The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Greetings to everyone in Western Illinois.
As I write this, Monday night, it is a thunder'n, lightning and rain'n. Shore comes easy these days. With all the rain and cool weather, it seems possibly we lost some of the advantage of our early corn plant'n.
Last time folks was in the field around my parts was May 8, almost a full month ago. I didn't realize how cool we had it these last 30 days until last Sunday when suddenly the temperature rose to over 90 F.
My ole bones don't adjust to those radical temperature changes as once I recall they use to about 40 to 50 years ago. But then, maybe my memory has failed some on how strong I was back in them days.
One thing I remember for shore is way back then most folks were strong in certain ways least wize by today's standards cause deodorant if'n you could find it was for sissy.
Baths were used by the high falutin rich, while us farm folk shared water with the whole family. Ole jaspers was so strong ya could detect "em comin' a long ways off.
What we had a liberal supply of was butch wax, vitalis and for the poor folk a smidge'n of axle grease or so it appeared.
The men folk would have thought you a sissy if'n your hair blew fluffy in the wild like some do today with no hats on.
Your hat stuck fairly well to your greasy hair and most every male wore a hat.
It was thought only a fool wouldn't protect his head from the sun. Now with the discovery of skin cancer being caused by the sun, we appreciate a little more their wisdom.
Talk'n about the good ole days, I ran across the following information shared to me by Allison Barnes.
The year is 1909 and it is one hundred years ago:
The average life expectancy was 47 years.
Fuel for your car if'n you had one, which was probably a Model A Ford, was sold in drug stores only. It was only alcohol (ethanol) for gasoline hadn't been invented yet.
Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub and only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
There were only 8.,000 cars in the U.S. and only 144 miles of paved roads. The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
The average wage in 1909 was 22 cents per hour and the average worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
A competent accountant would expect to earn $2,000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
Sugar cost four cents a pound, eggs fourteen cents a dozen, and coffee fifteen cents a pound.
The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower. More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME. 90 percent of all doctors had no college education but instead attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government.
Most women only washed their hair once a month and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.
Canada passed a law forbidd'n poor people from entering into their country for any reason and the population of Las Vegas, Nevada was only 30.
Five lead'n causes of death were: 1. pneumonia and influenza. 2. tuberculosis
3. diarrhea 4. heart disease and 5. stroke.
The American flag had 45 stars. There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day. Crossword puzzles, canned beer and iced tea hadn't been invented yet.
Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write and only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school. Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help.
Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and bowels, and is in fact, a perfect guardian of health! Never mind all the drug addicts and problems it created.
There were about 230 reported murders in the entire USA! 95 percent of the taxes we have now did not exist in 1909.
Seems to me many of todays poor have it far better than most of the richest back in 1909.
I reckon we have much to be thankful for, upon proper reflection on these matters.
Keep on Smile'n
Catch ya Later
Barnyard Bruke