Tradin' Days

In those days, I was quite the trader. I remember at one time in the front of the Parsonage where I lived were parked three, count 'em, freight wagons. And one was a mint Studebaker. Oddly enuf, I have no recollection of whatever happened to any of 'em but I'm sure I must have traded them away. I was always trading with the farmers in those days. To them most of what I wanted was junk to them although if I still had that Studebaker freight wagon I'd be wearin' a nicer hat today.

Even tho' I traded a lot and got what I wanted, I usually was taken pretty easily. That's what happens if your want is greater then the other fellas.

I once had an 1858 Beals Remington pistol that went through the Civil War with Custer's Michigan Calvary. I shot it often and it was a beauty. I traded a Stihl chainsaw new in the box for it. Back in those days it wasn't a bad trade for either of us.

I traded it off for a hammer double barrel shotgun that I coveted. When I took that in for appraisal the fella told me the best thing I could do was to make it into a floor lamp...hmmm not so good there.

I have (and still do) always wanted a wood burning kitchen stove. Well, one of the ol' fellas had a nice one in his barn if I wanted to buy it pretty cheap. I took the old pickup and went for a ride to his farm. Tashnick was his name, an old timer that had an old time family farm at the time. I purchased the stove and we loaded it up and I was winging my way back to Gregory, MI.

On the way, I stopped off at another old timer's farm to show off my new acquisition. I was pretty proud. I remember pullin' in to his old ramshackle farm and in his pasture were two pony mules. Oh, oh says I. Well, he sure did like my stove, I sure liked his mules.

When I left I had two pony mules in the back of my truck (yes I had stock racks) and he had a nice stove. I used this team to skid logs with a sled I built and had great fun.

Ol' Delbert Harvey was a new boy down the road. He was old and was from Tennessee, some 78 years ago. He loved mules and would visit them often. He also was diagnosed with cancer and came to me one day and said if he could take 'em home and play with 'em it may prolong his demise. Well, I harnessed them up and ground drove them to his little farm outside of town and left them in his care for a bit.

Now Del was of the old school and really mistreated this little team of mine, in fact he ruined them. By the time I came to that realization it was too late. On my last visit they put me in the hospital with no provocation on my part. Del had passed during my hospital stay and Mrs. Del sold the mules and the harness. Del evidently told her he had bought them.

Still lookin' for a dirt-cheap wood cook stove.