winter of 1932

gettingready for christmas. it was this fall pop did fairly good with the fur.one day he came home and said getting wood will be a little easier this winter. because now we have a horse. mom asked where did you get a horse? he answered Uncle Denny and I bought a horse between us fron Father St Croix phil willcoptt and ambrose willcott will land it across tomarrow. Gilbert and I was right excited could not wait for the horse to arrive. we figures this woild be a nice gentle animal we thought we perhapps would lead it around. instead when it arrived it was saucy as the devil. kicking and snapping an anything and every one near it. this was just pops glory He did not care saucyer the better for him. I think that was the only reason they sold it yet.when they used to cue oxen they would tie all four legs together and trip it tie the legs to a tree not let it up before they had all four legs cued. I thought pop would have to do the same when he shoed the horse. bot not so pop grabbed the hind leg before the horse had time to lash out he had pulled th leg up so high that when the horse moved she thought she was going to topple over pop tacked on all the shoes in no time al all. hge was so good at it that other people woulg get him to shoe their horses and cue their oxen. his fee was fifty cents some time he got paid sometimes he didn't when he did get paid it was usually a stick of tobacco that was only twenty cents. but pop didn't mind that the respect he got for doing the job was good enough for him.That winter pop and uncle Denny went partners cutting logs. but that would be the only winter they cut logs together because uncle Denny was not one for cutting logs. he would much rather be with his brother uncle Joe making axe handles and Racks for schooner masts. wintering in a canvas tent somewhere deep in the forest. I could still picture them now my brother gilbert amd I used to go visit them sometimes . smoke would be curling from the stove pipe in their camp they would both be sitting inside sipping a cup of tea smoking their pipes. outside smoke would be rising from an open fire a big forty five gallon drum rigged above the fire filled with water boiling sending steam to their steam box which would be filled with long witchazel strips of wood which they would steam and turn into hoop like racks that was used to connect the sails to schooner masts. the camp would be boughed in all over making it nice and warm and cosy. but there was no table or chairs or bunks as was our culture we did everything from the ground lay on it sat on it used it for our table. wonderful life.Uncle denny told me once we are like two old dog beavers this is all we want freedom to do what we like doing.