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They. Still Keep A Broom At The Door Years ago when we were first setting up housekeeping and my green bride was not yet aware ..of all the country customs, old Cyrenus Hastings stuck his head in the back door and called, "Where's your broom!" I can't write it the way he said it -- halfway between broom and brum. I got him a broom, and he swept the newfallen snow from * his great lunmiberman's boots and came into the house to sit a spell and exercise our rocker. : Since then any sign of snow here causes the broom to be stood by the back door in an- cient Maine style. "Snowing a mite," I will say, and she says, "Oh, then I'll put the broom out in case Cyrenus comes" Old Cyrenus stopped coming long since, but many a new boot has been swept clean by the broom / he taught my wife to keep handy for snow. And now, with the swift yeats, I notice people aren't sweeping their feet any more Some few do, still; but mostly folks march up to our back steps, thump the panel, twist the knob, -and walk right past the broom to bring all their nice wet snow for the floor. And I notice back-door steps aren't accoutred with brooms so much now, I think it was a nice little custom, and should never have waned. Snow, back then, wasn't something the civil authorities removed to the quick, but was a friendly, useful, not unpleas- ant aspect of winter which could be lived with easily. Now peo- ple come in low shoes and rub- bers, and sometimes without even rubbers, and you can go all over the county. with sum- mertime gear. Then you wore some kind of 'hi-cut, or galoshes, and expected to trudge a good deal in deep snow. When it came to entering a house, you swept - your feet -- and every home had a 'broom out so you could do it. There was always a broom at the schoolhouse, at the. church; and sometimes at the store. You didn't track in. I haven't seen. any now for, some - time, but there used to be a commodity called felt boots. They were, without question, the warmest, most comfortable footwear for winter use, They were made of thick, coarse felt, a little hairy, and their soles probably. had some hemp or cardboard. thrown in for stiffen- ing.y They laced "up almost to your knee, the top half having hooks instead of eyelets " Out-of-doors, you wore a pair of heavy gum. rubbers on them, which kept you "dry-shod and RAUL COMES CLEAN -- Raul «Castro, brother of Cuban pre- mier Fidel, Is snapped In Ha- vana = minus his well-known beard and pony tall haircut. Cl gave you traction. They were ideal for all outdoor farm work, and in 40-below weather your feet would always be cozy -- which was not true of cowhides. And, a very good arrangement, when you came into the house you could slip off the rubbers and the felts made just as good slippers as anybody ever had. A bit high, but fine, Felt boots did have one fault. Their internal combustion sys- tem set up a natural pedal reac- tion which could offend in a close room with fussy people. Their usefulness in the open was their failing in the parlor, Also, this steaming tendency which made them so salubrious in the cold outdoors had a a way of coming through at the ankles, so "the snow would melt there some, and then freeze again, and this built up great balls of ice. which clung to the fibers. * This didn't impede the efficiency of the boot, but it gave you something to whack at when you tried to sweep it off, It wouldn't sweep off. You could whack at your ankles un- you'd just get a hearty jingle- jangle like a crystal chandelier in a high wind, You could pull the ice balls off with your fin- gers, but not with your mittens on, and standing there doing it while supper waited was a chil- ly matter worth remembering when grayheads speak of the the ice would remove enough fibers so the boots went weak at the ankles. Another thing you could do was remove the boots at once and let them melt by the fire, but the felt ah- times took more than overnight to dry them again. Cowhide boots, swept on the step, were. a lot. easier to get ready for tomorrow, although we did have to grease them now and then. We did this 'with neatsfoot. oil, which you could then buy without hunting: the state over. It was an oil made from the hooves of neat cattle, or oxen, and it would make leather boots as: wet-proof as a duck. Best way was to pour it in a baking pan and stand the boots in it 'so the leather would soak up well. You used a dauber "to cover the uppers. This chore had a rich farm aroma, and: every kitchen had a corner "where boots were greased and:because of constant dripping the. planks would be oiled as well: as dny boots for an-area of about four 'feet. And there was forever and ever a harnessy smell there, ripest in August when the weather assist- ed in dispensing it. One point being that you could wear felt . boots in the other room, but oily leather boots were not conten- anced on a sofy. I lean, myself, towards felts, They were harder to sweep, but their other ad- vantages were telling. Today the floors you come in on are laid with linoleum and well waxed, and a quick cotil- lon with a mop takes no longer than: sweeping. The wide pine planks of old farmhouses were another story, But if you confe to our door in snowtime, you'll find a broom there, and we'd appreciate it if you'll sweep. We like to keep a custom here and there, Old Cyrenus, when he swept, used to up-end the broom and whack his heels with the handle -- 'not wholly to show "he was thorough, but to crack any ice that might send him under the wash bench when he crossed the threshold. -- By John Gould in the Christian Science Monitor. "In times of trial," sald a preacher to his congregation of convicts, "what brings us the greatest comfort?" "Acquittall" mumbled a voice from the back. Ea SSS ISSUE 9 -- 1960 ' CROSSWORD ACROSS 87. Augment 1. Foollike part DOWN 4. Capital o 1. Soft foo Oregon 3. Old Fr. coin 9. - . Dregs 4 Fa Ins 4, Meat dish 12. Adept : Bist 13. Legend an oe 15. Kind of gaite: syllable 17. Fruit 18. Pull after 19. Take out 21. Unite closely 238. Yellow ocher 24. Tufted plant 28. Turkish eéally! 29/8urfaces a 'street © 31. 01d soldier colloq.) - 32.2000 pounds 33. Alert . 34. Japanese outcast * discourteous 37. Floor coverin 38. Peace of mina 0. Square root 1 b 4 Attempt 5. Help $. Rounded roofs tpt pt ow 1. Past tense 29 ending 30. B. Indian 3: Pornce, 39, So ont . Point a gun , Bo! . Also ° £ 41. Conjunction 1. Girl's name 43. Uttered 4. Abound 44. Branches ot 16. Bushy clump learning 10. Beparated 45. Tuber 20, Football team 46. Taro fasts 21, Beverage 41. Finis 22. Funera 48, Identical oration 49. Wear 23. Greet 50. Brood of 25. Fraggerate phéasants 26. Bodily posture 52. Perform 27. Men's parties 53 Tyne measure 7 U Answer elsewhere on this page til the broom shattered, and. olden days. In time, pulling off sorbed the water and it some- - Sarah, ; PATTERN FOR SURVIVAL -- "Painted" with a snowplow, this composition in manner of the modern school Is a design for survival; it permits cattle near Aberdeenshire, Scotland, to reach ground cover for fodder. THE In a small, compact laboratory at Ottawa, a total of 114,651 samples of cheese were analysed for extraneous matter last year by white-frocked technicians working with spotless, stainless steel equipment. For the small (normally less than six employees) staff of the Canada Department of Agricul- ture cheese laboratory, it was. a record year -- surpassing the 1958 "test by seven and a half per cent. . .. About 97 per cent of the cheese graded fulfilled the re- quirements of Canada First Grade from the standpoint of extraneous matter, says F. D, -Murphy, the official in. charge of testing operations. This is slight- ly lower than the previous year's percentage. « » Canada was first to undertake this analytical work on a nation- al: basis. And, since this coun- try poneered in the work equip- ment in the laboratory was de- signed by leaders in the Cana- dian cheese industry. Now reports indicate - that Australia has taken a page from the book of her Commonwealth sister country. Australia has in- stituted a method of 'testing for extraneous matter that is almost identical to the 'one Canada has had for several years, + * A sample of cheese is taken from each vat graded and for- warded to the Ottawa lab for analysis. Samples are referred to as having Disc 1, Disc 2, 3 or 4. The first two discs qualify the cheese for inclusion in Can- ada First Grade, Disc 3 Canada Second Grade, and Disc 4 Can- ada Third Grade, or below -- depending 'on the nature of the sediment. , " * At first, results of the analy- sis were relayed to the milk pro- ducer and cheese manufacturer for their information only. In 1954, though, the federal gov- ernment, ruled that every vat must be tested for extraneous matter and that a premium would not be paid unless they were Discs 1 or 2. (Premiums have been paid on top quality Canadian cheese since 1939.) * LJ * In 1057, the Canada Dairy Products Act was amended to make extraneous matter analy- sis a factor In determining grade. Of the toal samples tested last year, 25,910, or 22.6 per cent, were classed Disc 1; 85,490, or 74.5 per cent, Disc 2; 2,979, or 2.6 per cent, Disc 3; and 272, or 0.23 per cent, Disc 4. . * * Underscoring the advancement made in the testing program to date is the fact that in 1953, out of 85000 samples, 46,000 were classed as Discs3 and 4, and in 1956, out of 107,000 samples, 25,000 were Discs 3 and 4. Last year~ there were many more samples and only 3,000 in the bottom two classifications. ' LJ LJ * Apple sauce, traditionally . served with pork, may now ac- company other meats to the din- ner table in the form of canned jellied apple sauce. The jellieds sauce was devel- oped at the Canada Department ' of Agriculture Research Station at Summerland, B.C, as one of a series of products intended to utilize surplus apples of dessert varieties. Ln Though normal fruit jellies must contain more than 65 per cent sugar in order to set, use of a special pectin permits a gel to be formed from sweet- ened apple sauce containing not more than 30 per cent sugar. Fruit acid is added to impart a good tart flavor to jellied sauce' made from low-acid dessert varieties, FARM FRONT The set of the jelly is control- led by varying the proportions of pectin, sugar, and acid so that the products will be firm enough to slice, yet not too stiff to spread, . . . Addition of red food coloring gives an attractive product for 'serving with turkey or chicken, and a nutmeg-flavored jelly is good with ham or pork. LJ * * Want to get the most out of your pole barn? Then consider this: At the Nappan, N.S., federal experimental farm, it was found that large, pole-type loating barns used for cattle in winter make execellent shelters for rearing pullets in. confinement during spring and summer. * LJ LJ T., M. MacIntyre reports that 2,000 White Leghorns were rear- ed from eight to 20 weeks in a pole barn 40 by 100 feet. Five doors, three in front and one at each end, were wired so that they could be left open or closed depending on the weather. Feed hoppers and water fonts were arranged so as to leave a central alley wide enough for _a truck, Tubular - type feeders held a sufficient feed for one week. Movable roosts, four feet high, left floor space for the birds during the day. . i . This method of rearing pul- lets elminated losses from pre- datory animals, reduced feeding time, and cut down on late even- ing and early morning attention. Nutty Things About Apples Apple growers everywhere are excited by the news that a fruit farmer in South Africa has pro- duced apple trees which bear fruit all the year round and never shed their leaves. Before putting the tree on the market, says a report from Wel- lington, South Africa, the far- mer sent a number to friends in all parts of the country to test under all possible conditions. All reported that the trees grew exteremely well and are bearing apples "up to the best of expec- tations." . What's more, says the farmer, the tree has been found to be at least fifty per cent less sus- ceptible to virus and Insect plagues. Ever since Eve mankind has been eating apples. The apple is the oldest fruit associated with human beings, but we are not the only creatures who like ap- ples. More than flve hundred species of insects are known to feed off the apple tree which will also support fungus and other growths. Talking of apple eating, a Pennsylvania barber succeeded in eating 366 apples in two hours and five minutes before a crowd of 400, He did it for a wager. Any ill effects? "A bad attack of indigestion and stiff jaw mus- cels," he reported. Because housewives like to have apples with ruddy cheeks, scientists at a U.S. agricultural research station experimented until they discovered a liquid which, sprayed on the ripening fruit, turned them red quickly. "The liquid stimulated the otherwise pale apples to blush violently," it was stated. It's astonishing how many strange beliefs have apples as their core! Women in some parts of the world: who have not giv- en their husbands an heir some- times go out in dry weather and roll under apple trees, convinced heat this will make them fruit- ul, Some negroes believe that apple-shaped birthmarks can be removed by rubbing them with apples and keeping the person on an apple diet, This, of course, is not so. English, German and Danish folklore contain many stories of apples used as love charms. Some Danes to-day believe that an apple serves as a chastity test, fading when the owner is unfaithful. Champion apples? A Durham man named Stobbs was gather- ing apples in his orchard in 1818 when he found a Yorkshire green.more than thirteen inches in circumference. It weighed 13% ounces, but was dwarfed by another apple picked by a man named Fillbridge who also lived in Durham. This giant was 22 inches in circumference. Sound Eye Advice From Blind Writer One of America's most accom- plished humorists was deadly se- rious last month, Neglect of eye injuries or eye troubles of any -kind is perhaps the major cause 'of blindness today," he wrote in his home-town paper. The Col- umbus (Ohio) Dispatch. "In the United States alone, 25,000 peo- ple go blind every year and the sight of many of them could have been saved by the exercise of common sense." The author. of this sober arti- cle was James Thurber, who knows about blindness as onl A blind man can. "I lost my left eye as a result of an accident when I was 7, and 25 years later I began developing a cataract in the other eye," Thurber told his readers. After flve unsuccessful cataract operations in 1940-41, his right eye gradually failed, He drew his last cartoon in 1951; and, no longer able to type, he began dictating his short stories and articles. Thurber was prompted to write his eloquent appeal for proper eye care for The Dispatch after Ohlo's Gov. Michael DiSalle pro- claimed a "James Thurber Week" in Ohio to mark a pre- Broadway tryout of the humor- ist's new play, "A Thurber Car- nival," In Columbus (News Week, Jan. 18). "I felt the week should in some way be turned to something larger than a person's private enterprises," Thurber told NEWSWEEK. "I thought I'd try to do what little I could for the human predicament," In his article, the 65-year-old humorist, who can _see only light and shadows, warned that an affliction in one eye may, in some cases, permanently affect the vision in the other eye. "It my own left eye had been re- moved in time it is likely that I would have normal vision in the other eye today," he wrote. Thurber's advice: "If anything at all happens to your eye, you should see a reputable doctor at once." For the most part, Thurber's piece was a clinical discussion of his own case (with none of the anguish an artist must feel on losing his sight). But occasional- ly, his familiar touch of humor came through: "Deluded people . .. have written me about fake 'cures' for cataract and for all other eye conditions. I have not only been told to use orange juice, but to rub my spine with a billiard ball; to put a hot flatiron against my temple; to watch jumping beans; to swallow the scrapings of church bells, and even to become emotionally in- volved with an Apache princess." Jim Thurber closed his article by revealing that "nothing has fortified my faith in human na- ture more than the fact that, in 1953, when my wife underwent a successful retinal) detachment operation, eight people in Ame- rica and two in England (com- plete strangers) offered to give us one of their good eyes." BEE NUISANCE! Tens of thousands of bees con- verged on a marmalade factory in Gorizla, Italy, and so alarm- ing was the invasion that work- ers fled in panic and the factory was closed. Scouting parties of bees were first attracted by piles of empty sugar sacks stored outside tha works, Workers fought the firs} arrivals with sprays and swat- ters, but when the main army of Insects arrived and took pos- session of the factory itself in search of sugar, employees de- cided to quit. Some days elapsed before has- tily summoned bee experts were able to clear the premises of the invaders. MAN AND MACHINE -- The feet of a man crushed to death are visible beneath the wheels of a big trailer truck. The vehicle backed over the man in Rockville Centre, N.Y., pinning him with four of the rear wheels. LESSON By Rev. R. Barclay Warren B.A, B.D, Courage for Christian Witnessing Acts 21: 27-39 Memory Selection: Thom therefore endure hardness, as & good soldier of Jesus Christ, II Timothy 2:3. Paul and his party were warmly welcomed by the bre- thren on their arrival at Jeru- salem, And then events took an unusual turn. The Christiam Jews in Jerusalem -- and there were many of them -- were zealous for the law, Paul had been preaching to the Gentiles and was not requiring them to be circumcised and walk after the many customs of the Mosale law. Now James proposed that Paul purify himself along with four men who had taken upon themselves a Nazarite vow, and bear the expense of the sacri- fices that must be offered before they could shave their heads. This would amount to a publie demonstration that Paul himself was keeping the law, and would refute the charges that he was teaching Jews not to do so. Some time before this, Paul of his own accord had taken such a vow. (Acts 18:18). Paul agreed to do as was suggested. Whether Paul made a mistake here or not, is hardly for us te judge. Nowhere is it suggested that he did wrong. It seems to be part of his pattern of being all things to all men. To the Jew he became as a Jew. There was certainly nothing sinful in what he did. People change theie ideas slowly. Paul was not up. holding these vows and the sub- sequent offerings as a means of salvation. They were no substi- tute for faith in Jesus Christ. On the other hand, Paul's course here didn't seem to accomplish much for the kingdom unless it was to assure the Hebrew Chris- tians that he was not hostile te the law and hence could be fully trusted. But now, non-Christian Jews from Asia saw Paul in the temple and supposed that Tro- phimus, a Gentile companion from Ephesus, had accompanied him into the temple. This was 8 serlous offense, it it had been committed. Gentiles were only permitted in the outer court of the Gentiles. The agitation be- gan and soon the city was in an uproar. They drew Paul out of the temple and began to beat him, purposing to kill him. His arrest by the Roman soldiers saved his life. Paul obtained permission te address the mob. He told of his conversion. When he mentioned his commission to preach to the Gentiles, the uproar began anew. The chief captain took him in and ordered examination under scourging. Paul announced that he was a Roman citizen and es- caped further beating. A strange turn of events in- deed! The way is being made for him to preach at Rome at State expense. Upsidedown to Prevent Peeking [¥y = 3X3 S Al Nj 1 O|ON a 0] \[4]|N 3 Q/ol-- Lil <+weiliou O|Z O<|-- [30 Ou t=lal-|Z/0n a Li v Ow jor I< - WiC alow OY wia/OViw Ola ww Fla </-|=O[>|wx|oh- |< <|ZIZHW Ov (<IO|v FOO M Ow visio WIOMw Jwi>|w|= [LIRR ES wos <u J THE TURNING POINT OF A STILL W ai he plement wheels makes an interesting pattern of circles, ORLD -- A six-Inch snowfall coupled with stacked farm ime INDAY SCHOO A WEN 7 At Pr hy LN, Ne See ho. v Ne om oe A FEAT, tate