MEMORIES OF THE 



the school-ma'am's beau, although she did ask. Two days 

 thereafter I carried another letter to the postmaster for the 

 teacher's beau, paid the money he had so kindly advanced me, 

 and received from him the assurance that I was an honest boy, 

 just as he thought. 



The dear teacher, long since dead, never knew the hours of 

 trouble and anxiety the loss of the sixpence which was to pay 

 the postage on her love-letter had cost me. I have handled 

 millions of trust funds since, and have suffered personal losses 

 which worried me, but never have experienced the same deep 

 sense of financial responsibility, trouble and anxiety which I 

 had over that, my first financial embarrassment. 



After the summer and fall work was closed, the children had 

 to be made ready for school, which usually commenced in 

 December. This implied repairing their old clothes and making 

 some new ones. 



A shoemaker was engaged who went around the neighborhood 

 with his bench, which had in one end of it a wheel and in the 

 other handles, so that it became a wheelbarrow which could be 

 trundled from one house to another, carrying his tools and such 

 material as he furnished. This was called ''whipping the cat." 

 He came to the house and stayed a week or more. He measured 

 everybody's feet, and made all the shoes and boots needed. 

 He worked early and late, which required the holding of a 

 candle for him — another disagreeable job for the small boy. 

 The leather which he used was from the hides of animals 

 slaughtered on the farm and tanned at the halves in John 

 Bentley's tannery. There was always a good stock of sole- 

 leather, cowhide, kip and calfskin on hand with which to make 

 anything for which leather was required. 



The shoemaker whom I best remember was Paddy Carter. 



