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Show People still lived in their wagons and dugouts. On the 11th of August.they began harvesting limited crops consisting of native grasses called wild hay. Their only means of cutting the grass was with homemade scythes and they raked it with pitchforks someone made from native wood and whatever iron could be obtained. The simple method was time consuming. They accomplished the hauling of the hay by using oxen, sometimes pairing one ox and one cow. After they had harvested the wild hay it was time to harvest the grain crop. It was also scythed-then cradled and raked into bundles-bound and hauled to the yards. There it was threshed by trampling of oxen-or flailed by men with willows and flails. To separate grain from chaff required a light wind or breeze. Piled on a canvas and tossed into the air the grain fell onto another canvas as the chaff blew away. The process was repeated several times to thoroughly clean the grain. Wilhelmina took an active part in the harvesting of crops, as did other girls and women who helped with the raking, binding and gleaning. Settlers drove oxteams to Manti to gather saleratus that was in plentiful supply south of town. That which was to be used for bread making was very carefully gathered with spoons, and the less desireahle saleratus that could he used for the washing of clothes was scooped up with shovels. 23 |
