Cape Breton's Magazine

GL for me the next time. A lot better than go? ing all over Boston, and back to the farm. I knew so many people, from having a res? taurant in downtown Boston; I knew a great great great many people. And everybody started coming up to the farm to see Lexie. And there was a lake and a dance hall near? by, and that was an attraction. Lots of nights I went to bed and there was nobody there, and in the moming--they' d come, and go to the dance, and climb in on Lexie, you know. So that was it. It was wonderful. Everybody had fun and a good time. Everything turned out good. I came home every summer. I made 28 trips in 30 years. Mind--I couldn't come home in the summer, I'd write my dad. And he'd say, "I'm in awful poor spirits." I got the let? ter, I'd pack. I'd be home. So another thing that happened--gas went up during the war. In 1940 I guess, or sometime. And the people weren't doing the travelling that they were. And I was hav? ing too much to do, and I was getting more stock. I got turkeys, I got geese, I got guinea hens. I also got a fox that killed some of my hens, I got dogs, and chained the whole place around, the dogs on chains. So I turned one of the kitchens into a com? munity kitchen. And I had a garden. We had so much garden we had to get rid of stuff-- bury it, you know. We just threw it in and grew, and hired a boy now and then for weeding what I wanted, and let the rest take what they wanted. So I told them I'd charge for the rooms. I wouldn't get meals or anything. They could have stuff out of the garden when they wanted to. People on vacation. They could come home and leave whenever they wanted to. So that worked out great. The commun? ity kitchen, you know. And they got friends, they made friends, you know. I rented every room then. They had companion? ship. You couldn't even get in that kitch? en if you wanted to. They'd be all around ' there, getting meals. I called it "The Giant Maples." There were about 12 great big huge giant maples in front of the house. (People would stay....) A few days, a week. It was a great thing. And I never heard of it before. If I had a place three times as large, I could have filled it. I went down to the horse auction and bought a horse. A beauty. He was dandy, and the children loved him, and everybody learned to horseback ride • Then a farmer that lived not too far from me came down with a beautiful calf over his shoulder, a Guernsey. He had no room for her and he couldn't bother with her. So I had a cow, a beautiful Guernsey cow. I had a horse and a cow and 5 dogs. And 10,000 hens and 500 turkeys I kept each year. (And people visiting.) Oh, all the time. I was running it all myself? There was a girl, a strong 18-year-old girl that lived near me, neigh? bours, and she loved that kind of work, you know, she was strong. CONTINUED NEXT PAGE 6 Boutiques Under 1 Roof: 2nd FL, Over TWEED & HICKORY 'ditim'lc FOR THE LARGER SIZES 'tabi* SPORTSWEAR WITH ELEGANCE Tweed Sport CLOTHES FOR THE OUTDOORS YOUR MATERNITY SHOP • LJI rCTITCS FOR THE 5'2" AND UNDER ALL DISCOUNT PRICES JACOBSON'S Discount Outlet: High-Fashioned, Quality Merchandise at Unbelievably Low Prices Don't Miss This Unique Discount Operation! 40 Pitt Street under Tweed & Hickory 263 CHARLOTTE STREET, SYDNEY 564-6308