but very few families could afford such luxuries.

One of the recollections of Grandmother Anthony's house is of the
little closet under the parlor stairs, where was set the tub of maple
sugar, and, while the elders were chatting over neighborhood affairs,
the children would gather like bees around this tub and have a feast.
Always when they left, they were loaded down with apples, doughnuts,
caraway cakes and other toothsome things which little ones love. Along
the edges of the pantry shelves hung rows of shining pewter porringers,
and the pride of the children's lives was to eat "cider toast" out of
them. This was made by toasting a big loaf of brown bread before the
fire, peeling off the outside, toasting it again, and finally pouring
over these crusts hot sweetened water and cider. The dish, however,
which was relished above all others was "hasty pudding," cooked slowly
for hours, then heaped upon a platter in a great cone, the center
scooped out and filled with sweet, fresh butter and honey or maple
syrup.

In those days every sideboard was liberally supplied with rum, brandy
and gin, and every man drank more or less, even the elders and
preachers. When the farmers came down the mountain road with their
loads of wood or lumber, they always stopped at Grandfather Read's for
a slice of bread and cheese and a drink of hard cider, but the elders
and preachers were regaled with something stronger. This was the
custom, and criticism would have been considered fanatical.

The little factory nourished and produced many yards of excellent
cotton cloth. A store was opened in one corner of the house to supply
the wants of the employes and neighbors, and the Anthonys enjoyed a
plenty and prosperity somewhat unusual where small incomes and close