Page 15 - Landscape Draft 1 copy
P. 15
I always had to help Dad with the farm work. I
drove four head of horses on various farm imple-
ments to tend the crops, such as the corn, kaffir
corn, maize, etc. Dad always fed the animals very
good so they were always nice and fat. He or I
always curried and brushed the horses good before
we put the harness on them, I could harness a team
almost as quickly as he could when I was around 15
The Walt home near Jerome, Kansas in 1916.
or 16 years old. At this time, along with my 12 year
ing room and a kitchen. The kitchen was nice size so we old brother, Cecil, every Saturday and after school
made out fine. The children started to school at once. They
hours, we had to husk corn from the field. All day
had gone in Oklahoma. Seems they missed lots of school.
on Saturdays, only stopping long enough to eat din-
Seven months was a school term in those days. Blanche and
ner; we would bring in a load at noon and another
I found out that one could teach in Western Kansas if you
had two years of high school, so we attended grade school one at night.
again to review up on the studies (7 and 8 grades). Then
th
th
we went to Normal in June. We had to take the exams the long flight of stairs to the upstairs rooms where we took our
4th week of June. I gave music lessons all summer, so I paid tests. I was sick and nervous the day of the tests. I had to get
mine and Blanche’s normal expenses. We batched near the outside; and at the top of the stairs I blacked out. When
school which was a tall two story building. It was quite a I came to, I was at the bottom of the steps. I had slipped
Part of my Life as a Story 15
