Wild Heart on the Prairie (A Prairie Heritage, Book 2) by Vikki Kestell
Authors: Vikki Kestell
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Thank you for telling
us this.”
At the same time, Elli and Amalie began to make mattresses.
They spread a piece of canvas upon the ground near the wagons. Together they hauled
a bale of hay to it and cut the twine holding it together.
The women and their daughters spread the hay over the canvas
so the sun would dry it. Amalie had the girls turn the hay to dry it evenly as
the day wore on. Then she sent the girls to gather sticks and chips. They
placed them in a box under one of the wagons. She and Elli would not be foolish
and leave their fire fuel in the open again.
“Every day it is the same: We have to gather more sticks and
chips,” Kristen grumbled, digging in the dirt with her “snake” stick, the one
she used to warn snakes of their approach.
“ Ja , I know. And every day it is the same: You wish
to eat, eh?” Elli answered.
Kristen sulked a little but quickly caught up with little
Sigrün. She knew better than to let Sigrün wander into the grasses without her.
Elli dug in the wagons until she found the striped ticking
they had bought from Herr Rehnquist. She and Amalie cut lengths of the
ticking for mattresses and began to stitch them together.
Over the next days they would sew mattress covers for
themselves and their husbands and smaller ones for the children. As the sweet-smelling
hay dried, they would stuff the mattress covers with it and then stitch them
closed. During these days the families ate all the fresh ox meat they wanted;
some of it Elli and Amalie sliced thin and hung over the fire to dry.
Karl and Jan worked until dark that day cutting more sod and
laying all the bricks they cut. The weather was calm that night; Amalie was calm,
too, seemingly comforted by the progress the men were making.
Early in the morning Jan and Karl returned to cutting more
sod. They chose a new spot for the garden, closer to the dugout, and cut the
sod from it. Jan finished plowing the garden while Karl laid sod.
Then they chose their first field and began cutting sod from
it. It was slow, backbreaking work, but they kept at it. By late evening, the outside
walls of the soddy were four feet high.
The next day was the same. The men and Søren cut and laid
sod; the women and girls worked in the new garden and kept turning and drying
hay for the mattresses.
Jan and Karl spent an hour after lunch planting the “old”
garden area in corn. “We will have one small crop of corn for sure before our
other crops come in,” Karl said this with a satisfied air, but Jan fretted.
He was anxious to finish the soddy so they could attack
their first large field. Once their families and animals were safely under a
roof, planting a good-sized crop was the next priority.
While they were planting the small cornfield, Jan planted
his two apple saplings. He wanted the trees to grow on a softly sloping rise
not far from where he intended to build their house.
This is a good spot , he told himself. We will be
able to see them in the spring when they are full of flowers. And someday we
will add more fruit trees here . He made two cages of chicken wire, placed
them around the little trees, and staked the cages to the ground to keep them
from blowing away.
As the walls of the soddy rose to six feet, they framed in a
small window with shutters in the common room wall. Now they were ready to
build a roof.
The roof did not have to be made of wood. Henrik had showed
them they could save their precious lumber by placing poles across the walls,
filling the spaces between the poles with thatch, and then laying long strips
of sod crosswise over the poles and thatch.
Before quitting for the day, the men and Søren drove the
wagon to the slough and cut bundles of rushes. The women would tie rushes
together to make thatch for the roof, but they would need a great many rushes
for the job, more than the slough had.
Pressing forward the next day, Karl and Jan hitched the
wagon and loaded their ax, hatchets, and saw. With Søren in the back
us this.”
At the same time, Elli and Amalie began to make mattresses.
They spread a piece of canvas upon the ground near the wagons. Together they hauled
a bale of hay to it and cut the twine holding it together.
The women and their daughters spread the hay over the canvas
so the sun would dry it. Amalie had the girls turn the hay to dry it evenly as
the day wore on. Then she sent the girls to gather sticks and chips. They
placed them in a box under one of the wagons. She and Elli would not be foolish
and leave their fire fuel in the open again.
“Every day it is the same: We have to gather more sticks and
chips,” Kristen grumbled, digging in the dirt with her “snake” stick, the one
she used to warn snakes of their approach.
“ Ja , I know. And every day it is the same: You wish
to eat, eh?” Elli answered.
Kristen sulked a little but quickly caught up with little
Sigrün. She knew better than to let Sigrün wander into the grasses without her.
Elli dug in the wagons until she found the striped ticking
they had bought from Herr Rehnquist. She and Amalie cut lengths of the
ticking for mattresses and began to stitch them together.
Over the next days they would sew mattress covers for
themselves and their husbands and smaller ones for the children. As the sweet-smelling
hay dried, they would stuff the mattress covers with it and then stitch them
closed. During these days the families ate all the fresh ox meat they wanted;
some of it Elli and Amalie sliced thin and hung over the fire to dry.
Karl and Jan worked until dark that day cutting more sod and
laying all the bricks they cut. The weather was calm that night; Amalie was calm,
too, seemingly comforted by the progress the men were making.
Early in the morning Jan and Karl returned to cutting more
sod. They chose a new spot for the garden, closer to the dugout, and cut the
sod from it. Jan finished plowing the garden while Karl laid sod.
Then they chose their first field and began cutting sod from
it. It was slow, backbreaking work, but they kept at it. By late evening, the outside
walls of the soddy were four feet high.
The next day was the same. The men and Søren cut and laid
sod; the women and girls worked in the new garden and kept turning and drying
hay for the mattresses.
Jan and Karl spent an hour after lunch planting the “old”
garden area in corn. “We will have one small crop of corn for sure before our
other crops come in,” Karl said this with a satisfied air, but Jan fretted.
He was anxious to finish the soddy so they could attack
their first large field. Once their families and animals were safely under a
roof, planting a good-sized crop was the next priority.
While they were planting the small cornfield, Jan planted
his two apple saplings. He wanted the trees to grow on a softly sloping rise
not far from where he intended to build their house.
This is a good spot , he told himself. We will be
able to see them in the spring when they are full of flowers. And someday we
will add more fruit trees here . He made two cages of chicken wire, placed
them around the little trees, and staked the cages to the ground to keep them
from blowing away.
As the walls of the soddy rose to six feet, they framed in a
small window with shutters in the common room wall. Now they were ready to
build a roof.
The roof did not have to be made of wood. Henrik had showed
them they could save their precious lumber by placing poles across the walls,
filling the spaces between the poles with thatch, and then laying long strips
of sod crosswise over the poles and thatch.
Before quitting for the day, the men and Søren drove the
wagon to the slough and cut bundles of rushes. The women would tie rushes
together to make thatch for the roof, but they would need a great many rushes
for the job, more than the slough had.
Pressing forward the next day, Karl and Jan hitched the
wagon and loaded their ax, hatchets, and saw. With Søren in the back
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