Lately we have been going through some rainy weather that has kept the gardeners and especially the farmers from being in the fields and getting their crops planted. I liked to be out on the farm with the sun shining or at least it not raining on me. I just do not see how a person can be upset with good weather conditions at all. I find that even now on days when the skies pour upon us to look to find something to keep me busy and maybe give me the feeling of accomplishment.
From my early memories on when a rainy season showed up and drove the men from the fields there seemed but one thing to do. That was to search out chores that needed to be done now. At our farm, it seemed that we would go to the garage and reorganize all the tools and parts to be put back where they had been put in place last winter. I will say that at our place this was no :get it done in an hour: job as we were much netter at getting things out than putting them back. This was not just Ben and me and Webb our hired hand, but my Dad was as guilty as the rest. He never denied this and was first to jump in and start putting it all back.
Next, might be the barns or over in the corncrib areas where all the feed burlap sacks probably were not yet returned to their place and if they had a hole in them from the mice (which was almost guaranteed.) we had a huge needle that was used with large string to mend the sacks and then reorganize. Now in the barns, there were always items to put in place and broken bales of hay to be cleaned up and forked into the mangers to be out of the way. As winter would pass on the number of cut strings of baling twine removed from bales of hay that had been fed to cattle would pile up and got in a person’s way.
If the rainy season continued we would as a group gather up the baling twine strings from the bales and make ropes. You take a cut string and splice the end to another and so on until you had a length of maybe 50 feet per section. As for us we would take three of the 50 foot sections and then braid them together and “Presto!”, we now had a new rope to tie on loads of hay to the wagons without the expense of buying one, (At least we had a rope to use if it ever stopped raining.) Depending on how long the twines had accumulated would depend on just how many new ropes we had. Those kind of ropes work for awhile but they are still not as reliable as store bought, but they were still free.
I recall that on these wet days somewhere between mid-morning and late afternoon neighbors would stop in to see just how much we really did need to do inside and tell us just how much they had been straightening up also. In these conversations would seem to be added more talk on topics they had just happened to recall and I have seen many a stop from a friend turn into a good long visit taking place inside the barn door, the corncribs, or the garage. Location I do not think was a worry, it had to only be a dry place and positioned to keep the wind from chilling you.
Dad would drag out all of the corn knives and both of our scythes, along with a couple of grass wipes, and all items he had that were bladed. He then would pull out a file or use a large grindstone. These were made from sandstone, made in the shape of a large wheel, and most usually mounted onto a frame with a crank handle attached to allow you to turn the wheel while you sharpened a tool on it. I doubt they are stiil made unless at home but they are still around a lot of farms.
As the rain would hit on the metal roof the file worked on items such as hoes, axes, and the grindstone would be used on scythes and mowing machine-cutting sections etc. I think my brother Ben and I would try our hardest to work the grindstone and the one on my Uncle Roy’s farm also had a seat where you could actually sit as you would grind.
However, the chore that was saved for last was to use a whetstone tp sharpen our pocket knives. Any person who has used a grindstone or file has probably used the trusty whetstone. A whetstone which has been around since Roman times is made from a stone and the use of water or an oil can be added and sharpen a tool if you are willing to apply the time. This might sound disgusting but the old farmers I have seen, and even I am guilty of this, just spit on the stone and began to work the blade firmly and consistently in a circular motion until you reach the sharpness desired or your arm gets tired.
Therefore, in those rainy seasons if all else failed you were sure you knew where the whetstone was, and you could sharpen forver. Since it has been around forever and the “whet” is part of the name, I have to think it was invented in a rainy season when a bored Roman soldier picked up a stone and decided just maybe this might help sharpen his sword. Unbelievably, maybe but you find an old Roman soldier and ask him. In the meantime, I will sharpen my knife.
Rick Houser grew up on a farm near Moscow in Clermont County and loves to share stories about his youth and other topics. If you would care to read more of his stories, he has two books that are for sale. You can contact Rick at houser734@yahoo.com. Or just Write to him at P.O. Box 213 Bethel, Ohio 45106.
