Many pecks of pared fruit were required for the apple-butter boiling.
These were pared--the Pennsylvania Dutch say snitzed--the night before
the day of boiling.

"Mom," Amanda told her mother as they ate supper one night when many
apples were to be pared for the next day's use, "Lyman Mertzheimer seen
us pick apples to-day and he said he's comin' over to-night to the
snitzin' party--d'you care?"

"No. Let him come."

"So," teased Uncle Amos. "Guess in a few years, Manda, you'll be havin'
beaus. This Lyman Mertzheimer, now,--his pop's the richest farmer round
here and Lyman's the only child. He'd be a good catch, mebbe."

"Ach," Amanda said in her quick way, "I ain't thinkin' of such things.
Anyhow, I don't like Lyman so good. He's all the time braggin' about
his pop's money and how much his mom pays for things, and at school he
don't play fair at recess. Sometimes, too, he cheats in school when we
have a spellin' match Friday afternoons. Then he traps head and thinks
he's smart."

Uncle Amos nodded his head. "Chip o' the old block."

"Now, look here," chided Millie, "ain't you ashamed, Amos, to put such
notions in a little girl's head, about beaus and such things?"

The man chuckled. "What's born in heads don't need to be put in."

Amanda wondered what he meant, but her mother and Millie laughed.