Cape Breton's Magazine

given to us, to go and take his life. What can you do? Only an animal. But anyway, we had him on pasture and rest? ed up for a couple of years. And that meat --we had some of it. I tasted it, but I couldn't swallow it. No, I couldn't swallow it. We didn't keep any for ourselves, but I wanted to know how tender it was. And it was tender--well, a couple of years on the grass. You know, it wasn't the same meat at all--it wasn't the same animal! (But you couldn't eat it.) I couldn't swallow it, I couldn't, no. Lennox sold it to somebody. (Why couldn't you eat it?) Because I thought--it was like a pet to me. (I wanted to be sure it wasn't because you didn't like the meat.) No, no, dear, no. It's that I couldn't--my heart--! threw up--"I can't," I said. "Here, taste a lit? tle." "Take it away, I don't want it...." (Did your husband continue farming right up until the end?) Did he continue working up until the end? He didn't continue with the milk cows. But he continued with the beef cattle. Because the milk cows--it meant too much work for him. He didn't have a milking machine. He could have got one, but he didn't care; he wanted to milk by hand. So we had as high as 8, 9, 12 cows that he used to milk by hand. So oc? casionally, when he would have a hard day's work, I would go out and milk the The Mayor and Council of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality are pleased to congratulate Cape Breton's Magazine as it marks its 25th Year of publication. Over the years, Cape Bre? ton 's Magazine has repre- , J ,, ... ., , Mayor John Coady sented the communities that now make up the Cape Breton Regional Municipali? ty, in Gaelic and French and Mi'kmaq and English. In the face of change, the magazine has preserved for us much that will not change: the lives and stories of all our people • our MacDonalds and Rucks, Yazers and O'Briens, Deveaus and Sylliboys • the courage and good humour that make Cape Breton a precious place, a place to enjoy life and a place worth saving. We are proud to have been a longtime supporter of Cape Breton's Magazine. cows. I could milk--I was a good milker.... (At what age did you start hooking mats?) Well, we started to learn when I was about 7. Of course, when I went to school, I didn't have that much time because I had to study a lot in order to get something into my mind. I don't know, I just couldn't grasp things as quickly as some of the other pupils did. But however, I was married quite early. And af? ter I got married, then I found some leisure time to hook, you know. And every few min? utes or--if it was only even 10 minutes--! would sit down and do a little bit of hook? ing in between, if ! had a dinner cooking or something. And that's how !--altogether I hooked close to 200. (No!) Yes. And of course, do you know what we used to do then? I'd hook a number of mats. And there was a man going around selling oil? cloth for floors--you "know, by the yard, or squares or something. And we thought--they had just come out then. And we thought that was just wonderful. Our mats didn't mean a thing. We'd hook and hook and hook. And he'd come and give us a piece of oilcloth-- for something we'd hooked for dear knows how long. But we didn't value our hooking. And he did. But we valued what he was sell? ing, and we wanted to get our floors cov? ered with the oilcloth. Cultivate your family 'cou' Your public library has: s.' How-to Books, Directories, Guides Census/Vital Statistics Records County and Local Histories Family Histories Old Newspapers, etc. Library collections include materials in English, French, Gaelic, etc. The Local History and Genealogical Collection is concentrated on Inverness, Richmond and Guysborough counties - the library's service area. Eastern Counties De5ional Library 390 Murray Street, P. O. Bag 2500 Mulgrave, Nova Scotia BOE 2G0 Telephone: (902) 747-2597 FAX: (902) 747-2500 email: [email protected]