6

A. Varensano interviewing Mary Washko -2- 7/19/72

Tape 23-1

AV: How did you pick the feathers? How did you work that?

MW: Well, you'd stick your hand in the bag and got a fistful, and take by one by
one, and you'd pull the feather off, and the stem you'd throw on the side.
That had to go out, so the feathers would be soft and fluffy. Then you'd
make pillows, feather quilts, and, well, like you slept under one. And well,
I said that was a job by itself. It would take weeks beforeyou got all that
done.

AV: Making a feather quilt?

MW: No, pluckin' the feathers. It wasn't too bad makin' 'em, but pluckin' the
feathers.

AV: What did you call that? Feather tick, or quilt?

MW: Well, it would be really a feather thick (sic).

AV: Pedena.

MW: And when you got that done, boy, everybody was really happy! Because that
was tough. I didn't like it myself, but I done it a lot. And then, oh boy,
when Christmas was comin', that was a jolly time!

AV: Why?

MW: Well, because they knew the mothers would bake goodies, and they believed in
Mrs. Cox, them days! They'd get, everybody got a present. The mothers and
fathers couldn't afford presents, so we get them. Then you'd get a little
bit nut bread, or poppa seed bread.

AV: From Mrs. Cox?

MW: No, no, no, the mothers would bake. And that was a treat, because you didn't
get that all the time. So, that was a happy time for the kids. Well, in the
winter we had fun, though. Because all these children, you know, we'd get
together and we would take and go out sleigh riding or pull one another, or
jump in the snow, or make a bobsled, and about ten of us or more would get
on, find a hill, and go down, and when we hit the bottom, well, we made the
boys pull the sleigh and we'd get on and get up the hill! Oh, that was,
well, that was fun! But I said, no matter how cold we were--sometimes we
didn't have mittens of torn mittens, but that, we got such a thrill--that
was the only pleasure you got, so you didn't mind it, you just stayed out
until you couldn't stand it no longer!

AV: Did the girls go sledding with the boys?

MW: Oh, yeah. So, it was lots to do. And then, sewin'. Sewin' took a lot of
time.

AV: Who did the sewing around the house?

MW: The mother. And then they learned the children.

AV: The young girls?

MW: The girls. If they were interested.

AV: Oh, yeah?

MW: Yeah. And then, no patterns! Just imagination! The best they could. It
was, you couldn't go to the store and buy dresses like you do now, you know
these days, and all kind of slips and all. Just about everything you wore
you hadda make. Lot of things were made out of flour bags.

AV: What did you make out of them?

MW: We made slips, we made underclothes, you made little vests, like, that you
could, them days you had little underpants that you'd button on a little
vest. Then we'd make slips out of them. And dress the best way you could,
I guess. Just about everybody's dress was the same pattern! Because there
was no patterns, you know, to take your pick. It was gathered in the waist,
the skirt was gathered, and the top, just a little plain top with a sleeve
in, high button shoes, and if you got a different color than a black, you
were tickled! Because you never had a white. But I had like a real light