| Description |
MANASSEH Eleanor P. Madsen Ephraim, Utah First Place Essay There was Ephraim, so there must also be Manasseh. In the day of the naming, it was a land of greasewood and shadscale with a bit of hardy sagebrush, like a calico ruffle, skirting the foot of the nearby hills. The early homesteaders, men, women and children, bridged the winding Sanpitch River, forded the swampy meadows to higher ground where they built sturdy homes of native lumber and hewed pine logs. Life in Manasseh moved at a slow, relaxing pace, with the people having little contact with the world beyond. The people were self-sustaining, having brought horses, cows, sheep and pigs with them. Every family had a few chickens to supply the needed eggs and poultry. A bowl of Danish dumpling soup, made from a fat hen, was a special Sunday dinner treat. Sweet butter was made in a wooden churn from thick, yellow cream, skimmed morning and night from wide pans of Holstein or Jersey milk. These pioneers had their own special refirgerators, "Coolers," they were called, made from a wooden box with two shelves and hung on a porch or the cool side of the house. A clean, white percale or muslin curtain was nailed at the top and hung down over the front, caught on either side with a little nail to keep the wind from blowing the dust in. A burlap sack absorbed cool water from a pan on top of the cup-board, and its dampness kept the contents of the food in the cooler from spoiling. It mattered not if the milk turned sour. The thick clabber, with a layer of yellow cream covered abundantly with sugar, was a favorite supper-time meal. Caroway cheese or _ 4 _ |
