Carolyn Gay Taft Farm Letter - May 4, 1926

Old Mission, Mich. May. 4th 1926

My Dear Miss. Taft:-

I intended to write to you a week ago but was feeling dreadful bad and it ended up in my having the measles. There wasn't a case any where around but Dohm's little girl had them in Detroit and she had a cough when they brought her over here. The Dr. said I took them from her. I didn't want to write to you until I felt safe in doing so didn't want to expose you. So will you please excuse my long silence? Hope the children don't take them from me because Roger is to write on his State exams the 14th which is his birthday also.

It was 86 Sat in the shade first hot day we had. A nice shower followed and Sun Afternoon it turned cold & nasty out Mon. is snowed & blowed all day the ground was frozen hard again this A.M.

Jos. keeps getting the ground ready to plant the grass & oats. But wants to wait until it stops freezing nights as oats freeze quite easy. No use to waste seed in the cold ground. It is snowing again now.

Every thing got a good coating of manure there was lots of it this Spring. The stock was inside for so many months there was much more than usual.

The grass seed and every thing is here ready & waiting to be used.

Sweet cherry buds are swollen a little but others are the same as in the winter will be lucky to be in blossom when you come this year.

Jos. thinks it would be a good idea to drill in some fodder the same as he did over to S. place last year in order to save buying so much feed during the winter months.

Did Mrs. Lardie write to you about the cherry meeting? She attended so I asked her if she would please write and tell you the details about it. I had no way to go at the time. As a rule she attends most every-thing going on. wish I had the chance to do it too. But she has no children to work for & her husband waits patiently.

The Breeden farm is sold & Ledger is expecting Mr. B. most any day to straighten things out. Mr. Holmes & Pratt bought the place & are going to sell the shore line and of course they will have to keep the remainder until they find sale for it. I would gladly have written Mrs. Stutsman about the boom if there had of been one at the time her place was bought. We didn't know until you wrote to us that it was sold right after that then these fellows quietly bought every-thing from the light house this way that they could get.

Joseph thinks we better not buy any more furniture until we know what we are going to do. I miss the dining room furniture but if you sell soon and we have to move away we are better off without it. It makes the room look bare We have our phonograph & some other things in there so we are comfortable. I never want any thing more that is nice until I have a home to put it in. That I can call my own if it is only a dug out some where in a side hill. We have enough saved now so we can buy before long if we have no misfortune of any kind. I won't be able to do any more sewing to help out for a while now on account of my eyes. Have had measles twice since grown up. Wish I would get over having kid diseases pretty soon & be a woman

Got 10 gal. of gas for spraying purposes are all ready now when the fruit is. With love Essie. $3.75 on hand

2.10 for Gas. 10 gal.
____
$1.65 left on hand.
Haven't seen Mr. Moe yet. Was so afraid he would come while I was sick abed.

Dear Miss. Taft;
Wed A.M.
still cold & cloudy looks like more rain again today.  Feed will be going short so will have to turn cows out for 1/2 day at a time.  The cow doesn't look much like freshening next month. She flows a little along and has for a little while.  We must keep close watch of her.  My eyes are quite bad this morning I shouldn't have used them yesterday I guess.

Love Essie.