WORDS, WIT AND WISDOM

Liz Donaldson

The settlers in The LaVallee municipality came from many different areas including England, Scotland and the United States. With them they brought their own way of talking, colloquialisms and speech patterns. A very few spoke only Gaelic. Children often used to just sit and listen to their elders talk. The old adage "Children should be seen and not heard" was more strictly adhered to in those days. While it may have its value it was annoying to a child when the talk was shifting to some very interesting topic to have one of the older people say "Sh, little pitchers have big ears." Conversation on that topic would immediately close. One person wrote of sitting on the stairs listening to the older people talk and counting the "swears" which at that time may have been relatively rare.

There were adages or proverbs that were often quoted and to the pioneers these probably held more meaning than to us a century later. "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" was something to strive for when doctor's care was harder to come by care even if apples were also scarce. The old saying "A penny saved is a penny earned" had meaning for those people who did not have many extra pennies. Pioneer women no doubt believed "A stitch in time saves nine."

"You reap what you sow" is another saying that would hold meaning to these people whose lives revolved around agriculture and farming. The wisdom of "strike while the iron is hot" applied not only to blacksmiths. To the pioneers the saying "Make hay while the sun shines" was literally true. Gardening and planting was sometimes carried out by old folk standards and corn was planted when " the oak leaves were as big as squirrels' ears" so that it would be "knee high by the first of July." Root vegetables were planted when the moon was waning to ensure a good crop.

The "old timers" were not bombarded with detailed weather forecasts as we are today, yet they had their own way of watching the skies and natural signs as ways to predict storms or good weather. "Red sky at night, sailor's delight" was often heard. Dew on the grass meant fair weather and "rain before seven, clear by eleven" was a common expression. If there was "enough blue sky in the northwest to make a Dutchman a pair of breeches" that was a sure sign of good weather ahead. Everyone knew that "a sunshiny shower won't last half an hour." They watched for the "calm before the storm" and prepared accordingly. When March came "in like a lion" it went "out like a lamb." If squirrels accumulated huge stores of nuts or if animals grew a thicker coat than usual that meant a severe winter ahead. People today remember the old timers taking note of the weather on Good Friday as that governed the prevailing winds and weather for forty days.

There were certain liberties taken with the language that made conversation interesting. One settler often used words such as "slanchewise" meaning corner to corner. Another would say that he "laid by" to do a task such as "I laid by to plow that field." Another expression was "I liked to died." In telling of some harrowing experience he might say "I was so scared I liked to died."

Tall tales always made for good stories. One fellow bragging of his new rifle told how he "shot a hole in a hummingbird as big as his fist." Another in telling of what he considered to be a poor camp cook said that he could "snowshoe down the middle of the table and never tip a dish." It may have been the same cook who was reported to cook "sausage so strong it stood up and spoke to the coffee-and the coffee was too weak to answer."

One saying I recall was from my grandfather when I as a child was complaining about having to sweep with an old broom. He said, " A new broom sweeps clean but an old broom know the corners best." Reading this little article will perhaps bring back some memories to readers of old sayings that have stood the test of time.