Reminiscences: The Moss Peregrinations
House No. 5
I have a feeling that Pa and Mom decided that Pigskin Ridge was too rough a place in which to bring up children. We were on the move again. This time it was still in Maryland but a much more civilized place. Germantown was about twenty-five miles from Washington D.C. I was not around for that move for our grandfather Moss had come down from Connecticut to visit us on Pigskin Ridge. He took me back with him to visit Connecticut relatives. My return to Maryland was delayed because of an outbreak of polio. In that interim the move was made. The family stayed briefly in an undesirable little house in Old Germantown and then moved into quite a nice house in Germantown. It was situated on the edge of a large peach orchard. Once again Pa had a job in a peach orchard.
The school was quite near us. We became acquainted with some children who lived not far off. What fun we had playing Hide and Seek and other games in the later afternoon and early evening. I look back on that as a happy time for us.
Lloyd was growing up. One summer he got his first job. He and some other boys went to a neighbor's field to thin corn. I think these days corn is planted scientifically so there is no need to thin out the plants. He was elated to receive a dollar a day for that seasonal work. Up to this point, we had done things together but now not only was he allowed to work but he could also go with the boys to a swimming hole in the early evening. The rule was stipulated that they were to return when the bullbats began to "holler". I knew bullbats were birds but to this day I'm not quite sure what they were.
One of my greatest joys was to dress up my baby brother John, put him in his stroller and take him down to the center of the village. I wanted everybody to see him. I loved that baby dearly.
One winter there was quite a bit of snow around the orchard. Mom let me bundle up little John and take him for a sled ride in the orchard. At one point there was a little hill. I sat on the back of the sled and down we went. Unfortunately I didn't steer very well and we bumped into a peach tree. Neither of us was hurt but John began to scream. I hauled him around before he stopped crying. Fortunately he was too small to tell on me when we arrived home.