Caring for our sick Horse.

One morning Cliff came in after doing chores to tell us Our favorite driving horse Daisy was laying down & was sick. We had two driving horses which were smaller horses. This team was used when our family went to town or Church as they were much swifter than the work horses , which were called Clydesdale's. They were big & muscular with very large feet. I used to try to get on one as they were quieter than our driving team. I would lead one of these large gentle horses to a fence line climb up the wire onto the horses back, dig my heels into his ribs urging him to move, finally he would walk slowly, stop eat grass ,but this helped me to get to ride a horse. Cliff would first put a bridal in the horses mouth climb on its back & off he would go. I always had a hard time putting a bridal a horse, or even getting his mouth open to get it in & over the ears, then getting on it. I don't remember if Clara or Ralph ever road the horses as they were much younger than me. Now back to our sick horse. Mother got the large Dr book used for doctoring family and animals. She put something together & put this liquid in a bottle & we three went out to get this mixture down Daisy's throat which was quit a job but this did not cure our sick horse. I remember all of us would spend time out watching Daisy. That evening Cliff was still out trying to make Daisy comfortable. I finally went out when it was dark, here Cliff was crying as he was stroking Daisy, I also shed tears as I said good bye to our favorite horse, Cliff didn't come in until she died, I am not sure if mother went out to be with him but I went to bed with a sad heart.

After Dad came home from the hospital, he was in the field cultivating with 5 horses & mother sent Cliff & I out with a horse & stone boat with drinking water for him. We waited until he finished the field & was going to come home. Cliff begged him to let him drive the outfit the half mile home & dad could take the other horse home. I beg him to let me ride on the springs of the cultivator. Dad wanted let us to learn to help. It was a bit down hill & this new horse Dad had just bought was a buckskin we named Dick. He was a bit skittish so as Cliff was on the seat trying to hold them back, Dick's traces hit his heels so he plunged forward taking the whole outfit with him. Cliff hollered wow ,wow. I was about to slid down the cultivator to be dragged under it but I held on with both hands. At the bottom of the hill we were to make a turn into the barn yard. Dad was putting up a new fence along the lane but had just one wire attached. Dick was very afraid of a barbed wire so he stopped, forcing the outfit to come to a dead halt. Cliff & I were getting off when mother appeared. She heard the loud noise of running horses. She got to their heads, Cliff & I got off but just as I was looking at Dick stopped, with one leg in the air for he would not cross the wire. The wire snapped, hit my left leg making a deep long cut. I was bleeding, when dad arrived & took charge. Mum took me to the house to doctor my leg. I should have had stitches in the wound but it was 14 miles to a Dr, with only to travel by horse & buggy. Mum went to the Dr book. I spent the rest of my summer, setting with my left leg on a pillow while mother daily attended my wound. I got infection in it from the new wire. Mother put bread & milk poultices on it. She kept applying a fresh one often to clean the infection out of the wound. I still have quit a scare on that leg. My time was spent reading, waiting for my leg to heal so I would be able to return back to school when it started again.