids, dried in the sun, emptied from the lids and used for whatever the need was. Toy dishes were pieces of broken glass, tree leaves, and bark, with ideas, seemingly, plentiful.

Most of the farm homes had an unfinished attic in which one could stand erect. The access to it at my grandparents' home was by ladder-like steps nailed to the wall and going up from the kitchen. The kitchen had only the bare necessities, some of which today are treasured antiques. There was a "pie safe" with inlaid tins on the front doors; a cook stove; a flour and meal bin; a water-stand to hold a hand washing vessel and the water bucket with a dipper. There was a long dining table with benches on each side for seating. Most of the dishes were kept in the pie safe, or a setting for a meal was left on the table and covered by a cloth. A handmade table held two large dishpans, one for washing dishes and the other for rinsing them. Depending upon where your residence was, water was either carried from a cold-water spring, or drawn from a well. During warmer weather, if a "spring" was accessible, the perishables were put into containers, and placed on rocks that were in the water. These containers were lard "stands" (buckets), syrup buckets, etc. with lids. Water was carried from this spring, along with the perishables when needed, usually at meal times. During the cold weather, if the temperatures dipped to below freezing, various foods were placed outside. Mother could remember the drinking water inside the water-bucket freezing. The kitchen was always cold in the winter-time. The only heat was from the cook stove, with the other rooms having fireplaces. These also gave off very little heat, unless you stood in front of them. My grandmother made all their clothes, and would sew at night, by fireplace light, or by lamplight, with my mother holding the oil lamp near the sewing. I mentioned the dining table, which was placed in the center of the long kitchen. A very strange thing occurred involving this table. A pet female cat had gotten into the attic somehow, and gave birth to her kittens. One of them died and the mother cat chose to bring it down during one of our mealtimes. About half-way down the ladder-stairs, she jumped, landing in the middle of the table with the deceased kitten still in her mouth. It was a startling event for the family.

All surrounding family dwellings had the "outhouse" landmark. It was used in conjunction with the night time bedside "potty." With a large family, the members had supervision of using both the outhouse and potty, depending upon the urgency of the need. My grandparents outhouse was a 2-seater. Mother could recall that at times when she and a sister were occupying it, her brothers would make weird noises, forcing the scared girls to vacate their "perches." This was later a cause for laughter. Not only did my grandmother preserve her produce by canning it, but she also dried vegetables. Green beans were fastened onto string then bunched, and hung in the attic to dry. They were called "leather britches." When needed they were re-hydrated by soaking until plump, then cooked. My uncle, at about the age of 17, began to possum hunt. He had a large, brown wooly dog, named "Boy" who went along to "tree" the possums. This night time hunting would yield as many as six or more. They were treasured for their skins. My uncle had made wooden frames that resembled small ironing boards. After cleaning the skins, he stretched them on the boards to dry and cure. The skins were sold for enough to keep my uncle in pocket money. I've often wondered what the purchaser did with them. Wherever my grandparents lived, an underground storm cellar was dug. Sometimes the above ground part looked like a World War II pill box. This not only functioned as a storm shelter, but also for storage of root vegetables, canned goods and apples. This was after they moved to a location that had no cold "spring water" for storage. They gradually had more conveniences, but still practiced frugality and management. The entire family was taught to be self-reliant - a trait that's gone by the wayside mostly. This trait was so instilled in my mother, that she practiced and taught it to my brother and I. I attempted to teach this to my son, but "city-life" was without the necessary hardships endured by my mother, and there wasn't the same training needed. I'm much more self-reliant than my son - and as the generations progress there is less and less self-sufficiency. IF BLAME IS DUE, TO WHOM OR WHAT? I enjoyed writing this little story, Libby Maxwell.