TI yV\ £ ■ O I j'/\ Y:' r IA i D
u
By: Mrs, Fred Richards
• A few of ray friends and I were reminiscing the other
day about the so-called: "Good old days,*' I had an idea that
you might enjoy some of the things of which we were reminded.
F’rinstance - Kow many of you remember the dam that was
just back of the mill? It was used to fuirnish power for the
mill before the present power house was erected.
How many of you remember -
When Lawndale had street lights?
y/hen our town could boast of a swimming pool and a
theater? Grandpa Blanton (Father of Jim), Mrs. LiHy Cloningej:
Mrs, Bess Richards, etc. were keepers of the pool). V/ill Fox
reeled off those wonderful western thrillers at the theater.
I remember when well-meaning mothers tied a little bag of
asafetida around their children's necks to prevent them catch-
ijTg contagious diseases. It seemed to get results. I don’t
know whether,^the germs just couldn't endure the smell, or perhaps the other children
couldn't get near enough to give them any germs. .
Do you remember 'way back when you either courted in-day light or you courted
in the family parlor? ' You (if you were a girl) took your:beau in^the-parlor, leav
ing all the doors open. You seated him on one end of the sofa.Tou sat' down on the
other. You pulled your skirts down, just so, and prepared forgay afternoon of
looking at the family album, or looking through the. stereoscope (If you were the
proud possessor of one). If you wanted to be, real daring, you^d get in a few hot
licks at the console of the family organ before Papa shouted in to remind you that
you shouldn't play and sing'such wicked songs as ''Sweot Adeline" or "Red Wing" on
the Sabbath, • Little brother ^Toiild pop out. of the most unusual places, at the odd
est times, to nip s'vveet romance in the bi^, A few years later the swains devised a
plan to get rid of Junior. They'd get some couples together and go kodaking. This
usually took them up to Sulphur Springs, by way of Maple Creek bridge (I'll bet the
two or three bridges that have spanned that creek in the last thirty years have been
photographed more times than Mrs, Eleanor Roosevelt).
Remember, the, odd stylos that v/ero featured? Little boys wore th^i^ hair cut in
a butcher boy bob. They were tight little short pants and great billowy blouses,
puckered up ,w[ith a draw string■a't'':.the bottom. Little girls and boys wore stockings.
In tl^e. winter they ;wore "long-handled'^' union .suits stuffed down in them. I remember
how embarrassed]: 'd be-when a. hole would come in my black stockings and the white
would i>hov/ through. One of the .first hair 'styles, for women that I’remember was
effected by combing the top hair back over a large ir'at, and combing the side hair
down over^'a rat placed over each ear (Those were cailcd cbc tie-garages), the remain
ing hair was drawn to the back and twisted into a bun,at the back* If little boys
happened t?o. have curly . hair, it was allowed to grow arid grovi (Because he looked
ju^t too - too. precious in curls to allow them to 'be .cut) Remember how mothers stood
outside the barber shop (because they couldn't bear to ;see tHe darling lamb shorn)
Vihen'the boy finally grev; big enough to have a say-so in his own defense?
Wasn't it grand to be a criild? V/e didn't think so at the time. But do you
remember the delicious feeling yo^ bad the first time, you, wore allowed to go "bare
footed" — the gravels tickled, but iny, hovj good the cool soft earth felt,
• . Did you ever smell anythijig that- smelled'half, as good as the house did after
'spring cleaning? Spring cleaning was really something back v;heh ! was a child.
Everything was carried out of the house and cleaned. The house was scrubbed fyom
top to bottom. The Straw ticks were emptied (You only had mattresses on the Com
pany bed, and they were as hard as rocks), washed and refilled with new sweet straw.
If you had been real good, you were allowed to wash your feet and climb upon that
(Continued on next page)