RUTH ANNIE MASON LONGHURST

RUTH ANNIE MASON LONGHURST

I remember mother had some special books from her college and teaching years that she would read to us and I memorized some of the poems such a Dads old Breeches, Which loved her best, Raggedy man, and Some Body's Mother. After Nola and I were married Dad gave me two volumes of Heart Throbs, with many of my favorite poems and songs. We had a card game that helped us learn the names of famous authors and some of their works. [Wadsworth, Longfellow, Tennyson, Riley, Holmes, etc.]

Before the addition on the west end of the house we spent most of our time in the large room with the large wood cook stove. The cupboard was movable and dishes and utensils were stored in it. The kitchen table was a gathering place to surround for morning kneeling prayer with each taking their turn. Cooked cereal, bacon, eggs were served for breakfast and we had a good farm meal for three squares each day. We talked and studied at the table in the evenings. The wash stand and basin were important to keep hands and faces clean.` There was one bedroom on the north of from the main room that Faye and June shared. The first bed room upstairs Georgia and Preal shared when Preal was home from school in Ogden. The south bedroom had a bed for Fred and me and a bed for Mother and Dad. The upstairs bedrooms were cold for sleeping in the winter so we used more quilts until they were so heavy we could not roll over. The flat iron was heated on the stove and wrapped in newspaper or a cloth to warm our cold feet in bed. Mothers large trunk was at the foot of their bed and contained many pictures and souvenirs they had collected over the years. A Large picture of Dad in his army uniform from World War I was on the south wall and a pair of wooden shoes he had brought from France for Georgia sat on the dresser. The shelf above the stairs contained many letters, cards, and other papers saved by mother and dad, that contained special memories of their lives together.

Our family lived on a farm about a mile from te church and school. We had Holstein milk cows so I started to milk when four year’s old. I milked the easy ones then and later the hard ones. Dad told us to milk the hard ones first and the other’s jobs in life would be easier. I started milking daily when five. The cows were turned out on the B. L. M. land in the foot hills behind our farm. They traveled up Sage Hollow, Long Hill, Pat Coughlin Hill and Grey Hill, to graze. Fred and I would ride old Pat, our trusty old horse to bring them back each evening for milking. Pat was a little spooky at times as he would jump sideways at a rabbit, weed or anything he thought strange in the trail, thus he would ditch us, easy as pie as we were bareback. He always stood quietly while we got back on and wouldn't run away.

Christmas time was special for us as we had a program put on by the grade school [one through eight]. It was held in the old Adobe Opera Hall, which burned down a few years later, and later in the big room of the school. The first I remember Santa, he came on stage and jumper over his head (hand spring) and frightened me. He then passed out sacks of nuts, candies and usually an orange or apple (which was a real treat in those days) to all the children which made me happy. Many of our Christmas presents were made by our parents or brother or sisters.

The yellow light from the coal oil (kerosene ) lamp was used to read and study. The lamps had to be refilled with oil and the wick trimmed regularly. The chimney was cleaned with old newspaper before lighting it in the evening. The long nights and short days brought us together in the kitchen as a family. The happenings of the day and events for tomorrow were discussed and reading and study took place there. A gas lamp with mantles ( white gas with no lead ) was used sometimes and had a strong white light but had to be pumped up each time it was used.

The depression of the thirties was a difficult time for our family as Dad had farm payments and Mothers Dr. bills. Money and work was hard to obtain. Some times tramps would stop and want something to eat, so mother would have them chop some cedar wood to earn a meal. They would eat and then walk on down the road looking for work. The Gypsies would stop and want a chicken to feed their families and sell or trade trinkets. Mother kept us in the house when they were near. We always had a big garden up in the field where it was easier to get water, as we had to irrigate weekly and pull weeds. The fruits and vegetables and meat was bottled for winter use and stored in the cellar along with root crops from the garden. Dried fruit was good occasionally for a treat. Making butter in the churn, after separating the cream in the spinning separator was a weekly task. The well was used to keep the milk a butter cold by putting them in the bucket and lowering them to touch the cold water and then tie the well rope real good. The radio keep us up to date on the news of World War II etc. The wind up record player provided music for the sisters to dance and listen to.
In the fall we would kill a pig and scald it in a barrel of hot water in order to scrape the hair off before cutting it up. The hams and bacon was cured in salt brine and then smoked to preserve the meat. When veal or a beef was killed some of the meat was hung up frozen in the shed where we could cut off pieces as needed during the winter months. Most of the meat was bottled so we could have meat any time of the year. Mother used the extra tallow and lard from the animals for home made lye soap to wash the cloths on the washboard or in the old Maytag washer with a gas engine and a wringer. Faye caught her arm in it and got blood instead of water. Water was heated in a large boiler on the wood stove. A hot fire was always needed on wash day. The lye soap was strong enough to kill germs, clean cloths or remove the skunk smell from Fred and I on one occasion.

We raised chickens to provide eggs and to sell. Oyster shells and ground up egg shells were feed to them to prevent shell less eggs, (membrane covered) some times the hens would hide a nest and raise some baby chicks. If the nest was found soon enough we could candle (shine a light through the egg) to see if it had a chick in it, rotten or good to eat. We had a great time chopping of heads, scalding and pulling feathers for pillows, etc. But it was sure nice to have roast chicken for Sunday dinner. We raised turkeys some years. The white turkeys didn't have the black pin feathers to pluck.

The wood pile was and important part of life on the farm. Dad, Fred and I hauled cedar trees from Long Hill with Mike and Brownie on a wagon or sleigh. The ax was used to chop the trees into blocks. We tried to keep the wood box full with chips for starting and blocks for heating the home and cooking. The wood range had a warming oven on top to put the bread in to raise and to dry our gloves etc. Mother cooked the meals on the big old stove that had six lids to put the fry pan or other kettles and pans on. The fry pan was placed on top for slow cooking and removed the lid for faster cooking. There was a reservoir to heat the water for washing the dishes and hands. We used the round tub in front of the oven door for our Saturday night bath. The oven was used mainly for baking but was nice to warm our feet and clothes on cold winter mornings. Dad would start the fire and call us to leave our warm beds to get dressed by the stove and go milk the cows. Mother would bake a cake in the oven and use a broom straw to see if it was done. We enjoyed a large batch of home made bread and a thick slice covered with butter and honey.
Mothers parents lived in Springville, Utah. One of my first memories was traveling by train and the old style toilet, that dumped on the tracks. I enjoyed the fruit orchard with cherries, apples etc. We stayed with Uncle Ross and Aunt Maude some times as they lived next door. Mother passed away in May 1941 with tick fever (tularemia) at the Dee Hospital in Ogden, Utah. She had a large wood tick about the size of the end of my finger, imbedded in her leg which was swollen hard as a rock. She probably got from milking the cows. This was a great loss in my young life but dad, sisters, brother, friends, and my pets helped me over the rough s