MOJAK

EXERCISE BOOK

FOR

PEN OR PENCIL

Monday November 16th 1925.

I got up at five this morning and milked before day light so as to get a good start. I had to get some wood for Marj. before leaving so sawed up a couple of rails from the road fence and also the old apple tree that they cut down in front of the school house and which I lugged over here yesterday. I told Marj. if she ran out of wood to put coal on which she did before running short of wood and which was a good thing as the wind is cold to-night. I got over home in fairly good time and Dad. told me Niel had been in and offered him his price for Elgitha $65.00 saying as usual that he wouldn't make a cent on her but they had room for her in the car so wanted her. I went back to the gully and drove her up to the barn and then Dad. and I led her down to the car. We didn't have any trouble with her, poor old girl, it wasn't like the time we led her home from the same place. We weighed her and she surprised us by only weighing 1440 as we thought she would weigh more but she is old and not fat for her. I had to go up town to get some stuff and Dad went to Aunty's to wait for me. I asked him what he wanted of Elgithas price for boarding her and he said if I would get him a plug of Old Virginia at

Henderson's, he would be satisfied so I got him four half pound plugs. I paid up two or three small accounts around town as I felt mighty affluent when I stuffed $65.00 into my pocket after having been broke or nearly so for so long. When I finally got down to Auntys it was after twelve and Dad. was having dinner with them so I sat right down too. Frank was alone for dinner at home as Enah was down helping her father straighten up the house. Dad. and I came back to the farm right after dinner and bagged up a small grist and then caught 12 of Tim's ducks and put them in bags and took them up to Jack McBrides. They averaged 8 1/2 lbs apiece and Jack paid 16 cts a pound for them. I got home just before dark and spent the evening reading a LIbrary book called "The Sport of Fate" which I borrowed from Aunty Alice. Cloudy & strong cold north west wind, getting colder to-night. I noticed this morning before day light that I could see the reflection of the East End light every time it flashed quite plainly I never noticed it before from out here but it was very cloudy, so I suppose that accounted for it I had Harry B. out of bed looking at it and he seemed quite interested. Dad. had another letter from Mr Parks, very cheerful. He hopes the end of the month to settle things

Tuesday November 17th

I spent the fore noon doing chores and odd jobs. I shut my calf up in the shed as she has been determined lately to pasture off the wheat. I made her an oat box and gave her some but I don't think she ate them. One fool trick I did was to put the cream down at the road forgetting that this was not Charlies hauling day although he has been going on Wednesdays now for several weeks. Trum. took it down to the corner so I had to go after it. This after noon I went over to Cam's sale. There was a good crowd there but they were slow selling things Dunning had an understudy with him and he sold a lot of the junk but he was pretty poor at it. I bought a cracked iron frying pan which I had an idea Marj. wanted for a quarter and the corn planter which is a different model and better than the ordinary ones for fifty cents, and that was the extent of my purchases, but Dad. bought the hog rack and waggon box which is some of John Wesses manufacture so therefore the best. I nearly froze standing around so came home before every thing was sold. Roy Dell came with the bread while I was in here getting warm and what was very strange for him was in a very talkative mood and regaled us with old

dinner, which was the best insurance for a happy birthday all round that we could think of. They sent her out a doll by me yesterday and so we gave it to her at breakfast, and she was certainly tickled with it. Poor old Harry B. had a terrible craving for it but realizing that his usual "Might is Right" principle would be less than ever tolerated on Gay's birthday he didn't take it by force but resorted to all manner of coaxing to which Gay was impervious to it as she was to Marj's suggestions that maybe the baby would like her daddy to hold her for awhile. I drove down just before dinner and brought Aunty & Aunty Alice out. We had a regular birthday dinner with a cake and two burning candles in it. This after noon I took a bag of clothes over to the school house as Mabel had asked Marj. for some to give to a poverty stricken English woman back at Townsend Centre. On my way back I encountered Tupper who had got the grader while I was down town and was dragging the road. He is the new foreman. He kept me talking for quite awhile and then I threw the furrows out of some of the ditches I ploughed out yesterday. I drove Aunty & Aunty Alice back about four and went up to Dr. Cook's and got Marj. another bottle of medicine. Mild but cloudy.

Saturday November 21st

I spent a good part of the morning doing chores and went out to throw some more furrows out of the ditches in the corn stubble but ran across Art Quanbury who was cleaning out a ditch on the road and he talked so long that I didn't get much done before dinner. After dinner I rocked the Niblets for an hour in a vain effort to put him to sleep and then went out and made some strike outs in the corn stubble. It was a most discouraging job as the ground was so soft that it offered no resistance and I had to stop every few feet to take grass roots of the coulter's shear. In the wettest places, the horses had to just flounder through and with Queen so quick & Belle so slow and lame it was an impossibility for me to set up pretty crowns even if I was able to do it under favourable conditions, however I got nearly halfway across the field and I am hoping they will let some of the surplus water get away. Beautiful day clear & mild, strong wind.

Sunday November 22nd

We were late getting around this morning and didn't do much but odd jobs & chores. I lay around and read for awhile and went over and spwept out the school house. It was a very gloomy sort of day with a cold

wind and occasional snow flurries, but about three o'clock it seemed to clear up a little, and so I walked to go over there & get a bag of oats. Mary handled the {slide?} up and we all drove over. We were there for about an hour, {Ernie?} was giving Mary some old clothes that she thought might be useful and some stuff that Miss Newell gave her to give Mary. It was beautiful new goods to make a dressing gown. It was nearly dark when we started for home and was beginning to snow. When we turned north, it was snowing hard and was striking us with very uncomfortable force almost full in the face. Harry B who was sitting down in the front couldn't or wouldn't put his head down to escape itbut held it up and wailed dismissively all the way home. Mary on my lap had her face turned away from the storm but she looked too in sympathy with Harry B, so we made a merry party. The baby was well covered up in Mary's arms so went to sleep. Mary told Harry B made up stories about himself and the rabbits at the top of her voice to pacify him but with indifferent success, however we were none the worse

Monday November 23rd

Every thing was frozen tight this morning with the ground covered with snow as I didn't try to

Tuesday November 24th

I spent the day feathering around doing chores, fooling around with the chickens, and picking up cider apples. I had to make a couple of changes for the chickens. I was surprised to find that there were still thirteen brown leghorns not laying as I have twenty five shut up and I never could count more than thirty, that brings the total up to thirty eight and so I only had about forty three grow big enough to feather out well. I haven't lost since as I {feared?}. The next problem is to catch them as I can't locate their roosting place. {illegible} was here working all day and I drove her home tonight. Mr. Allen Lampher came over this evening. Still frozen up. Cold north west wind

Wednesday November 25th

I did up the chores this morningand then felt so tough that I came in and lay down. Harry B. told me a story that he made up and I went to sleep and stayed there until noon. I then got up had some dinner and felt better. It was cloudy and snowing this morning when I lay down but at noon the sun was shining and it was much milder. I wanted to go down and get some grit and feed for the chickens so Mary said as it was a such a lovely day she would like to go down to the Bagleys. We got away some after two hours and left them all at the Bagleys' and then went down to Billy Lang's but his place was locked, so I went on over home to get some wheat and there was no one around the house there, so I went to the field back of the {orchid?} where {illiagble} was cleaning out ditches and he said Dad & {Enoch?} were both downtwon. I got my wheat and got home at noon. Mary & Nellie were out next by Willie Shaundis's fence so I had to put them in and as Mary ran up towards the house and then she & Nellie both ran down into the gully I had a lively time pursuing the, I finally got them all safely into the stable & also fed the chickens and put some more corn in the {illigable} so I was here for half and hour before I started back to twon for the family. I stopped in at the farm on my way in and Dad gave me forty five dollars of the money he got from land for the {illegible}. I didn't know she had gone yet. He gave me some of the letters of Mrs. Phelps to send and said he got a card today saying everything was satisfactory and he hoped to get before the judge in about a fortnight. Ms. Dakkon has been saying all day that he hoped to wind it up the first of December but like the {breeze?} that anchors the rainbow, it seems to be able to keep just beyond our grasp, but I suppose that meerly adds to the interest and enhances the dime-novel effect