Apr. 30. brite and fair. after church today we went round to see if we cood get a place to keep our horse. we asked Noot Crumet but Noot he said he dident have enny place to put her unles he give her his room and he told us to go to Bucher Haly and see if we coodent get a chanse to put her in his smoke house for we cood keep her longer there than enny where else and so we went to him and he chased us out of his yard. then we went to Charles Flanders but he dident have but one room and his shed wasent big enuf to keep a gote, and then we went over to old Jethrow Simpsons and Jethrow he said if we wood help him haul wood enuf to fill his shed we cood keep her in his barn as long as we wanted to and have enuf hay two.
May 1. it was may day today and we dident have enny school. so me and Beany went up to Fattys and got him and we went down to old Nats. We wood have run all the way only Fatty got tukered out. When we got there old Nat made us promise to give him a hat or a pair of old boots becaus he kept lady Clara over Sunday. Fatty he said they was lots of old hats at home and so we went way back and got a old tall bever hat and then old Nat hiched up lady Clara and we piled in. Fatty he drove ferst becaus he said we coodent have got her unless he had got the old tall bever. so Fatty he drove up as fur as ass brook and then Beany he drove as fur as the old brick meeting house and then i drove as fur as the hall place where Jethrow lives. we all had to stand up when we drove becaus the ranes is two short. when we got there old Jethrow was there and he had a dingel cart and we hiched lady Clara into it and went up to Jady Hill for sum wood. we wirked till 12 oh clock and then we run home to dinner and run back agen. i took all the meal i had for my hens most 2 quarts and i fed her. it is Fattys tirn next to get meal for her. then we wirked til six oh clock and we were allmost ded we were so tired. well when we asked old Jethrow whitch stal we shood put her in he told us to take our old plug and get out or he wood lick us. jest think of that. well we dident know what to do. so we waited til most dark and then Beany said we had beter go to the next house becaus they was a big shed there. so i said i wood ring if Fatty wood ask and so i rung the bell and a woman came to the door and Fatty told her all about it and she said old Jethrow was a meen old skin flint and we cood put our horse in her shed and cood keep her their as long as we wanted to. so she give us a lantern and we went out and they was a buly place and we made a stal with 2 boards and put a lot of saw dust under her and give her a pale of water only we dident have enny hay. well bimeby Beany said that he cood see the hay sticking out of the cracks in old Jethrows barn, and we went over and looked and we cood see plenty of hay there. so Fatty he said we had ernt that hay and we aught to have it, and Beany said so two, and Fatty said he woodent steal ennything but this hay was ours and we had ernt it. so Fatty and Beany puled out a board and held it open while i puled out enuf hay and then we fed lady Clara and went home. ennyway the hay was ours and it wasent stealing to take it.
May 2. brite and fair. this morning i got up erly and went over to the barn. Beany he was there and Fatty he came after i had got there. lady Clara was laying down and woodent get up. i gess she was prety tired. so we fed her and Fatty brogt some otes. so we curred her down as far as we cood reech and brushed her and then we went home. at brekfast mother asked me what made me smel so barny and i said i had been helping Fatty curry his horse. at noon we fed her agen and tonite we got her up and curred her other side. we dident drive her today.
May 3. rany as time. we cant drive lady Clara today. we curred her 2 times.
May 4. tonite we drove lady Clara. We went down Newmarket road. we took tirns driving. one of the wheals come of and we had to get out and walk home holding on the wheal.
May 5. Ed Adams give us a nut and we fixed the wheal. we had a ride tonite. i tell you lady Clara can go. we beat Gim Lovering tonite. he dident know who we was becaus it was two dark but we knowed him. we beat him and then we waited for him to come up and then we beat him agen. we did that 3 times, and Gim he was mad.
May 6. my hens dont lay enny now. i gess i dont give them enuf to eat. it is prety hard to keep a horse and hens two. we dident drive tonite becaus it raned. it was brite and fair yesterday.
May 7. today was sunday and we coodent drive lady Clara. tomorrow nite we are going to lay for old man Churchil with his troter. i bet we can beat him.
May 8. i have missed in my lesons most every day, and so has Fatty and Beany. today i swaped a hen for a buchel of meal for lady Clara. we drove her tonite but we dident find ennyone to race.
May 9. brite and fair. if Beany dont shell out more meal he wont drive lady Clara agen.