Moldy Bread Would Have Saved Albert’s Arm.

Well school was over for another year, I was in the sixth grade and ten years old. I was five feet six inches tall and weighed ninety pounds. Now that Dora was through school, she was allowed to have boyfriends. Revival services began at the churches in the community. Dora and I went every night even tho it wasn’t our church, this one night we were at the Methodist Church at Brandonville.

Our neighbor, Albert Harshbarger, was there also. After the services were over, he asked Dora if he could take her home? She said, “yes,” so we got in his car, and instead of going straight home, he wanted to go to Bruceton Mills, two miles in the opposite direction. We didn’t care so off we went.

Albert had went to a store in Bruceton Mills, and then we started for home, we crossed the bridge, turned left, and started up the hill towards home. We had gone but a little way, when the car started “missing,” Albert said the car needed some water, so he put the car in reverse and started backing up. I felt the car beginning to tip over, that’s all I remember. When I came to, I was laying on the ground beside Dora, I could hear people yelling. Dora moved first, then someone helped her get up, I rolled over and began sliding, someone grabbed my arm and pulled me back up, by this time I realized where I was, and what had happened.

Albert had backed the car over the embankment, it had rolled over at least three times, before coming to rest against a sapling about two inches in diameter. If it hadn’t been for that little tree, the car would have went into the river dam.

Albert was still in the car, but they were helping him out, he seemed to be alright except that his right arm was all bloody. Someone took us home. We were alright, mother and father were in bed, so we didn’t tell them what happened. Early the next morning, Albert’s mother [Minnie Thomas Harshbarger] called; Albert wanted to know if we were alright? He was alright except a cut on his arm. 

We forgot all about the car accident a couple days later, because mother fell and broke her leg. Ethel was working away from home, I had to go get her. Well, I’ve already told you about that, and what a mess that was. Three weeks later, Albert came over to visit, he went into see mother, who was still in bed with broken leg. Mother asked Albert how his arm was? He said, “it’s real sore, it pains me.” Mother asked if she could see it? That maybe she had something for on it. Dora helped take the bandage off, when I saw his arm, I was shocked, I had never saw anything like it. It was all red and yellow with puss, swelled up to almost twice the size. The cut was right above the elbow, the redness ran upto his shoulder. Mother took one look and told Albert to “go to doctor,” he said he would. As it turned out, Albert didn’t go to the doctor until a week later, his arm got to paining him so bad, he had to go. The doctor sent Albert to the hospital, he had blood poisoning, and in order to save his life, they had to cut his arm off. We all took it hard when we heard the news, especially Glenn, he broke down and cried and cried. He and Albert had played ball and went swimming, and did all the things boys like to do. Two months later, Albert was home, and learning to write, and learning to do things with his left hand, he was in good spirits, but we knew he was hurting inside. When I think back. What a waste. When some moldy bread would have saved Albert’s arm. 

September came, mother was getting around enough that we didn’t need Ethel, so she went to live with Ruth, where she got a job.

I started school at Brandonville, I was supposed to be in sixth grade, but they didn’t have anyone in sixth, so the teacher put me in seventh. Seventh grade was hard, the teacher assigned a boy to tutor me, after that I did good except arithmetic. I felt guilty about the boy helping me, so I gave the boy popcorn and nuts. I hated going to Brandonville school, I didn’t know anyone, and I had to walk, because there was no barn to put my horse in. Going to the barn to milk and sometimes having to go for water, often times made me late for school. Riding horseback to Guthrie school was fun, but walking was a bore. 

Glenn had gotten married that summer, he and his wife grace were living in one end of the granary. I was eleven years old in September [1932], and had grown another inch. Ethel had bought me a toothbrush, now I brushed my teeth everyday with soda. I had pretty teeth, straight even, I took pride in my teeth, but they were soft, if I ate something cold I got a toothache.

There had been three or four square dances that summer, and about as many reunions that father, Dora, and I went to everything that was going on. Mother went sometimes, but with a broken leg, she mostly stayed home. We didn’t have enough hay, for the livestock for the winter, so father went to see a farmer, that owed him money for building him a barn, the farmer didn’t have any money but lot’s of hay. We borrowed uncle Ray’s hay wagon and hauled three loads of hay. We slept one night in the farmers barn, because a storm came up and poured the rain down. The farmer gave us a blanket and we slept in the hay. It was great laying in the hay listening to rain on the roof, every now and then a cow would moo, or a horse would snort, it was so cozy, it didn’t take us long to go to sleep. The next morning the rain had stopped. The farmer gave us breakfast and while we were eating, they got to talking about the good old days. We learned the farmer and his wife liked to square dance, and they expressed their desire to have their three children learn the art. When we left, the farmer and his wife were having a square dance in two weeks and father would play the music. Father loved parties, that’s all he talked about for the next two weeks, he invited everyone he met. 

The night of the square dance finally came, it was raining, father asked Andy Seese, Charlie’s brother, if he would take us. Andy was sweet on Dora so he was delighted. As usual when we got to the dance, everyone was waiting for father and his music. The dancing was in the farmers living room, which was larger than the average, thus, giving father enough room for two sets of dancing. I had never danced, as I was too young, so I sat on the sideline and watched. I watched every move that was made, I wanted to be a good dancer. The place was crowded, I think everyone father invited was there, and had brung along their friends. Dorothy and Glenna Moyers, were there with their boyfriends, they had fun dancing and came out into the kitchen for a drink of water. I knew Dorothy’s boyfriend, Park Lancaster, I had seen him before. I had never seen Glenna’s boyfriend, he was a head taller than Dorothy’s boyfriend, had wider shoulders, he had black hair, blue eyes, and when he laughed he showed a mouth full of white teeth, he sat down on a chair in the kitchen, and Glenna sat on his lap, she pulled her dress up and hooked her legs around his. He kept running his hand up and down her arm. Soon they were back dancing, and I forgot all about them. It was getting late and people were beginning to leave, but others wanted to keep on dancing, father didn’t have enough couples for two sets (which required four couples each) he motioned for me to come, I didn’t know what he wanted. Father was talking to Boots Earley, a guy we all knew, Boots lived at Hopwood, PA. Often he came to West Virginia to visit his sister Iva Shaffer, a neighbor of ours.

Boots and his brother Bun, were famous for their music throughout, they had twin brothers that sang on the radio at Greensburg, PA. Boots was tall, long legs brown curly hair, brown eyes, and twenty five years old. As I approached father, Boots took my hand and said, “Your father says we are the needed couple.” I was shocked beyond belief, I WAS GOING TO DANCE WITH BOOTS EARLY. I thought I was dreaming. We were out on the dance floor, and I couldn’t believe how easy dancing was. When the dance was over, Boots swung me out on the floor again and father played “pretty red wing,” around and around we went, doing the two step, I had only seen it done a couple times. When we stopped dancing everyone clapped their hands. We danced some more that night, but I don’t remember what else. 

As I look back, everything changed from then on, father went around telling everyone about the dance, and my dancing for the first time. He said I didn’t move like that when it came to work.  

Albert Harshbarger 1909-1973, Minnie May Thomas Harshbarger 1887-1965, Andrew Jackson Seese 1909-1997, Dorothy Irene Moyers Lancaster 1919-1997, Park Wilbur Lancaster 1910-1982, Glenna Kathryn Moyers Forman 1916-2002, Vernon S. Bunn Early 1901-1953, William Clair Boots Early 1905-1963, Iva Early Schaffer 1898-1978, Dora Guthrie McNair 1916-1982, Ray Guthrie 1895-1976, Ethel Guthrie Ritchey 1914-2008, Ruth Gutrhrie Seese 1912-2007, Clara Bell “Carie” Maust Guthrie 1889-1965, James Guthrie 1879-1965, Glenn Ralph Guthrie 1910-1986, Grace Pearl Sisler Guthrie 1912-1990.