Cape Breton's Magazine

(Did you, when you went to Boston, though --I guess what I'm asking is, did you find yourself on that farm living a life like your mother's?) Oh, no. No. I couldn't say that. Because I had a washing machine, I had a refrigerator--it wasn't a refrigera? tor- -it was an icebox I had those days. The iceman would come twice a week. (Was your mother making soap?) Oh, yeah. All the soap was made. They'd save all this fat from the cow--you know, when they'd kill a cow, or the animals. And that's one game we used to have. We used to snare the rabbits--we'd snare--but we wouldn't take them out of the snare. Papa used to have to go out and get them. Oh, golly, it was fun for us to do it. But then in the morning we'd go out to see if we got one. And we thought that was great, you know, to go out. And then when we'd see that little thing jumping around, it scared the wits out of us. So we wouldn't --but Roddy got pretty brave, you know, he could take them out of there, tQo. But if it was jumping around, he'd let it loose. But if it was mostly dead, he could take it out and bring it home. And Papa, I guess, would finish it. But none of that was shown--we didn't see any of the butchering done. Never. The girls. But my brothers did. We wouldn't see anything, until they were hung up on the rafters.... And we used to--when they were fishing-- the women used to come down to the shore and help the men, cleaning the fish. (And would the younger children go down too?) Oh, everybody--if Mama went, we went. At our house, we could stand in the front door and we could see Papa's boat coming in. That's when he was fishing off our own We're Open Daily, 7 A. M. to 9 P.M. TEA EOO Specializing in Seafood & Home Baking ('Lobster Supper-all the mussels you can eat-4-9 ' Grenville St., St. Peter's 535-2089 Entrepreneur of the Year Award • Cape Breton Tourist Association 1989 St. Peters Drug Store Ltd. Don Stone, Ph. C, Proprietor Open 6 Days a Week Monday to Friday open until 8 p.m. Saturday open until 5 p.m. 535-2203 St. Peters, Richmond County, N. S. land. And we'd see the boat--well, when the boat came so that we couldn't see it with the hill there, then we'd start for the shore. And we'd get there just as Papa was getting the boat--you know, getting stuck in the sand. Then we'd help him pull the boat in. Sometimes he'd have a good load of fish in the boat. And it was the oar boat that they had those days. There was no such thing as a motor boat. D. B. MacLeod (the local merchant) was the only one that had that. And my mother would have a pail, and she'd have his dinner in it. And he'd come in, and he'd sit down and he'd eat his dinner. And we'd be all throwing stones, and we were doing this and that, you know, on the shore. And then he'd rest for awhile, and then he'd start cleaning the fish.... When the women used to (gather)--they used to have carding frolics, they called it. Or spinning frolics. A bunch of women-- probably there'd be a spinner or two--two spinning--and there'd be a couple carding the wool. And there'd be one or two wind? ing up when the bobbin'd fill.... (This would be all in one house doing one wom? an's wool.) Yeah. Even Angus Smith's wife would come up. And the night before, one of the boys would bring the wheel up, on his shoulder. Mary Ann'd come over. And Peggy Thomais, probably, and Colie's moth? er, Annie, and maybe Mrs. Urquhart. And there'd be spinning. They'd come, proba? bly, around 9 o'clock or so. They'd spin. Then there'd be a big dinner made. And us girls, older girls'd be getting the dinner. There'd be stories and laughter. But to re? member them--it's little stories. I guess, something that happened. I can't remember any of them. I can't, really and truly. But I can see the women laughing. And then they'd eat dinner--a good hearty dinner. They'd sit back for probably 10 or 15 min? utes, you know. And then they'd get busy again until around 4 o'clock. The carding and the spinning and the whole thing was done. And my mother'd have enough yarn done, you know, for socks, sweaters, what? ever she was going to make. And then maybe a few days after that, they'd be at some? body else's house. So they were making frolics like that all winter. The Violin Shop Johannes Sturm Violinmaker/repairer Quality Repairs to String Instruments Custom Work Bow Rehairing New and Used Instruments Strings Accessories Forlnformatlon or appointment, call (902) 345-2883 R. R. 1, Grand Anse, Richmond County, N. S. BOE 1V0 Travel Richmond Ck}unty's Route 4