Chapter 1 A Chapter 1 B Chapter 2. Chapter 3 Chapter 4A Chapter 4b Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8. Chapter 9. Chapter 10
When school started, I moved to Bates which is west of Driggs, up against the hills. I lived with Erma and Wesley Wood and their little boy. They lived in a two-room house with a full attic, set against a hill so that the front of the house had high steps and the back none. They were fun and I liked them. My bedroom was in the attic where one end had been partitioned off, but not finished. There was a door opening, but no doors, and a window. The only heat was from the chimney of the kitchen stove whose fire was allowed to go out each night. The room was on the south and Erma and I made it an attractive place. I paid them $10 a month for board and room. My salary was $60 a month for eight months. There was no water nor bathroom nor no electricity. The first thing Erma did with the money I paid her was to buy a radio so we had music. Wesley farmed with his father who lived nearby.
The school was a little two0-room building. Fred Miller taught the upper grades. I taught grades one, three and four. There were no students for grade two that year. The school had no electricity and only outside privies. Each room had a huge round heater for heating. I had fourteen students. The school was a place of enchantment. I loved the kids and really worked hard at teaching them. Fred Miller helped me so much. I became very fond of him. He had a wife and three little red-headed boys. There was a County School Superintendent who visited all the schools in the valley to help and check up on each teacher. The first visit was frightening, but after that they were welcome. The students walked to school or rode horses. My room was an attractive place. I kept the stove stoked with coal and wood. A lady who lived nearby cleaned the school.
While the young people of the community reached high school age, they moved to Driggs to attend school. They would rent a room in someone’s house, batch during the week and come home on weekends. Wesley Wood had two sisters who did this and I spent lots of time with them on the weekends.
The church was about a mile from the schoolhouse and everyone attended it on Sundays. It was a single large room with benches which could be moved. We had frequent dances and parties there. We’d push back the benches, pile them on top of each other and have plenty of room. Everyone came. The babies were placed on safe spots in the benches. The little kids played and danced until they were tired when they joined the sleeping babies on the benches. Someone played the fiddle and someone the piano. It was fun!
I didn’t think there’d by any fellow, but there were. Two young men were herding sheep for the winter in some field near the school. Wesley had a cousin who lived in Tetonia and Erma had a red-headed brother named Howard who worked on a dude ranch in Jackson Hole. When they learned there was a girl at Wesley’s they kept coming for extended visits. Once Howard stayed for six weeks. They were both fun. The boys in the sheep camp had a covered half sleigh. They’d come and pick up the Woods girls and me and we’d go down to their sheep camp. We’d make oyster stew and play cards. We skied a lot. We’d build a big fire and everyone who could see it would ski over. I learned to ski fairly well, but could never learn to stop, so I’d just sit down when I got to the bottom. I sprained my ankle quite badly once.
We would also have all night parties. Someone would start out in their covered sleigh to pick everyone up. There’d be a lighted lantern inside the covered sleigh. I could watch the sleigh coming. From miles away, making occasional stops. Everybody took food. When we were all collected, we’d go to someone’s house. Sometimes we would have let them know and sometimes we surprised them. One of our favorite places to go was to the home of Wesley’s married sister. They had a little two-room house and there would usually be about a dozen of us. As their children fell asleep, they were laid in the bedroom somewhere. We’d sing, talk, dance a little, make candy, pop popcorn, play cards and other games and anything else that entered our heads. It was a crazy time! When morning came we’d go home.
There were also fellow in Driggs and Victor where frequent dances were held. I’d go to Driggs and stay with Aunt Rose who always welcomed me. It was worth going to have a bath in a tub! There was a fellow who was a butcher in Driggs. He had money and a car. He often took me to Bates. I didn’t care for him, but used him as a means of transportation. I went home to Pocatello for Christmas. When I came back a dance was on. This fellow persuaded me stay and then he’d take me out to Bates. By the time we started home a blizzard had started. We never made it all the way. When the car finally stalled, we were in Bates about three miles from the schoolhouse. We got out and battled the blizzard about 1 ½ miles to a house. I thought we’d never make it. I was wearing high-heeled shoes and silk hose. When we reached the house, no one was home. We broke in and built a fire and spent the rest of the night there. In that time and place that was what they would have wanted us to do.
In the morning we just stayed there. The blizzard was so bad no one could move. Monday morning I went to school. It was terrible, the icy cold and the big drifts, but I finally made it. I still just had those high-heeled shows. The fellow got his car towed back to Driggs, leaving my suit case at the house we had used. I’d never go with him again. The blizzard wasn’t his fault, but he was an uck guy.
That was the last time a car was able to travel over the road until I left when school was out in May. I skied to school most of the rest of the year. We’d go to town in a sleigh. Wesley would put hay in the bottom with quilts over it. We’d heat big rocks in the oven of the stove, wrap them in gunny sacks and put them in the sleigh. Then we’d get in, all bundled up, and cover up with many quilts. Only our heads would stick out. The horses knew the way. Right after Christmas the men went to town and securely stuck willows in the snow along the side of the road. Then the road could be followed even if it had a new foot of snow on it. These willows stuck up about four or five feet. Before spring, the men had to go along and place new willows because the old ones were almost buried. The new willows lasted the rest of the year, but there wasn’t much of them showing by spring. Travelling the same route all the time built two hard tracks for the sleigh runners. The horses always found them. If you got off, you went down and down and down.
The snow was between four and five feet on the level that year. There were many blizzards and it was bitterly cold. It got down to 35 degrees below zero and stayed there for weeks at a time. My bedroom could not be warm. I just left my window open all winter. It was no colder with it open than with it closed. When I went to bed, I wore heavy flannel pajamas, a heavy robe, heavy sock and slippers. I had many quilts beneath me and so many on top I could hardly lift them to get out of bed. I slept like a top. I loved the cold and snow. One nice side effect, I lost ten pounds. Anytime I’ve lived in the Basin I’ve been slender.
Sometimes over the weekend I would go to Victor and stay with Uncle Grant and Aunt Delilah. They’d always be going to a dance in that end of the valley and would take me with them. I had such fun at the Daniels’ home. Aunt Lile made the best pancakes in the world. Aunt Lile and Uncle Grant loved each other, were full of life and it was neat to be around them.
Grandma and Grandpa Wardle lived up the canyon from Aunt Lile and Uncle Grant. I went to see them. We had never been close but I got to know them better.
Finally, spring came. Mr. Miller and I took out students on and end-of-year picnic. I had decided to not come back to Bates for another year. How I hated to leave all the dear friends I’d made and especially my students. I’ never forget Fred Miller!
All year I had been paid with warrants. The school district had no money, but they would get some from taxes. Meanwhile, the bank advanced money to them in the form of warrants, which looked about like checks. The district paid their expenses with these. Then when their money came in, the bank was repaid. I had half my warrants uncashed when school ended. So I cashed them in for $240. That’s the only time I saved half my pay checks! My dad had picked up an old car and the family decided to come and get me. It made a great trip for them. On the way home two tires blew out. I was the only one with money so I had to replace them and pay other expenses. I was glad to get back to Pocatello.
That summer I went job-hunting again. Some teachers were needed at Inkom and I applied. The trustees interviewed many applicants. Finally the narrowed it down to about twelve. They had us all come out to be interviewed the same evening. They called us in one at a time. It was a real inquisition. But the men were nice and didn’t really mind. They hired three teachers and I was one. My big problem was that I looked very young. I was hired to teach a combined third and fourth grade at $90 a month
An interest cause in my teacher’s contract stated that if I married during the year that I would immediately lose my job.
I lived that summer with my parents in Pocatello. I got a job working in a little sandwich shop in Pocatello. I was amused by my boss, a fellow named Jay, because he so much enjoyed seeing a teacher do menial work. He wasn’t unpleasant, just crude and ignorant.
This was the summer I met Ellis Chase. Louis still thought I was on some kind of probation, but I didn’t. Karl Hale had been my dear friend for about 3 ½ years. We had so much fun together, even dated once in a while. One day Karl came in for lunch and brought Ellis with him. He introduced us and the first thing Ellis did was ask me to marry him, in that busy place, before all those people. I thought, “What a smart a--!” I took an instant dislike to him. I told him off. To tell the truth, I didn’t think that was a joking thing. He always insisted he’d have gone through with it, that he knew I was the one for him. I never felt that way. I could probably have been just as happy with Louis.
Anyway, I’d run into Ellis at dances. I danced with him because he was such a wonderful dancer. In fact, I dated him because I liked to dance with him, though not as well as Reed Coffin.
Most of the young fellows I knew belonged to the Junior Chamber of Commerce. They always had lots of fun activities. They were planning a big dance at a big dance hall in Inkom. Ellis asked me to go. We were going to double date with Karl who had a car. In the middle of the afternoon Ellis called me. An old girlfriend he had dated when he lived in Rexburg had come to town just to see him. I told him he had better take her to the dance and he was relieved to agree. But I was so angry I could have killed him. I called Karl to tell him and blow up. About an hour later, a Junior College friend who had been out of town for a couple of weeks and just returned, called and asked me to go to the dance with him. We too would go with Karl. Karl picked up his date, Ellis and his date, the other fellow and then me. That was a satisfying moment when Ellis realized I had a date and would be in the same car!
I got paid $.25 an hour at my job. One of my most precious memories was the result of my job. No children in our family had ever had a bike. It was something totally out of reach. But my brother Wilford always dreamed of one. Most of his friends had one. He went to Victor to stay at Aunt Lile’s and Uncle Grant’s and play with his cousin Grant Jr. While he was gone I got him a bike for his birthday. He got back the day of his birthday. I had put the bike in his bedroom which was a tiny room down a long hall at the back of the house. I told him there was something in his room. He dashed back there. I’ll never forget his face as he wheeled out that beautiful new bike. At $.25 an hour, it took me most of the summer to pay for it, but it was well worth it.
When school began, I moved to Inkom and lived with the two other new teachers who had been hired. One girl I especially disliked. I liked the other girl, but looking back, I can see that she got her kicks causing trouble between the first girl and me. I didn’t really care. It was a place to live. I spent a lot of time with another young lady teacher at her house. I loved my school and spent a lot of time on it. I had learned so much from Fred Miller and my first year of teaching hat I was able to do a much better job than the previous year. I usually went home to Pocatello for the weekend. There were lots of neat guys around and always something going on. Sometimes I dated Ellis. From the time I started high school until I married, I seemed to be on a constant high. I had more fun than anyone else, no matter where I was. Sometime, I’m sure, I was too exuberant, but I had such good times I just wanted more and more. My friends said that wherever I was is was fun for everyone.
That winter, for the first time in my life, I went to some nice shops and bought clothes I liked. I bought quite a few pairs of shoes from Ellis who worked at Terrell’s Shoe Store.
Ellis wanted us to marry, but I was having such fun I didn’t want to marry anyone. I didn’t want to be held down by anyone. Besides, there was Louis who sent word to me of when he’d be back. I wanted to check him out before I made any decisions. But mainly I just didn’t want to marry. I really had never wanted to. I wanted no strings on me.
My folks were living in Pocatello, but they yearned for a farm. I had saved a big share of my money during the year. My dad looked for a farm to buy. He found a wonderful farm at Riverton, west of Blackfoot. It was down near the river and very fertile. The only thing wrong with it was that it had a lot of morning glory on it, but that could be killed. It had a nice little four-room house and all the necessary outbuildings. I had enough money for the down-payment, $350. You could really buy a farm with that much down in those days. They moved there in the spring in time to plant crops. I really think the time they spent on that farm was one of the best times in their marriage.
Ellis kept after me. He thought we were foreordained to be together. I never did. Anyway, he was such a salesman he wore me down. We decided to be married that summer. He wanted to buy me an engagement ring, but I wouldn’t have it. I didn’t want anyone’s brand on me. I’d always thought engagement rings were dumb. Besides, I might decide not to marry him.
After school was out, I went to Blackfoot and worked on the farm to help my folks. I thinned and hoed beets again and worked in the hay. I enjoyed those long, hot days in the fields.
No comments:
Post a Comment