<-Collins
Livery, St. Johnsville, NY.
Monday, May 1, 1893
The weather was rainy and bad. All did chores. Then I made notes payable to: A. Bellinger $750.00 Sept 27/92, one to J. Keller $600 May 1st 93, paid the interest to date on two old ones $11.88, one for $200.00 to W. Loucks & interest to May 8th on the old one $12.00, one to Lydia Ellis for $250.00 March 22/93 six months. All were signed by mother & J. Keller's & A. Bellinger's by me also & these notes were assigned to Mother. I paid $3.00 for 30 syrup cans & 25 cents for 5 cakes of soap for John, 10 cents for mustard for John & 12 cents for turpentine, & 45 cents for Japan, & 50 cents to Dr. Garlock for medicine for self. I received 90 cents from Lamb for syrup & 90 cents from Wilcox for syrup. I drove Jess & the buggy. I paid my horse bill & lunch 20 cents, paid S. Garline for the service of the colt $25.00 in full, paid $1.70 for 1 gallon of cheese color, & 1 butter tub 26 cents. I took O'Rourke 15 1/2# of butter at 28(r (not paid) & 41# to the Co Op store at 28 cents (paid $11.48). 1 paid them 8 cents for vanilla. I had Wm. Petrie's note with me but he did not have his note with him so I could not get his note. Cora rode home with me. Father Bellinger came after a calf to raise.
Tuesday, May 2, 1893
The weather was pleasant. All did chores. Then John & I helped clean up the large room & get everything ready. Deifendorf painted the floor. The boys finished chores & morticed the posts. I took Bay Fanny & the buggy & went to the Falls in search of a cheese maker. I took the 4:02 train to Herkimer & saw Orendore & Miller but neither would work. I came back on the 7:53. 1 talked with the Judge regarding our business but he would have more time between 5 & 6 so I had A. Keller see him & talk with him. He said it was not necessary to have mother's account in before or near the 4th of May. I exchanged books at Brown's (50 cents) & got 1 quart of turpentine 13 cents, car fare 32 cents, and horse bill 10 cents. It was late when I got home. J. W. Windecker & the cheese maker were going to look for John & J. Leahy. I turned them back. I saw J. A. Slayger & paid him $40 as 6 years & 8 mos. interest on $100.00. He agreed to take Mother's note in place of it. I paid 64 cents to the Co Op for 8 oz. of vanilla.
Wednesday, May 3, 1893
Today was pleasant and rainy. All did chores. Then I helped Mr. Deifendorf get started to paint the floors down to the red house. Then I took Nettle & the buggy & 2 cans of syrup & went over to W. Klock's to see his mother-in-law about making our cheese. She would not work. Then I went to the Falls, got our mail, and mailed a letter to Dayger. At the Metropolitan Drug Store I got 15# of yellow ochre for 45 cents, 1 qt. Japan for 46 cents, & 1 pt. of varnish for 32 cents, & 1# of moth balls 15 cents, (paid). I left the two gallons of syrup at Silliman's Store, not sold. The boys drew stone from the welch wall in the gulf. Mother went down to W. Keller's with Jess & the sidebar.
Thursday, May 4, 1893
The weather was very rainy all day. All did chores. Then the boys finished up. I gave the cheese good care, did some writing, then we cleaned up 20 bushel of barley & some oats. I did some writing. Both girls helped milk. Mr. Deifendorf finished painting the floors at the red house & then painted the floor in the cheese room. It was a very rainy day, and our chimney leaked very bad. Frank Windecker bought a calf for $1.25, paid.
Friday, May 15, 1893
Today was lowery. All did chores. Then I wrote a letter to Maggie in Cortland, to Geo. A. Petrie about Herman's business on the lot & to B. Mattesson about cheese making, & J. L. Stahl on the account & sent all with John Granar also a note & $3.25 to balance with F. Stahl for the gun & $1.00 to pay for 10 cheese boxes at Ives Hollow. Mr. Deifendorf is painting down to John's house, the east room, the hall, & the stairway. John got a fire started in the cure room, and gave all the cheese a good rubbing & c. John got the cheese boxes & paid for them & 3# of coffee 96 cents charged, 2 papers of seed 8 cents, & tobacco 6 cents for himself & paper & border for his rooms 90 cents. Stahl kept 36# of sage cheese at 14 cents = $5.04.
Tuesday, May 16, 1893
The weather was rainy and bad. John, Tim, and I did the chores. Then after breakfast, John & I went down to his house with both teams & finished our field plowing. Then we plowed his garden & then plowed our garden. After dinner, we got both teams out to finish plowing down to the red house but it rained so we had to quit. Tim finished chores & fixed fence. J. Granar went to the Corners with the black team & got $5.20 worth of wire, 18# of codfish 72 cents, one dozen lemons 24 cents, & 1 pair of pants $1.25 & a package of peas for himself (10 cents:) all charged to us. J. Petrie came here about noon, and helped finish the cheese, then he sifted the grass seed, mixed it & sowed some, washed the cutter & c. I took Jess & the old buggy & drove to see about pasturing the colts, but made no bargain.
Thursday, May 18, 1893
Today was very rainy. All did chores. Then J. Granar went down to his house to see about his painting. I did some writing. Petrie helped at the cheese & at the carpets all day. After the chores were all done, we 3 took 8 black & white yearlings, marked with a punch in the under side of their left ear, also 1 spotted cow & 1 two year old heifer to pasture. We got back for dinner, whipped the carpet, & cleaned the horses. In the afternoon, we put up a standard for the whey troughs, set up the leech, got the kettle ready for the lye, and cleaned the privy, & c. Mrs. Fleming came here & is helping clean house.
Granar went over to Davis's tonight.
Friday, May 19, 1893
The weather is cold and cloudy but not stormy. All did chores. Granar came late. Then after breakfast, J. Petrie helped make cheese & helped the women & made a kettle of soap. Tim finished chores. John & I took the black team & wagon & went down & tore the rail fence down & drew some of the rails over for a new fence. We broke the harness. Then in the afternoon, we three took both teams & the wagons & drew stuff over for the new rail fence. Mr. Deifendorf went to the Falls a foot, mailed some letters, got the mail & three pounds of wire fence staples & paid for them. I paid him. J. P. worked 1 day, and Mrs. Flemming 1 day.
Tuesday, May 30, 1893
The weather was warm and rainy part of the time. Cora went home & to the Falls with Bay Fannie & the buggy. Carrie went down to the burying ground to decorate with Jess & the buggy. Tim, John & I finished sticking pumpkin & squash seeds in the corn. Then in the afternoon, we dug 18 post holes. In the evening, Tim & I went down to Keller's to try our thermometer. We drove Nettle, and she drove very nice. We found it to be correct.
Wednesday, May 31, 1893
Today was gloomy and it rained some. All did chores. I turned the cheese & c. Then after breakfast, we cleaned the horses. We got 9 bags of grain baking & hot from the granary & put it in the hog pen. We got the carrots from the cellar, got Jess & the buggy ready & Carrie & Seymour went to the Falls, Seymour saw the Doctor, then they came back by the church. Carrie stayed to help clean the hall. John, Tim & I dug holes for the new fence around the planting ground till noon. Afternoon, the boys finished the holes. I went down to church with Nettle & the buggy & helped straighten the fence & c. P. O'Hara rode up with me. After milking, Cora took Fan & the rig & went to J. Goodell's after Carrie & the dressmaker. Deifendorf came here.
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