<\/p>\n
I now have the two missing volumes of the Keith diaries, which came into my hands almost a year after I saw the eight volumes from which has come the material for this program during the past few weeks. Those previously missing volumes contain some items worth our attention. One of them covers the period from June, 1866 to April, 1870; the other from September, 1878 to February, 1883.<\/p>\n
The Keiths had no children, but they had adopted a boy named Edgar. When that boy decided to leave them, it was with the Keiths’ reluctant consent. In fact, Charles Keith took the boy to the railroad station to see him off. On November 28, 1866 Charles recorded in the diary: “I carried Edgar to Waterville to take the cars for Portland, thence by steamboat for Boston. He left because we restrained him more than he liked.”<\/p>\n
December 1, 1866 was the 25th anniversary of the Keiths’ marriage. They wanted to entertain all the surviving guests who had attended their wedding, but could not do so conveniently. Charles did take pains, however, to set down in the diary the names of all who had been present when the marriage had taken place a quarter of a century earlier. There were, of course, several Haydens, a number of Drummonds, three families of Garlands, all the resident Keiths, including Charles’ father Sidney, his brothers Sidney, Richard and Lathrop, and his sister Rhoda. There were also McFaddens and Blackwells, Smileys and Cushmans, Bradfords and Pattees, Stackpoles and Rowells — all memorable Winslow names.<\/p>\n
Charles Keith, as a good churchman, was interested in the new Congregational meeting house in Waterville. Just before Christmas in 1866 he went on two consecutive days to Waterville to “help put the stovepipe funnel for the meeting house together and put it up in the house.”<\/p>\n
Chicken dinners were evidently in demand for Christmas just after the Civil War, for on December 20, 1866 Charles Keith sold 35 lbs. of chicken in Waterville at 18 cents a pound. The day after Christmas he paid $16 for a barrel of flour, showing that some of the inflated war-time prices had not yet receded. In fact as the year closed on December 31 Charles wrote: “The farmers have fared well during the past year because all kinds of produce have brought high prices: hay $20 a ton, corn $1.50 a bushel, oxen $100 to $300 a yoke, pork 15\u00a2, beef 14\u00a2, beans $3.25 a bushel, eggs as high as 37\u00a2 a dozen, butter from 35 to 50 cents a pound”.<\/p>\n
At the end of January, 1867 the snow was two feet deep in the woods, and at some places on the open road had piled up drifts of 8 feet. Apparently the good old snow rollers that I knew so well in my boyhood in western Maine were not used in Winslow in 1867, because Charles Keith tells us: “Today the team has been breaking out roads with the triangle.”<\/p>\n
On February 10, when Charles went to meeting, the road was so bad he had to walk the horse all the way. Of the meeting itself he wrote: “A. M. Kimball, a student at Bangor, preached. Not at all interesting.”<\/p>\n
As late as March 19 the roads were again impassable because of a big storm. Keith and his neighbors shovelled snow all afternoon. The next day they succeeded in opening the road sufficiently for teams to get through.<\/p>\n
It seems that Winslow’s big lumber operator, corresponding to the Connors and the Totmans of Fairfield, was Robert R. Drummond. Each December he would assemble men and oxen and be off for the big woods in the Moosehead region. Then in the spring he would return home. Soon April 1, 1867, after recording that a cow had kicked him in the knee, causing a painful injury, Charles Keith wrote: “R. R. Drummond got home from the woods today.”<\/p>\n
We have already noted that, as anniversaries of one kind or another came around, Charles Keith took occasion to lapse into reminiscent soliloquy. Hence under the entry of June 24, 1867 we read: “My birthday. I am 51 years old, enjoy general good health, but feel that I cannot endure as much as once. In looking back I see but little good I have done. and in looking forward I see much to do. Oh, that I could accomplish all that I desire. Everywhere the machine age was developing — even on the farm there were implements to replace hand labor. But they were not without hazard.<\/p>\n
The Keith diary tells us that on August 4, 1867 a young man in Benton by the name of Fowler was killed by a mowing machine.<\/p>\n
Whenever he could Charles Keith attended commencement at Waterville College, or at least the program sponsored by the two literary societies on the Tuesday evening before the graduation exercises on Wednesday. That evening program consisted chiefly of two items — an oration by a visiting dignitary, and a poem by some equally distinguished literary person. It was at such an occasion in 1862 when Samuel Francis Smith, the author of the hymn “America” had read a poem which aroused and delighted an audience which the oration of Ralph Waldo Emerson had put to sleep. Concerning the occasion in 1867 Charles Keith wrote: “Last night we went to the exercises of the literary fraternities of Colby University. (This was Charles’ first opportunity to use the new name, for the institution had since 1820 been known as Waterville College.) The account continued: “Col. Higginson delivered the oration and Mr. Colby the poem.<\/p>\n
This morning the cornerstone of Memorial Hall was laid, but it was so rainy there were no exercises at the location of the new building except the laying of the stone. But appropriate exercises were held at the meeting house along with the graduation of a class of four. Gen. Plaisted of Bangor made an address, also Dr. Babcock of New York.” The Dr. Babcock referred to was the man who had been the second president of the college, following Jeremiah Chaplin in that office in 1833.<\/p>\n
We know that Charles Keith held some firm views about religion and preaching. On November 24, 1867 he said they had a visiting preacher, Rev. Mr. Hardy of Sidney, a Baptist. This was Charles Keith’s comment: If I was not pleased with him. Though he may preach a good sermon, his manner of delivery is so repulsive that he did me no good. I think many believe they must preach whom the Lord never called.”<\/p>\n
On November 25, 1867, the 26th anniversary of his marriage, Charles did some more soliloquizing: “We are both 26 years older and more sober and reflecting. Hope and the ardor of youth nerved us then; now it is sober reality. Our brows have more wrinkles and silvery hairs are plentiful. It is strange that the cares of life change people so much. Why can’t we look and act always as when we were young? Ah, it would not be right. We must be men and women, and marked sign of maturity must be seen. Although we have had some trouble during these 26 years, we have had much joy. Now we must expect more physical suffering, which is incident to the decline of life. May the Lord who has led us thus far and blessed us be with us for the rest of our journey and enable us to strengthen our affection for each other, that we may unitedly bear life’s burdens.”<\/p>\n
On December 3, 1867 Charles attended a protest meeting. He went to A. R. Smiley’s to meet the County Commissioners about a road from Albion to Benton which, as Charles put it, “we think unnecessary”.<\/p>\n
In his capacity as a school committeeman Charles performed a disagreeable duty just before Christmas. Here is the way he tells it: “I went by request to District 7 and dismissed three boys for disturbing the school. I am of the opinion that the teacher, Mr. Hamlin, ought to have got along without calling for committee action. Some teachers are more to blame than the scholars for poor discipline in their schools.”<\/p>\n
In February, 1868 Charles and his wife made a trip to Bangor, where they visited relatives and friends for several days. After he had returned home, Charles confided to his diary this comment: “I think the weather on the Penobscot is colder than on the Kennebec. Farmers there are obliged to drive their cattle long distances for water.”<\/p>\n
The summer of 1868 was unusually hot. On July 18 Charles wrote: “The hot weather has been dreadful. I have drunk so much cold water that I am almost sick. A good many have died in consequence of the heat.”<\/p>\n
To our surprise on Sunday, July 26 we find so strict a churchman as Charles Keith not in church, but getting in hay. He wrote: “I had quite a lot of hay cut, and it was subject to injury. So I stayed at home and took care of it. Works of necessity and mercy I consider should be done on the Sabbath.”<\/p>\n
By the middle of August it was again time for college commencement. On one evening there was prize speaking, of which Charles commented: “Some of the students displayed real talent, while others would make better laborers.”<\/p>\n
One of the most celebrated ministers in Central Maine was Rev. Thomas Adams, who organized the church at Getchell’s Corner and preached for many years in Benton. Vassalboro and Waterville. The Keith diary tells us that on August 26, 1868 more than 300 persons gathered at the Winslow meeting house to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Mr. Adams’ ordination. Adams was then 77 years old.<\/p>\n
In the late autumn of 1868 Charles Keith went on a long journey to Eastern Maine. It is a comment on the transportation facilities of the time that, in order to go to his eastern destination, Charles started west. In other words, to get to Eastport from Winslow, he first had to go to Portland. He made that first lap of his journey on the Portland and Kennebec Railroad. Then at Portland he boarded the steamer New England for Eastport. There he took the ferry across to Lubec and then the stage to Whiting. He commented: “Much of the land here is poor. The country houses are small and unpainted and the barns are poor.<\/p>\n
In December, 1868 Charles began teaching a nine weeks term of school in Clinton. He boarded at Mr. Pratt’s, but went home to Winslow for each weekend. He had 39 pupils, of whom he said they “were small and backward”. While he was at home on Sunday, January 3 Charles went to meeting to hear Mr. Bates of Waterville, as Charles caustically put it, “attempt to preach”. The diary item continues, “Mr. Bates said some good things and made a loud noise. I can’t think such noise and stamping of feet are called for in worship. I believe God is a God of order and not of confusion. In the evening I went to prayer meeting, which would have been good if there had not been noise and conduct reminding me of negro worship in the south.<\/p>\n
Everything at Charles Keith’s Clinton school went off smoothly except for one incident. On February first one boy refused to change his seat, so Keith suspended him until he complied, commenting in the diary: “I think the suspension will be of benefit to him.”<\/p>\n
Charles Keith delighted in opportunities to read. What with farm work and teaching, together with weekend commuting between Winslow and Clinton, he got few such chances in the winter of 1868-69. But on February 6 there was such a severe snow storm that Charles felt justified in staying at home, where he read Dr. Kane’s “Arctic Expedition”, an experience which he says “I enjoyed very much.”<\/p>\n
It was a winter of bountiful snow. At the end of February it was four feet deep on the level and piled into drifts of ten feet in some places. On March 8, town meeting day, Keith wrote: “It is uncommon for us to have such snow so late, with roads badly blocked.” The next day Charles himself shovelled snow on the road for six hours, and he comments: “The team went through with the triangle, making a pretty good road.”<\/p>\n
In October, 1869 the Kennebec had its biggest freshet since 1855. The Ticonic Bridge went out and a lot of other damage was done all along the river. On February 20, 1870 rain and thaw caused still another flood, when the roads near Fort Halifax were submerged, the bridge at Norridgewock went out, and the railroad bridge at Augusta was lost. The diary tells us: “There is a huge jam of ice below Hallowell, which keeps the river high, so that the tide comes up to Waterville.”<\/p>\n
Next week I shall end this discussion of the Keith diaries by telling you some of the highlights that appear in the second of those two previously missing volumes – the one that covers the years 1878 to 1883.<\/p>\n
Year: 1958<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Read the script for “Little Talks” program #373, Broadcast on March 23, 1958<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":405,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[744,35296],"tags":[],"builder_content":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7844"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/405"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7844"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7844\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/csc-home\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}