Fifty years ago when a country boy wanted to have some cash he had to earn it. In the summertime that task could be accomplished by several ways. Growin garden produce and sellin it. Raisin chickens, turkey, rabbits--all worked. Summertime wasn't nearly as hard to make cash as wintertime. The elements restricted many activities in the winter that wasn't any problem in warm weather. We could still raise chickens, turkeys, rabbits as well as huntin wild game-all for sale. Now adays is't illegal to sell wild game. Ole Jeep and I would pick up corn left in the filed after the corn pickers went through. The easiest was runnin a trap line. We would trap mostly-coon, possum, muskrats, groundhog and the elusive mink---! Those dudes always fetched a bunch of cash. Usually $35. and up to as high as $75. for a big mink Coons brought about $2., possums--a buck, groundhogs about .50 and "rats" a buck or so. We did this for a couple winters and then decided we didn't need money that bad. Killin animals and sell'n their hides wasn't what we really wanted to do. We really enjoyed bein outside but there was always something about trappin that we just didn't like. So---we sold our steel traps and concentrated on trappin rabbits to eat. We'd also hunt coons too. Their meat was good--that is if it was young and tender.

The box trap was the most desireable way of trappin rabbit although the figure 4 snare worked real well also. Those long ago days are gone and that part of our lives will always be missed and thought of with a certain amount of pleasure--except those couple years of trappin.

Forty years ago I worked for a neighbor "blowin stumps" from cleared land. Another neighbor had cut out a fencerow, logged what he could and hired this other man to clean those stumps from the row. A new house was bein built and those stumps were right in front of the new house. All the logs, limbs and fence-posts were already cleared out. Only the stumps and a few "notches" were left. Those "notches" were what remained of the notch cut to direct the fall of the tree. We dug holes under the stumps, unwrap the dynamite and tamp it into those holes under the stump. A cap was then inserted with about 12" of fuse. We laid a "notch" ontop of a stump and with 6 sticks of dynamite underneat-we "tetched'r off". The "notch" ended up flyin about 200 feet in the air--the stump kinda raised up about a foot! We didn't lay anymore notches ontop of anymore stumps!

Dynamite was not a hard item to purchace then. For $6.00 per case and sign'n a paper tell'n where you were gonna blow stumps--you could buy as many as you had money. The local hardware store always had a large supply as it was a needed item for farmers. Fish'n with dynamite was and is a "no-no"!

Times have changed so much so that today seems like a completely different world than back then. I can't say I would ever want to go back, even if I could, but somethings from the past should be reinstuted now. Honesty-where a handshake was a man's bond, willing to help your neighbor with expecting pay, doors left unlocked to your house, barn and workshop. Your neighbor might need to borrow some tools--not very ofted, but it did happen on occasion. Nobody had heard of "dope" except when we were talkin about a local barber. He had broken a leg in a new 53 Chevy while home on leave from the Navy. The leg never healed-bone stickin out of his leg--he was on pain killin drugs and kinda got used to the idea of feelin "good" and started selllin to some of his younger customers. BTW-he also had another little venture. Sellin drivers licenses to teens to buy beer with! I never partook of any of his vices--pap would've thumped ole Jeep and me if we'd "partook of the drink"! I don't regret it at all!

The best thing about livin in the country now is I don't have to compete with anybody for anything. I can be myself without worry'n what the neighbors think. I'll get along with'm--even the "city dudes" who move out here and attempt to bring the city with'm. Dumpin trash alongside the roadway, in the creeks and even on your land. Trash collectors do charge some but then again it might be easier to just dump in the country.

Settin outside under the shade trees in the summertime-drinkin Iced Tea, pik'n my banjer a mite, sing'n to ole Calvin a mite. It may be "hicky" and "backwoodsy" to most folks but that's ok. If everybody loved it as much as I do--my dream place would probably become a little city in the country from all those city folks movin out here! I'm not opposed to folks but I sure do love my privacy!!

Have ya'll thanked the Master for all the Blessings of this life? Where would we be if He held up those blessings? I'd surely be dead! Old hoot. Matt. 24:44

-- old hoot gibson (hoot@pcinetwork.com), March 17, 2002

Answers

I remember those days well. I picked strawberries all summer long, for school clothes, I earned all of 18.00 dollars. I waited for the sears catalog to come in mail. And I would spend hours trying to fiqure out what clothes to buy for school with my money. There was one movie house about nine miles away, Us kids with our dime, would walk all the way to go to the Sat. movie, all country roads, We never worried about any one harming us, Come home in the dark. My parents never worried. I live on a narrow country road now, and when I walk in morning there is always more garbage thrown out, and lots of beer cans, There is poor folks who pick up the cans, but the paper stuff has to rot into the ground. God Bless everyone

-- Irene texas (tkorsborn@cs.com), March 17, 2002.

Hoot,I'm not too old but I grew up in the 60,s and I remember some of the things you mention.My Daddy trapped every winter ,bought our Christmas,winter clothes and oil for the stove.there was 6 of us kids still home then.I dont suppose our doors even had locks,and you know what really gets us is Our Mom used to say; stay away from so and so he,s a dirty ole man ,well you better believe we did but we thought she meant he needed a bath.We were so innocent and that was okay in our world,but not today.I still leave my doors unlocked,I,ve gotten up a few times and found the wind had blown my front door open I wasnt worried about people coming in more so about coyotes or dogs .OH,and I do love to set outside doing nothing more than soaking up the blessings from our Heavenly Father you know like sunshine and birds singing and....willa in IL.

-- willa in Il. (goodall6@hotmail.com), March 17, 2002.

I'm almost 8 years older than Hoot, entered nurses' training in '54, so I missed much of what he writes about. One year, Pappy financed 10 chickens for me to raise and sell. The deal was I would take care of all the chickens (including cleaning the hen-house as needed) and wouldn't have to pay for any of the feed my chickens ate. Pappy's chickens were White Rocks, 200, if I remember right, mine were Dominecks. When they were big enough to eat, we killed and dressed mine and sold to local restaurant for $1.25 each. The summer before I was senior in HS, I stayed with neighbor elderly lady for $2.00 per day. Pappy drove me there about 7 a.m., I walked home, probably a mile and a half, around 3 or 4 pm. That was the year I had my first new dress, ready made. Mom made my clothes and we went to rummage sales, too. My first job as RN paid 75 cents an hour! I thought I was walking in tall cotton!

-- GibsonGirl in s.e.Illinois (bobtravous@email.com), March 17, 2002.

50 years ago was 6 years before I was born, so I have no experience, but Hoot, you forgot to mention baling/throwing hay! A country boy can still earn $ doing that here...IF you can find one willing to sweat and work in the heat. My 75+ yearold neighbor can't find anyone to help him anymore. Seems like all the young "country" kids want to work in the a.c. stores. Our son is 12 and he will be throwing an few bales this summer, I tell him hard work makes hard muscles and a good mind.

-- Lynelle SOwestVA (X2ldp@aol.com), March 18, 2002.

Oops- forgot to add the most important part; "He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread: but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough." Prov. 28:19.

-- Lynelle SOwestVA (X2ldp@aol.com), March 18, 2002.