| Description |
Since meeting places were hard to find, The sisters asked if the Co-Op would mind If they bought the second story above To quilt and sew and give lessons of love. They climbed the stairs each meeting day, The sun through the door lighting the way. In one end of the room, a stage was made. The best in drama each week was played. O, it was fun, on a theater night To breathlessly watch, by a kerosene light, "Uncls Tom's Cabin" or "East Lynne," "Ten Nights in a Bar Room," begin. Dancing too, gained much renown, Many came from the near-by town. Lay their babies en the window sill, Chase a partner for a quadrille To the tune of a hand-pumped organ, A fine fiddle or an accordion. The rough floor was made more slick With wax shaved from a candlestick. We paid our tickets with a sack of wheat, Potatoes, anything, we raised to eat. We burned pitch pine to shed some light, Or oil-soaked rags to make it more bright. All this provided much needed fun. There were serious things to be done. More school rooms were badly needed. Again, the Relief Society conceded And offered curtained, upstair space For two classes that filled the place. We had arithmetic matches and spelling bees, Religion classes and reading, if you please. We wrote with soft rock on a slate, Sat in a corner if we were late. We were all eager to study and learn, With enough books, if we took a turn. - 2 - |
