Westbrook High School - Blue and White Yearbook (Westbrook, ME)

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Westbrook High School ll There are recipes for Pickled Pork, Deli- cious Pig's Pettitoes, perfectly delightful dishes of Tongue,' to prepare, and very up-to-date recipes for the cooking of Pheasants, Snips, of Woodcocksf' - I gathered from the book that fish was very popular and Turtle was the food of the day. Concerning Turtle the recipe states: They are of various sizes, and that the reader may be informed how to dress them, we shall here confine ourselves to one of about eighty pounds' weight. It should be taken out of the water. the night before you intend to dress it. In the morning cut its throat, or the head off, and let it bleed for some time. Right here we will stop. This is only to show you their methods of torture one hundred years ago. I call it sheer murder. Enough for the cold-blooded side of the Do- mestic Cookery l I do not wish to leave with you the idea that it was all like that, for truly, those were the days of the most tempting and savory dishes ever concocted. Most of the foods were, in greater part, more savory and wholesome than those we eat today. The meat pies were es- pecially tasty and there never will be equals to those good old apple, mince, cherry, or berry pies that were so luscious. The cakes were enormous. Nearly all the meas- urements were in pounds, half-pounds, quarts or ounces. In the recipe for Sponge biscuits it reads, Beat the yolks of 12 eggs for half an hour, then put in a pound and a half of sugar beets. Cooks thought nothing of using eight to a dozen eggs in each cake. I could go on and on and tell you about the tarts, puffs, cheese cakes, custards, jellies, and The Art of computionaryf' The home institution of cooking is gradually passing away, with its whole- some foods. In its place have come rich, attrac- tive dishes, made by bakers who bring the food to sell at our door. We haven't the time to do heavy, extensive cooking today, whereas that was all the woman of a hundred years past had to do. Young men! When had you rather have existed, and you, young women, today or one hundred years ago? M. W., '34. AMUSEMENTS OF A CENTURY AGO A century ago, the many wonderful amuse- ments which we have today were unknown. But were our ancestors any the less happy because of this? Apparently not. Their pleasures were few and simple in comparison to our more sophisti- cated amusements. For instance, house-warmings were just as popular then as they are now, but they were con- ducted in a much simpler way. Friends, relatives, and neighbors gathered at the new home of the newly-wed couple and showered them with sub- stantial gifts. At these functions, it was custom- ary to dance far into the night, not returning home until the next day. A gathering of this sort in those days was a real event, and was en- joyed to the utmost. Nowadays, a housewarming is quite different. We don our best clothes, jump into an automobile, and carrying elaborate gifts surprise our newly-married friends. The next day, the newspaper informs us that bridge and dancing were enjoyed, and refreshments served by the hostess. Or again, with all the amusements that are now at our command. have we anything more lively than an old-fashioned barn dance? A century ago, coming on horseback from miles around. the neighbors gathered to dance to the tunes of the old-time fiddles in a barn whose rafters were hung with hay and cornstalks. Here, amid the lowing of cattle and the squeak of fiddles, our ancestors danced their jolly quadrilles. Nowadays, youth thinks it must have a per- fectly waxed Hoor, a well-lighted hall, and a smooth-toned orchestra to make a dance a success. Apparently we have progressed far in our meth- ods of giving a dance, but do we have any better time than our ancestors had at their barn dances? However, perhaps the most popular type of party enjoyed by our ancestors was the husking bee. In the fall of the year, friends and neighbors would again gather in the barn to husk off their neighbor's corn. At these affairs, both young and old took part. Competition was keen among the men to see who could husk the most ears of corn, and how they worked! ! While the husking was

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In 'IEUE The Blue E-r White 'O in making the most of the physical gifts nature had bestowed upon her. Let's see just what she is doing now. She's taking out a sheet of heavy brown paper from a drawer in her bureau, the kind of paper that until twenty-five years ago butchers used to wrap packages. She tears the paper into small strips and wets it with vinegar, then places it on her temples to eradicate crow's feet about her eyes. Next, she takes a bottle of hand lotion from her drawer which she herself compounded of lard, rosewater, and cocoanut milk and applies it to her hands to make them smooth and beautiful. Has Grannie forgotten just how hard she tried to apply her daily beauty aids? Grannie was a real tom-boy. She used to wear large hoop-skirts with tight waists. You know how much they hinder. They didn't hinder Gran- nieg she just tucked them all in a large bundle and rolled and rolled and rolled down the great hill by the old fort. Ah, what fun she had! There's Grannie looking into our bedroom door while we are applying cosmetics, and we hear her gently say, Times aren't like they used to be, and then tiptoe softly away. L. M., '34. TODAY, UR ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO? Would you like to know how to make Dr, Fuller's Chemical Snuff for the Head-Ache, Palsy, and Drowsy Distempersv or perhaps Daffy's Elixern? Perchance Dr, Anderson's admirable improvement on the common mode of salting Butter would be of more interest to you. But, really, this is only a small portion of the latest Domestic Cookery, published nearly one hundred years ago, which contains everything from Soup Vermicellii' to A Haunch or Neck of Venison, or' the German Method of Clarify- ing and Preserving Fresh Butter to the making of Boluses for the Rheumatism and Contraction of the Joints. The other day I happened to come across an old cook book in our attic, and I found the book immensely amusing-and interesting. To read the titles of recipes and preparations one can readily see the attitudes of the day toward new things, such as Beautiful newly discovered Golden Yellow Dye, Curious Method of Breeding Gold and Silver Fish, Wonderful method of render- ing all sorts of Paper Fireproof, Curious and simple manner of keeping Apricots fresh all the year. They all suggest awe and wonder. Usually there was stated in the title that such and such a Queen had used the recipe or it came from this or that country. I imagine this was to induce the reader to try them. The frontispiece of this book is a picture of the Modern Domestic Cookery, in other words the modern kitchen of a century ago. This is the pic- ture. In the room there is a fireplace in which is suspended a huge iron kettle, and several other pots and pans are arranged on a grate above the roaring fire. Before the fireplace is alarge mov- able cupboard, in which the dishes are placed to dry. The walls of the room are covered with kitchen utensils of all shapes and kinds. The chinaware is perched on long rails against the wall, and from the ceiling hang braids of corn and long strings of apples to be dried. Thus, the modern kitchen. From the foreword of this book I quote: Fc- males should be early taught to prefer the society of their homes, to engage themselves in domestic duties, and to avoid every species of idle vanity, to which thousands of them owe their ruin. However, the Domestic Cookery proceeds to lay out the course which a proper young lady of the 19th century should follow. Now for some of the dainties which they used to enjoy. How does this sound: To dress a calf's head for Baking. After having well cleansed the head, parboil one-half, beat up the yolk of an egg, and rub it over the head with a featherg then strew over it a seasoning of pepper, salt, thyme, parsley chopped small, shredded lemon-peel, grated bread, and a little nutmegg stick bits of butter over it, and send it to the oven. I am still curious as to what part the feather plays in it.

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'2 going on, capable women were preparing quanti- ties of food to be served to the workers later on. Finally, the long tables were taken away, the barn fioor swept clean of husks, Hddles tuned up, and dancing was begun. Thus, a farmer gave his neighbors a good time and at the same time got his winter supply of corn husked. It must be admitted that we have outgrown the custom of helping our neighbors along these lines, and we are more apt to be found spending our evenings at the movies, listening to our radios, or playing contract bridge. But I am still wonder- ing if we are any happier than our ancestors were with their few but interesting amusements. H, G, L., JR., '34. BEARDS In the last one hundred years many sciences, and cultures, have developed tremendously, but I cannot say as much for mustaches in regard to either size, shape, or appearance. We are all well acquainted with the hairy matter covering the faces of the early pioneers. This long stubble was needed for protection against the elements-wind, rain, hail, sleet, snow, and sand. Probably they were too busy lighting Indians, erecting dwellings, and otherwise reaping a living from the land, to think much of shaving. Apparently they thought little of the styles prevailing on the coasts. There in the east was the villain with his mus- tache tapering to a point on each side of his lugu- briously scowling aws. The ends could be twisted and pulled as he sneered, Ah ha, my proud beauty. Then there was the old southern colonel, with his white head of hair, snowy mustache, and cream-colored goatee, which was no more or less than a diminished Indian scalp-lock growing in the wrong direction. All are undoubtedly acquainted with the mus- tachioed immigrant from sunny Italy. His beard was the result of years of hard labor at twisting, curling, waxing the otherwise unruly hair. The Italians were unexcelled in this art for the other The' Blue E-r White men had neither the patience nor the time to dress their faces thus. Those who did try to imitate succeeded only after having pulled the hair from their head, through their cranium, to the sheltered upper lips. Thus the origin of barren heads. Today the same art is being insulted relent- lessly. This is exhibited by the microscopic h 79 H 37 If growt s called Cookie crumbs, smudges, mis- placed eyebrows, and the like. They would not be noticeable if the owners did not color them with some dye or a lead pencil, making a contrast- ing shade. So grows the beards of the nation. In the future this period will be known as the golden age in regard to civilization but the dark age of mustaches. J., '35, ONE HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW I wonder what One hundred years from now The people will think of us, to-day! I wonder if They'll laugh and say, Oh, look at the funny things They wore a hundred years agol And can you imagine The way they lived And the slow process of travel l just see this old photo Of H 1934 auto. Didn't they think that was style! I wonder what They'd say if They were suddenly brought here today And saw what we call Height of Fashion. f I'm sure everyone Would be frihtened. Why, we've found things That they never dreamed Could exist, And they called theirs 'Height of Perfectionf Ah, yesg 'tis the same old story, And 'tis said every year that comes. I wonder what Will be happening One hundred years from now !