When I attended the Teddy Roosevelt Symposium at Dickinson State University, I studied some of the pictures hanging in the hallway that depicted old time North Dakota. The one that most interested me was titled "The Honyocker," a scene where a man walks behind a one-bottom plow pulled by a team of four horses. I had often wondered the etymology of that word but couldn't find it in the 1,700-some pages of my usually adequate dictionary to find its meaning and origin. A good, ole Google search gave me satisfaction. Obviously,its meaning is fast disappearing from the language through disuse, but some lady at www.honyocker.org wondered about it, too, and researched it some. In Standard German the word "Huhn-jager" means hen-hunter; in the Czech language a honyocker is "hunyak" and means a shaggy fellow; in the Hungarian dictionary it is spelled "hunyag and hanyak" and means negligent, careless, sloppy or forgetful; in North Dakota and surrounding states honyocker is often taken to mean a backward, old-fashioned type of rural person; and in the early 1900's the ranchers did not like the homesteaders who broke up the native prairie and called them honyockers, which gave the title to the plowman's portrait I saw.
When I was quite young I can remember hearing that word used occasionally; it stll had carried over to that period --- the 1950's. I can still hear someone using it in a conversation. I knew it to be derogatory but can now be at ease knowing I found its meaning and derivation.
While contemplating this, another word from the past popped into my head --- Jehu, pronounced yay-hoo, as I've heard it. Its meaning still has some use, and I have heard it used occasionally: a fast, reckless driver. Its primary usage is Biblical and comes from the name of a king of Israel in the 9th century, B.C., described as a furious charioteer. I find it fascinating the things a person thinks about on any given day. So much for the 25th of September.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
The Old Hometown
Last week I attended a part of the interesting Teddy Roosevelt Symposium in Dickinson and listened to several historians speak on various aspects of TR. It got me anxious to start reading more history of that period and thought the best place to start was with my hometown newspapers on file with the North Dakota archives. The Sheldon Enterprise’s on file go back to early 1885 and that’s where I started. Once I got into reading them it was hard to stop. I wondered if Sheldon’s paper would make any mention of TR, and sure enough, I quickly found this reference in the May 19, 1886 edition: " Theodore Roosevelt, the prominent New York politician, has arrived at his ranch on the Elkhorn in the western part of Dakota where he expects to spend the summer." Other news that interested me in the first few issues I read were notices of General U. S. Grant’s illness and death and the vote of the Senate affirming the dividing Dakota into two states.
The local news, though, was the most entertaining. Some good examples from 1885-86 follow:
"Last Saturday was a lively day in Sheldon. Thirty or forty teams could be counted on Front Street at almost any hour of the day.
After four or five revolver shots, Mr. Creswell’s favorite dog gave up the ghost in front of the drug store last Wednesday evening. He had been poisoned.
Long lines of moving wagons are to be seen passing every day destined to new homes in the west.
Mr. Creswell and hired man were seeding all day last Saturday in their bare feet. Too warm to wear boots or shoes. How’s that for the 4th of April in Dakota.
Five Indians, well armed and carrying two canoes were seen making a beeline northward yesterday. Going to join Riel?
A lady passed through Jamestown, on a train, bound for Oregon, with a revolver stuck in her belt.
K. E. Rudd is setting up a sample McCormick binder, across the street from our office, this morning.
When ordering a pail of beer, be sure and instruct your clerk to see that he gets it fresh from the convenient slop tub, otherwise it might be too strong and make you sick.
Fourth of July to be celebrated at Sheldon in a grand style. A cornet band to be here on that day. Good speakers. Exciting races and games. Processions, etc., etc. and a prominent feature of the day - two balloon assentions (sp) and grand fireworks in the evening. All to wind up with a grand ball in the evening at the new skating rink.
Sheldon shipped the first car load new wheat this year from the field of P. P. Goodman that was shipped on any of the lines of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
Herman Schultz was in town Saturday and marketed a wagon load of extra nice cabbage.
Deputy Sheriff Tom Eastman has been having his hands full of wood thieves during the past week. He had four of them on his hands at once. Two paid their fines and the other two landed in the Fargo jail for 10 days.
Dr. Henning sports a new fancy cutter. Tell you what, it’s a daisy.
A team of mules, attached to a cutter, took a glorious tumble in the street, opposite our office, yesterday. The mules were not shod sharp and being driven on the smooth ice in the street, one of them went down and the other rolled clear over him. No damage except considerable scare and a broken cutter tongue.
(And my favorite) A Ransom County lawyer was found dead in his sleigh one day last week. Just how he happened to be sleigh riding, instead of having his hands in a client’s pockets, is unknown, but it is surmised that was because the client had had his pockets emptied by having previously called on another lawyer. His death was doubtless caused by attempting to tell the truth to a jury and then going out in the cold while he was still sweating."
I intend to keep mining those veins of entertaining news and gossip from the old home town papers. It makes for fascinating reading and maybe a poem or two will come from it.
The local news, though, was the most entertaining. Some good examples from 1885-86 follow:
"Last Saturday was a lively day in Sheldon. Thirty or forty teams could be counted on Front Street at almost any hour of the day.
After four or five revolver shots, Mr. Creswell’s favorite dog gave up the ghost in front of the drug store last Wednesday evening. He had been poisoned.
Long lines of moving wagons are to be seen passing every day destined to new homes in the west.
Mr. Creswell and hired man were seeding all day last Saturday in their bare feet. Too warm to wear boots or shoes. How’s that for the 4th of April in Dakota.
Five Indians, well armed and carrying two canoes were seen making a beeline northward yesterday. Going to join Riel?
A lady passed through Jamestown, on a train, bound for Oregon, with a revolver stuck in her belt.
K. E. Rudd is setting up a sample McCormick binder, across the street from our office, this morning.
When ordering a pail of beer, be sure and instruct your clerk to see that he gets it fresh from the convenient slop tub, otherwise it might be too strong and make you sick.
Fourth of July to be celebrated at Sheldon in a grand style. A cornet band to be here on that day. Good speakers. Exciting races and games. Processions, etc., etc. and a prominent feature of the day - two balloon assentions (sp) and grand fireworks in the evening. All to wind up with a grand ball in the evening at the new skating rink.
Sheldon shipped the first car load new wheat this year from the field of P. P. Goodman that was shipped on any of the lines of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
Herman Schultz was in town Saturday and marketed a wagon load of extra nice cabbage.
Deputy Sheriff Tom Eastman has been having his hands full of wood thieves during the past week. He had four of them on his hands at once. Two paid their fines and the other two landed in the Fargo jail for 10 days.
Dr. Henning sports a new fancy cutter. Tell you what, it’s a daisy.
A team of mules, attached to a cutter, took a glorious tumble in the street, opposite our office, yesterday. The mules were not shod sharp and being driven on the smooth ice in the street, one of them went down and the other rolled clear over him. No damage except considerable scare and a broken cutter tongue.
(And my favorite) A Ransom County lawyer was found dead in his sleigh one day last week. Just how he happened to be sleigh riding, instead of having his hands in a client’s pockets, is unknown, but it is surmised that was because the client had had his pockets emptied by having previously called on another lawyer. His death was doubtless caused by attempting to tell the truth to a jury and then going out in the cold while he was still sweating."
I intend to keep mining those veins of entertaining news and gossip from the old home town papers. It makes for fascinating reading and maybe a poem or two will come from it.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
September Miscellany
The weather moderated here on our hill in Mandan. The cool weather feels good. There was a light frost on the rooftops in our neighborhood early Sunday morning, but I don’t think any plants suffered because of it. The weatherman threatens it again in a couple of days. The beautiful alfalfa field below us produced a third cutting. It’s probably the nicest hayfield I’ve ever seen.
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Saturday, September 8 marked the 49th anniversary of the life-changing accident I suffered. I told Mary if there were one thing I could change in my life it would have been to avoid that incident. Often times veterans will not talk of their wartime experiences. In my own way I understand what their silence means, and I will have no more to say of it.
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I’m looking forward to tomorrow when I’m going to Dickinson to attend symposium at Dickinson State University: "Theodore Roosevelt and America’s Place in the World Arena." Dickinson is positioning themselves as a center of TR studies and is developing a digitalized base connected to the Library of Congress for research purposes. They are bringing in nationally prominent people to conduct the meetings, and I sent my money in to participate.
..............................
Saturday, September 8 marked the 49th anniversary of the life-changing accident I suffered. I told Mary if there were one thing I could change in my life it would have been to avoid that incident. Often times veterans will not talk of their wartime experiences. In my own way I understand what their silence means, and I will have no more to say of it.
...............................
I’m looking forward to tomorrow when I’m going to Dickinson to attend symposium at Dickinson State University: "Theodore Roosevelt and America’s Place in the World Arena." Dickinson is positioning themselves as a center of TR studies and is developing a digitalized base connected to the Library of Congress for research purposes. They are bringing in nationally prominent people to conduct the meetings, and I sent my money in to participate.
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Pride, Empire, etc.
The sermon in church this week was based on the scripture reading of Luke 14: 7-14. It dealt with the teachings of Jesus on humility with the 11th verse holding the key idea where He is quoted as saying "For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted." At the start the priest related this story: Once there was a frog who wanted to go South and asked two geese on their migratory flight to help. The frog strung a string between his two new friends and clamped on tightly with his strong jaws. As they were flying along a hunter spotted them and shouted up, "Whose idea was that?" The proud frog opened his mouth to boast that it was he, and the hunter ate frog legs that evening. The story ended with a quote from Aesop’s Fables, "Pride goeth before the fall."
As I listened, my mind trailed back to the Newsweek article of last week that dealt with the unsuccessful hunt for bin Laden. The matter of pride seems to enter into the military’s efforts in this hunt, too. It would probably make the most sense to send in special operation units to hunt him down, units (termed "snake-eaters") that could live off the land for a long period of time and poke around the hills and caves of Afghanistan. The author says that military brass, though, doesn’t like "snake-eaters" because they don’t always follow rules or maintain spit-and-polish discipline. Instead, they would like to fight in the open and show off their firepower and new weapons. Therefore, they chose to fight in Iraq instead of Afghanistan. It’s unfortunate the military leadership hadn’t listened to the same sermon I just had.
I’ve never forgotten outgoing President Eisenhower’s warning that we should beware of the military-industrial complex. To further give a person food for thought our public television station last night on their America at a Crossroads series ran a show titled "Inside America’s Empire." It was indicated that the U.S. has a military presence in dozens of countries. The countries of Colombia, Georgia, Philippines, and another in Africa were featured and described to varying degrees our country’s involvement there. Whenever I see or hear the word empire I can’t help thinking of the Roman Empire and its fate.
As I listened, my mind trailed back to the Newsweek article of last week that dealt with the unsuccessful hunt for bin Laden. The matter of pride seems to enter into the military’s efforts in this hunt, too. It would probably make the most sense to send in special operation units to hunt him down, units (termed "snake-eaters") that could live off the land for a long period of time and poke around the hills and caves of Afghanistan. The author says that military brass, though, doesn’t like "snake-eaters" because they don’t always follow rules or maintain spit-and-polish discipline. Instead, they would like to fight in the open and show off their firepower and new weapons. Therefore, they chose to fight in Iraq instead of Afghanistan. It’s unfortunate the military leadership hadn’t listened to the same sermon I just had.
I’ve never forgotten outgoing President Eisenhower’s warning that we should beware of the military-industrial complex. To further give a person food for thought our public television station last night on their America at a Crossroads series ran a show titled "Inside America’s Empire." It was indicated that the U.S. has a military presence in dozens of countries. The countries of Colombia, Georgia, Philippines, and another in Africa were featured and described to varying degrees our country’s involvement there. Whenever I see or hear the word empire I can’t help thinking of the Roman Empire and its fate.
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