Document text
ORIGINAL MSS. OR FIELD NOTES (Cheek one)
PUB. Living Lore in
New England
TITLE Jared Dcvid Busby T:arren
WRITER Charlotte Busby
DATE 2/24/39 MDS. Pa. 12
CHECKER DATE
SOURCES GIVEN (1) Interview
COMMENTS
4.14.674•4.1.41-
oTAiE
..2aDJLCI
1 4111%1...A 1/41.ti lisx, rt.1%—.11.1
ADDRESS
L,TT6
FEiriToAtiY
Llu-11,u
JAh.LJ oh.ViJTTS
o .3-6‘o3Y
"IGTandfather" Jareu viu..,Lisloy, aged eeventy-
eight, was born in the 3erkshires and has lived in
'arren more than forty years. he has been a notable
figure in the business and political life or the town.
"Jerry", as many call him, is likable; witty, regarued
as just a philosopher, with little formal education,
out a vigorous mentality. Though very ueaf, ne seems
to know what is going on, is much interested in public
questions and is well reaa. he spends consiUere.ble
time at his small radio, despite its poor quality and
static. Jerrysubscribes to four newspapers and reaus
magazines also.
he lives one and en,joys himself. his Lealtn is
usually gooU Lis eyes are brignt, his -wnite hair
thick and flowing. Though Jerry's shouldea:s are stoopeu,
nis arms show etrong muscles _nu his shapely hands apply
themselves to many tasks. At times his whimsical expres-
sion reminds the interviewer of Lark Twain.
Line of Jerry's regrets is tnat he aid not follow
the profession of law. his favorite uncle was a graduate
of Lale, ana the ooy intended to study law "when he nau
time." he never seemed to find the time. Another regret
is that he uid not remain in tne ';ist, when he went
there on a trip. e believes he wou_ld ilave had a more
intense ana vivia life, and oeen more successful.
ame: L.harlotte iusoy
Assignment: Warren
Title: .oiving .Lore Topic: eared aviu usoy
Climoing the long, steep stone steps of "Uramp" eiusoy 6 hill,
on a wintry night, one clings, in the olustering snow, to the
intermittent lengths of iron and'wooden rails, as he scales to
the summit where the dwelling, barn, ana poultry house sit souareiy,
like a citadel, Lear oy lie the orchards of apples, pears, plums
ana peaches, and the gardens variegated -cith grape vines, small
fruit and oerriee. The outside well and Liana pump are quiet re-
minders of the days when he drew w ter for his cow and his white
noree, edlly, the death of which "Uramp" mourns even now. ihirty-
owl years of faithful service to his master are not for,otten.
inough there has oeen runnirk_ water in the noUse ror nani sears,
"LJram,'" still orefers to _irink the cold water from the old well.
Pausing oeL,ide it, one n s a view of the town ecatterea on the
—ills and ,n the valley, with ledrkis -ountain standing like a
eehtinel toward the st.ihe hurricane of i;-36 twisted many
trees piantea long ago oy a former owner of the place, and several
detours arc necessary oefol.e the visitor, scramoiing on the slippery
snow, reaches the odck piazza. The liht in the kitchen reveals
through the froeted J.indow e -ramp, or Jerry, in his accustomed
place on such an evening sitting oefore the rdaio. leoua and
repeated knocking reachea his ears after several moments and he moved
to open the door, peering suspiciously until he recognized hisrelative.
Then welcome oeamed for the visitor, and he startea, almost ilemediately,
Page
,ame: Charlotte xissignment: tearren
Title: 1.,iving 1,oreTopic: cJared avi usoy
preparations forna cup of tea." Gramp began the interview.
"howid you comei op the stabs or the roddway numh, why didn't
you come up the roadwayA It'll take me a century to get my land
cleared up. -wadays every darned person is too lazy to do a
stitch of work. ihey won't cut wood, even el' you give it to tem.
.)3T hemlock, 1 won't hire any more lazy scamps. come spring, my
sciatica will oe gone and tend to the wood myself. I can
straighten up my orchard if I have a mind to."
"Drink your tea," I aid. "Dunk your doughnut if you want
to. Don't mind me.'t
"Catch me dunking, or using a bowl instead of a cup, if you
can. I dare you to catch me. I've got on my company manners."
Chuckling at his own coke, Grawp settled back in his rocking
chair. "14 crickety," he said, "take a look dt my new cane over
there in the corner. It's a gold -headed one, too. I always
wanted one. he glibly lied. "I hate it,* then he muttered,
"out it's oarn useful." he lifted his broad shoulders. "I come
of a long line of good fighters and so I tell 'em down street
that I use it for looks; and, uy golly I'll smash their heads if
I see a snicker.
"bay, I'm glad you took some ChristmaSgmens up to the cemetery
last week. .111-C, ,et up there this year." Men, after a slight
pause. "I ain't hankering to die yet." I had a feeling that he
J.;ame: ..harlotte 3usoy
Title: Living Lore
Page 3
Assignment: iarren
Topic: Jared Lavia 6usOy
wanted to linger on the euo,ect a oit, so I said.: "Grip, you
rethemuer the little chuooy lour -year -old I took up to eee the
cethetery? ei1, he said to Ee: "Grump is a nice, f-nny uia Gramp.
I like him, and he owne a nice, oig cemetery. he -ust oe ricn.16
he laughed heartily.
you set her right?"
"Xo, I couldn't., L;he wouldn't oelieve me."
"al, in the old deLL, ne reminisced,"we didn't have
J.- 9
jj
petual cdre in our glaveyarde. .3ut we dia set store having nice
tomo etoes. Lora, how ichg our funerals w
held in the home
a loLg serthun.
e. lhey were always
they laeted hours. Inc p,reon ueed to preach
'oort of
general resume
of the deceaeed's life.
haa some swell solos 6.Lu tiartet sin6in. Usually some favorite
sons or hymn. ehad one long-winded minister oy the name of Llarh.
.;:gpme of the town wits ueea to say: lal, i 11bufloirk sent 6iu
,Aones tu hell at exactly two -thirty iook imaoout lour hours
to it him tnere.t. 6r, agdin, '-iiiuder Smith went to heaven at
iour prompt.'"
"hat kind- of ilowel's did you ase?" I asked.
"If the man was
a farmer aLLI he happenea to oe
ouriea in the
fail, the wofLen useu to make great sheaves of grain. They look
awful pretty- with the tas-e1S. ihe used corn or anything handy.
If it was in the winter, they used red oerries and greens. In tie
summer time they pickea the old.-faehionea flowers from their garaens.
o4r they picked daieles, asters and ferns iron' the fields.
title:
L.harlotte -.Lsusby
Livir42, Lore
Page 4
Assignment: ,i,urren
iopic: eared idavid :611eby
"After the funeral oarty returned from the grave, all the
immediate family aha l'elatives bet r_LOW1 to ilec,rtji meal. osually
some one was .Lett
nome to have it au i ready, piping hot. boon
after the feast of hot food and urtnk, the relati-ves who iiveu
away wouid et their horses hitched up reauy to taKe them one.
"Lometf.es they ilveu tar away and they couldn't wast much
time hanging Jxound orxiirie,. inc dead wel-e usu lly ouried in
the ground in the wint,rl'out eometimes it the frost was uown too
deep, they SL,Veu them tor a thaw, or a slack in a snow storm."
.Seath remihded Gramp of "one speciul Chrietmas", the first
after his mother died.
"ihere were so any of us kids that my father hau an old
WOJI.ali to take care of us. 1a Sal was good iLamniy. You
know -ilassachusetts was once a slave st—te. Afterwards there were
a lot of freed slaves around. ihey usually live,. in Punches. lown
in bhelfield there was a numuer of theil,. L;Id bal was pretty good
to us Children, Out 1 MiSSU my La.
i could cook fla„ cks great and was a dabster ut cooking
pork. bhe was 'right smart', as they used to s,y in those days.
we had turkey pie or 1/4...:hristmas and stick peppermint candy
with red Pands. Liut I was lonesome dust the same."
ihe oid man sighed, and looked quizzical. "You wont to hear
some stories. Wai, one day ia told us kids he would ue -one a
Fate 5
riotte z.usby Assimnment: Warren
Title: Livinm Lore Topic: Jared Lavid 13usby
few hours. .,3eforehana ne had taken out the old washtub, washed
himself-anu aresseu up in his best suit. one of the boys greased
his cowhide boots for him.. Anothr kiu orushed out the old buggy.
i dusted off the old mare for Lim.
"Pa wa mone a few hours anu when he came !pack ne broumht a
wile. out she was just a stepmother to u boys. he was kind-
hearted, out sne hau a oitter tongue and e were afraid of her."
"Tell LojOlit the marriame ceremonies in those days e I asked.
kramp took a oim pinch from his snuff box. "Larriages in those
aays we -.Le usually held in the olfice of the ,ustice of the peace,
or at the parsonage. The ceremony was short und sweet. They
didn't have much of a honemoon. .:dometimes there were love
matches, out usually it Ii4aEa ousiness-like arranmement. The parents
anu frienus often arranged them, or the couples themselves."
The oia fellow starteU to nod in his chair. "Uoou night,
r1" I said, rising. "We'll taik some more tomorrow."
The next nimht he busied himself throwing pine logs into the
fireplace in the living room as we sat before the blaze, wnile
the winu roared and swirls of snow hit against the panes. The
storm outsi'e and the warlirch and comfort within seemed to combine
to encourage confidences.
"hat du you consider the great moment of your life" I
askea suaaenly.
iame: Charlotte i3usoy
Title: niving bore
Fe
6
Assignent: Warren
Topic: c.,ared viu;Jusoy
Uramp tnought for a while.
"The greatest moment of my life lik16 when every single
tning Wa6 against me. The olackest and most uismal time, loss
of fdiLily ties, position dnd money.
time wnen everything
tottered and 1 almost went down into a pit too deep to crawl
out'of. .Lit 1 didn't go clown.
111 prayeu, too. i crawled cautiously up, foot oy foot,
until I gradually stood on my feet again. You've nearu of -Ptrick
WhO wouldn't cross the ocedn'uniess he first went to the priest
to ask the holy ::;aint ichael to help him. etre the same. de
all neeu help ootn rrom within ourselves anu from our religion,
natever it may oe. e old-timers learned to rake for ourselves.
ha to nave ;lenty of .hoe, faith and courage. dust now the
wnole country is helpless. dould you like to know why it's
neipless7"
es,
of course," I said, meekly. Cine sets a humole feeling
listening to Liramp. e peaks witn such assureuness.
"14 solution of solving the troutpls of the uepression is that
everyone Sh011ia work, in the first place, —nu work naru. There is
too much play, too much 4oli.ng anu speculation. inc panic wc_s
causeu oy the people depenuing on the country. It shouiu be vice
versa. ine country shoulu depend upon the hieople. Every family
shoulu try to own their own home and a -little land. ne snould
name: iiarlotte _busby
Title: Livin Lore
i=age 7
Assignment.: lia.rren
Topic: t -,_red. aViCl .6USbY
plant a garden and raise enough vegetables to J.st through the
winter.
wife should can everything pessible. There should
be a 8' lt pork barrel and a ickle barrel. II' possible, have
two cows, and hens enough to nave one's own eggs. i,eed the hens
son e grain and, mostly, table scrps. lways raise a good, fat
15 to be killed at onristm.s time. A good heifer calf can be
raised cheaply, with some work. the bull calves can be fattened,
and eaten when cold weather sets in.
"fl_ant apples, pear and pe-ch trees. have a strawberry and
raspberry patch, and if ossiule, an asparagus bed. 3e sure to
get a good ,Job and keep it. If machinery' replaces men, men must
walk barefooted looking for something else. (Zou know I think I'm
a socialist. e on time and work early and late. This money will
pay taxes)insurance and repairs, buy re -Liar food not otherwise
provided for, and clothes. =don't wake use of installment plans
in buying anything. have the cellar full of fruit and yegetables,
4
such as potatoes, cabbage, turnips, carrots, parsnips. have plenty
of stews; buy a few :ounas of good meat and cook up a quantity of
vegetables. :)-uy or cut fuel for the winter in the summer and h6Are
it ready before it is needed. Lress children simply and warmly
and have them in the aare of a uoctor anu dentist, at regular perious.
"Teach tne girls to cook and sew. i-each the Joys to cut wood,
take care of a aruen, milk a cow, hunt and fish. Give the uoy
Page 8
Lharlotte Jusby Assignment: Warren
Title: Living Lore Topic: eared Lavid 3usoy
a ooat eLnd a dog and a 6un, if tie cts sensiole. ieacn him to
use carpenter's tools. dive a girl a sewing machine. Educate
your children so they can oecome wage earners. kArls need a
college education, ,)LiSt as much as ooys. nave parties at home.
Lon't ouy an automooile unless it is necessary, or you can afford
the luxury of owning one.
hise early and -o to oed oefore miu-
night.,The ueat sleep is oefore midni-ht."
(ramp was in one of nis good moods for talking and he ramoled
on, out with certainty.
"When I was a ooy I would run a mile for a penny, and now a
is so lazy he will not even walk across the street to earn a quarter.
i.ihen 1 was a Joy, ice cream and candy were a treat. Nowadays they
are no treats at all. veryone is satiated with all the comforts
or life imaginaole, out still he is not satisfied. The rich man
may envy the poor man out the poor man tries to act like a millionaire.
There is hardly a middle man, except in the insane hospitals and
,jails, which are more crowded every year. There, at least, life
goes on in some sort of even regularity. Those in charge live
the Jest, out all the rest are on a similar plane, whether patient
or guard. Americans strive to out -do each other, and a uniform
unrest and real poverty will result, sooner or later."
(ramp seemed to enoy talking on and on.
"This is a f,Ast age. Look at the fast young men lurching along
the streets. Look at the painted dolls mincing along on high
Page
Lhurlotte Llusuy. Assignment: Ilturren
'iitle: £ivixi. Lore tiarea
heels, prancing along in overalls, or slacks as tney call 'em,
with ore oack, huiliped up like kangaroos. t fast crowu in
look 4 at any rate. -i-erhaps in time they will grow up anu look
JiU
alIu
hair,
act like
uo not
except
sensiule peo. I like to bee a youth wear a hat
like greased heaus.
We used to grease shoes, not
dawdles anu dudes, perhaps.
on the highways.
hurtling to their
"A school LAM
Look at the fast life
A speeding whirl of life. 'lipsy young people
death against_ a tree or post.
clashes into a flying train anL the hopes of
many lath rE and mothers; and oouies of school chiluren are strewn
along the way some in pieces to ue uicked up in ouckets, as
at a slaughter house. 'ioo much haste, too much spirits in the
stoach, and in the mind. -runken ar vers death and sorrow
fur many families rest, it•
Speed in the air. -..peea on the lanu.
;.:4)eeu on the sea. Speed on the screen. money making schemes.
cities full of cars. 1-eopple playing ueano dollar entrance
fees paiu out weekly uy people that haven't even an undershirt
or a pair of garters.'
e ate the apples that Gramp had handy, throwing our peelings
on the fire, and watching -them ourn in fantastic shapes.
"In the old uays family ties were very strong; relations used
to ue loyal anu help each other out. Grathp remarked, alter a
minute or two of silence.
Page 10
0narlotte iiu5Oy Assignth mt 1arren
litie: LivinE„ Lore oarea Laviu Jusoy
"Tell me aoutit 601.,.e old tithes, please," I asked.
9"
-Jia you ever hear of 3eartown7
We usea to call it
3airtOwn. It was a section of (ireat 3arrington near South
Lee. ihe °la oa,'r himself was vudge umner. he,haa long, white
hair aria a big crop of whiskers. He usea to shine at all the
court sessions. Then tnere was Levi 3eepe. he was very active
in town affairs ana religious auties. Levi was witty, droll and
charitaule. his wife useu to give thoney to the poor, anu 0a6Kets
of food to the sick and needy.
"-.6or many years, old Levi kept a weather chart. he was quite
a weathr prophet. he haci stacks of charts pilea away and ne spent
all his spare tithe studying up on the suodect. Levi was very siaCK.
1,or instance, if ne was getting in a loau or nay aria a snower was
cothing up suduenly, he 'a stop aria tell,everyoody it was going to
rain, instead of getting his load of hay into the on. In politics
he was very thuch alive on ever-‘; sub,ect. hi weather ousiness
was his weak spot.
"3eeue owned nunareus of acres of land. he nau a fine saw
thill. he had the first circular saw up thereabouts. The old kind
of saw was the up and uown saw. lire used to ooast loudly that at
one tithe ne nau owneu land_ in thirteen different states. 6ur
cattle shows aria fairs used to last tnl.ee or four uuys. j3eeoe
used to make a lot of speeches there. he was a would be orator
on every suo,ject. in fact,. he trieu to oe a pigshet on all suocjects."
inieCharlotte usialr
Title: Living Lore
Page 11
Assignment: Warren
Topic: eared Lavia 13usby
"Isn't there a reservation calleu 3eartown?", I inquired.
"Yes, there is. The people sold plenty of land to the
government."
Gramp resumed his recollection of oid time families. "Now,
there Witi another pi'ominent family called the Culvers. There was
a pig family of them. Cne of them Ea Culver, was one of my
schoolmaters. I rememoer one incident that happened during a
winter term. Cid Culver had a lot of trouule with some of the
boya who were as uig as he. The oldest were from eighteen to
twenty -two.
.ot many went after they were twenty-one.
"Cine day the 66.n6 were especially unruly. d dasn't fight
the uig ones so he pickeu on the little ones in a true cowardly
fashion. -i was quite mischievuus anu he caught me up to some
prank, so ne made me ao what they ealleu in those days istr-i htening
or tightening the nails.' You had to put your toes on a line of
nails on the flour and Oend forward in good position. The teacher
then gave you a oou swat."
"What did he use?"
"Culver maue a certain kinu of a stick, shaved out of a hard
siao ooard."
iait tiLrt much?"
he usually was so mad that he oroke his stick at the
first whack. Ihe women teachers useu to have us cut our own
i.ane Jtr1otte usoy
Title:1,iving bore
Page 12
Assignment: Warren
iopic: itreu avic 3usoy
were cut accrding to the teacher's oraers anu were
of a size to suit the offense."
There INC16 a. rattle of the uoor learaing to the porch one
of iramp's few visitors hau come to call. Ihe interview for the
time was over.