Aunt Mary's Memoirs: VI

Besides the nine children and my father, there was "Mike," the Irish hired man who had come to live with us. Aunt Maggie had returned to Ireland to take care of her aging mother soon after Rose was born. We children helped with the housework and the boys did chores around the stables, milking and helping with the haying, garden work, and the chickens. I dusted on Saturday mornings; the tufted black horsehair sofa and chairs in the parlor were my greatest aversion, but it was a joy to do the big sideboard with all the glassware on it. These celery holders, relish dishes, etc., were used only for special dinners like Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter or christenings. As I grew older, I learned to sweep the floor with a broom, sprinkling the carpet first with a little water to keep down the dust.