USA > Iowa > Marion County > Pella > Souvenir history of Pella, Iowa : contains a concise story of the founding and life of Pella, Iowa > Part 22
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At the June board meeting, 1917, Milton J. Hofman of Hope College, Holland, Mich., was elected to the presidency. He began his work the following Septem- ber. One looks with gratitude upon the whole-hearted support given to the col- lege, not only by the immediate community, but by the denomination at large.
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
Pella and surrounding community have contributed to the college during the last six years no less than $150,000. Funds for current expenses came from east and west alike, proving that the whole denomination was backing the new project.
The new Library was opened in May, 1918. Ground for the Ladies' Dormi- tory had been broken with appropriate ceremonies in March of the same year. At the same time work on the Central heating plant was begun. Both projects were rushed to completion.
True to her traditions, Central sent many of her sons to training camp and trench, and at the same time offered her equipment to the government for the establishment of a Student Army Training Corps unit.
To the great disappointment of all the Gymnasium could not be erected at once, as had been hoped. For this splendid building we had to wait until 1921, when the local Chamber of Commerce made itself responsible for this addition to Central's equipment. The three new buildings, together with the old, give Cen- tral equipment easily the equal of any college of its size anywhere. The loss of Old Central is felt keenly, but there is every prospect at this writing that a larger, better and strictly modern college building will have taken its place before an- other year has passed.
The college will need the continued support of her many friends, for there is no small financial burden resting on the school. The meeting of the general synod in Pella last June brought Central very prominently before the entire de- nomination, whose board of education has recently undertaken a comprehensive program for financing the educational institutions under its care.
Central continues to build upon the foundations laid by the fathers. With humble pride we affirm that our first object is to be true to the Christian faith, and so to send out into every line of honorable endeavor men and women who have been touched by the Christ ideal. Nor are we ashamed to assert that we feel it a primary obligation to provide our own and other denominations with the necessary leadership at home and abroad.
With character comes the ideal of a high standard of scholarship. All other college activities, while wholesomely encouraged, are subordinate to that. The various literary societies are flourishing. Interest in oratory and debate is un- usually keen. Under the direction of a competent coach athletics for all are encouraged, while at the same time Central succeeds in turning out teams that do honor to the school. Central's Glee Clubs have traveled from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The Y. M. and Y. W. C. A., the daily chapel devotions and the Stu- dent Volunteer Band combine to uphold the best of Christian ideals.
The large number of loyal alumni, the intimate circle of Pella friends, the interest manifest throughout the entire denomination give assurance that Central's best days are still in the future. To realize this larger future a large measure of faith and courage will be required, and a still larger measure of sacrifice.
The faculty is constituted as follows:
Milton J. Hoffman, A. M., D. D., President.
Henry William Pietenpol, A. B., A. M., Dean; Professor of Mathematics and Physics.
Elizabeth A. Graham, Ph. B., Dean of Women; Professor of English Language and Literature.
Thomas Harrison Liggett, Ph. B., M. S., Professor of Biology and Chemistry.
Jacob Heemstra, A. B., A. M., Professor of Psychology and Education.
Martha Firth, A. B., Registrar; Professor of History.
G. F. Lee, A. M., B. D., Professor of Greek and Latin.
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CENTRAL COLLEGE
John R. Mulder, A. M., B. D., Professor of Bible and Philosophy; Foundation of the First Reformed Church, Pella, Iowa.
Frederiek Bosch, B. D., A. M., Professor of Modern Language.
Clara E. Reeverts, A. B., Instructor in Academy Mathematies.
Mrs. H. Pietenpol, A. B., Instruetor in Academy Latin.
Emma Reeverts, A. B., Instruetor in Aeademy English.
Wilhelmina E. Van Nimwegen, A. B., Instructor in English and History.
Karl Kettering, A. B., Instruetor in Academy Physies; Coach; Physical Di- rector for Men.
Julia Haymond Watson, B. O., Professor of Expression; Physical Director for Women.
Ada M. Stow, Director of Commercial Department.
George Francis Sadler, Mus. B., Professor of Piano, Pipc Organ and Harmony. Mrs. T. H. Liggett, Mus. B., Professor of Voice.
Carl Woodford, Mus. B., Professor of Violin; Director of Orchestra.
Mrs. Carrie M. Halbert, Matron.
Marie Greiner, Librarian.
The board of trustees is composed of the following members:
TERM EXPIRING JUNE, 1922
Rev. S. Van der Werf ... Holland, Mich. Rev. J. C. Horning ..... St. Joseph, Mo. Rev. R. D. Douwstra. . Westfield, N. D.
Rev. E. Aeilts. Little Roek, Iowa
Mr. H. A. Wagner
Rev. J. Wesselink. . Pella, Iowa
Buffalo Center, Iowa
Mr. Gary Vogelaar. Pella, Iowa
Mr. P. H. Van Gorp. Pella, Iowa
Mr. Y. T. Van Niewaal. . Pella, Iowa
Rev. George Hankamp Pella, Iowa
Rev. G. J. Theilken . Forreston, Ill. Atty. Geo. Gaass Pella, Iowa
Mr. H. J. Van den Berg. Pella, Iowa
Rev. J. H. Kregel. . Hull, Iowa
Rev. A. Klerk. . Grand Rapids, Mich.
Mr. J. N. Trompen. Grand Rapids, Mich.
Mr. L. Collins. Knoxville, Iowa
TERM EXPIRING JUNE, 1923
Dr. J. W. Beardslee. . New Brunswick, N. J.
Rev. John Ossewaarde. Marion, N. Y.
Mr. H. H. Geelhoed. Pella, Iowa
Mr. Paul Synhorst Pella, Iowa
Mr. H. S. Keables. Pella, Iowa
Mr. A. C. Van Houweling. . Pella, Iowa
Rev. F. Reeverts . Stout, Iowa
Mr. N. Bogaards. Pella, Iowa Fulton, Ill.
TERM EXPIRING JUNE, 1924
Mr. John Rozeboom.
Rev. John Steunenberg. Rev. C. Kuyper ..... Cedar Grove, Wis. Orange City, Iowa Rev. J. Engelsman. . Orange City, Iowa Rev. A. Haverkamp Sioux Center, Iowa Mr. Jacob De Bruin. . Pella, Iowa Mr. A. B. Van Houweling. . Pella, Iowa Mr. Peter Kuyper Pella, Iowa Mr. A. Waechter Pella, Iowa Rev. F. S. Bromer .. Cedar Rapids, Iowa Mr. J. F. Mowe. . Pella, Iowa
Sioux Center, Iowa Rev. J. H. Tietema. . Roek Valley, Iowa Rev. H. Heunnemann. . Lenox, S. D. Rev. Peter Grooters. . Little Roek, Iowa
Rev. C. Bauer Clara City, Minn.
17
Rev. F. Lubbers ... Sioux Center, Iowa Rev. J. P. De Jong. Alton, Iowa Mr. A. T. Van Houweling. . Pella, Iowa Rev. A. Van Arendonk. Pella, Iowa Mr. P. G. Gaass Pella, Iowa Atty. J. H. Johnson. . . Knoxville, Iowa Mr. John Van der Wal .... Pella, Iowa Rev. Isaac Van Westenberg.
Rev. Geo. Sehnueker. . Aplington, Iowa
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
Rev. John Roggen .... Hamilton, Mich. Rev. H. M. Bruins . Pella, Iowa
Rev. H. Achterman .. Chancellor, S. D.
Rev. A. Wubben Peoria, 111.
Mr. G. B. Kolenbrander. . Pella, Iowa
Mr. C. H. Wormhoudt. . Pella, Iowa
Rev. H. Pannkuk . . Meservey, Iowa
Rev. H. J. Pietenpol. Otley, Iowa
Rev. J. J. Hollebrands.
Kalamazoo, Mich.
Mr. G. II. Gosselink Pella, Iowa
Rev. Peter Braak Lansing, Il1.
OFFICERS OF THE BOARD
Rev. George Schnucker, President Rev. John Wesselink, Secretary Hon. H. J. Vanden Berg, Treasurer
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Rev. John Wesselink
Hon. H. J. Vanden Berg
Mr. Gary Vogelaar Mr. Y. T. Van Niewaal
Atty. Geo. Gaass
A. B. Van Houweling
THE LADIES' AUXILIARY OF CENTRAL COLLEGE
At the Commencement gathering of 1904, the Ladies Auxiliary of Central College was organized in response to a need, and its work each year has been to meet the most pressing demand of that special time. The relation of this organ- ization to the college is that of the Ladies' Aid to the church.
Mrs. Harriet Keables was the first President, who seemed tireless in her efforts to make the society a real aid to the school.
Since the change in administration from the Baptist to the Reformed Church of America, four years ago, the Auxiliary has grown in numbers and in opportunity for service. The collection of dues (50 cents a year per member), added to the money derived from serving banquets, running exchanges and special gifts from friends, represents an expenditure of almost $3,000.
If a hall of fame is ever erected in Pella, a place of honor should be reserved for the ladies, who as members of the above organization, have done so much for Central College.
When it first became known that the General Synod of the Reformed Church of America, had decided on Pella as the place of meeting in June, 1922, many of our citizens feared that we were undertaking something that was beyond our power to bring to a successful conclusion.
The pessimism was especially noticeable whenever the question of pro- viding meals for over three hundred notable visitors was considered. Many prophecies of dire failure were made; but these did not take into consideration the militant members of the Ladies' Auxiliary, an organization that has a happy faculty of rising equal to any occasion that can be met by industry, tact and team work. The Synod came, saw, and was conquered, by the splendid manner in which their material comfort was looked after. That the delegates left after a week spent in Pella, unanimously singing praises for the royal entertainment afforded them, was due in a large measure to the efficient work of the Ladies' Auxiliary.
As an indication of what this organization is doing for "Central." we give a brief summary of the more important things accomplished in the last two years.
Cement walks laid on College Campus, entirely financed by Auxiliary and help solicited by its members.
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CENTRAL COLLEGE
Chapel Hall in the Gymnasium completely finished and furnished under the directions and by the financial help of Auxiliary.
Campus beautified by planting of shrubs and flowers, under the direction of a competent landscape architect, paid by the Auxiliary.
Parlors of Ladies' Dormitory decorated and furnished by Auxiliary. Ladies' Auxiliary served meals to Synod members from June 7th to June 14th.
LIST OF OFFICERS AND MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
President, Mrs. H. P. Vander Meulen; First Vice President, Miss Elizabeth Graham; Second, Mrs. A. T. Van Houweling; Third, Mrs. John Myer; Recording Secretary, H. W. Pietenpol; Treasurer, Mrs. T. Vogelaar.
ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Mrs. M. J. Hoffman, Mrs. J. Wesselink, Mrs. H. M. Bruins, Mrs. Hankamp, Mrs. L. Vander Linden, Mrs. T. Plette, Mrs. A. B. Van Houweling, Mrs. R. Lautenbach, Mrs. G. F. Sadler, Mrs. D. G. Gosseling.
E
Old Central Building
"OLD CENTRAL" DESTROYED BY FIRE
A little after midnight, on the morning of June 14, 1922, occurred the destruc- tion by fire of one of our most historic buildings, one around which clung tender memories and sacred associations for hundreds of men and women now scattered to the four corners of the land, but who, in days gone by, often met in the old halls of "Central."
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
Dr. M. J. Hoffman, President Central College
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CENTRAL COLLEGE
Central College Library
Hall of Science of Central College
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
New Gymnasium, Central College
Central College Board
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3
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WOMENS FEDERATED CLUB
1-Mrs. H. P. Vandermeulen, Treasurer; 2-Miss Minnie Vandenberg, Recording Secretary; 3 -Mrs. J. C. Mitten, President; 4-Mrs. J. V. Lankelma, Secretary; 5-Mrs. H. Paul Scholte, Vice-President.
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
WOMEN'S FEDERATED CLUB OF PELLA, NO. 739
Pella will never be called on to erect a monument in honor of this organ- ization. The valuable educational work accomplished along many lines that make for the advancement and culture of our community life, as well as the concrete and visible improvements wrought in our city by the Federated Club, constitute a list of practical results that speak for themselves.
Two years ago, what is now known as South Park, was a weed patch, that constantly advertised the fact to all those passing through Pella, that we had not yet emerged from the "Main Street" village stage of development. When the Federated Club undertook, only about two years ago, to beautify this unsightly spot, the "anvil chorus" made the welkin ring with prophesies of failure, yet today it is one of the beauty spots of Pella, and few, if any, of the improvements made in recent years, receive so many favorable comments.
The Pella Club was organized at the home of Mrs. Aschenbrenner, May, 1914, with ten members. The first officers were: President, Mrs. C. F. Aschenbrenner; Vice President, Mrs. H. P. Scholte; Secretary, Mrs. H. P. Van der Meulin; Treas- urer, Mrs. Clayton. Purpose-Civic Improvement. Course of Study-Home Economics, Education and Civic Improvement.
THINGS ACCOMPLISHED BY WOMEN'S FEDERATED CLUBS
Established first Rest Room, contributed towards American Relief Fund, Y. W. C. A., Belgian Relief, Furlough House in Des Moines, Central College, sup- ported French Orphans, helped Anti-Tuberculosis Campaign by selling Red Cross Christmas seals. Library Board, solicited books and magazines for Army canton- ments, actively engaged during the World War by Red Cross sewing, serving troop trains, encouraging gardening among children, by conducting prize garden- ing contests, bought Liberty Bonds and War Saving Stamps.
Scholarship in Central College, two years. Conducted Better Baby Con- ference in conjunction with Baby Welfare work. Now have about 60 members. Have had only two presidents in the eight years since organizing. Carried on the Chautauqua in Pella for seven years.
It was largely, if not entirely, through the efforts of this organization that the Park Commission and Bonds for new Water Tank were carried, and that the Public Health Nurse was engaged. The first and only Municipal Christmas tree was also under the auspices of the Federated Club.
Editor's note .- The above showing, made by the Women's Federated Club certainly requires no apology. When it first commenced its efforts for Civic Improvement, the criticism was frequently made that the organization was im- practical. Here's hoping that they will continue to inflict many such impractical improvements on the community.
SCENES IN PELLA
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South Park Showing Pergola
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New Band Stand in Central Park
Views of Central Park
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SCENES IN PELLA
3. 3%
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Main Street, Looking South
PELLA NATIONAL BANK
PIANOS PHONOGRAPHS
Northeast Corner of Square
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
South Side of Park Looking East
STAR Ford Al
Star Auto Company
1
SCENES IN PELLA
269
...
Scene on North Side West Market Park Looking East
Franklin Street, East of Garden City Feeder Company
Pella's Beautiful Homes
Home of P. G. Gaass
Home of Geo. G. Gaass
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
Home of H. W. Slob
Henry De Goover Architect:
Home of T. B. Tice.
1, S. N. Van Vliet; 2, Jno. Blommers; 3, Gerrit Hugens; 4, Mrs. Ant. Grandia; 5. Jno. Meyer
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
273
Residence of Dr. F. W. Crew
Home of A. Waechter
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1
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411
Upper left. F. R. Gambell; center, J. G. Sybenga; lower right. Geo. Ramsey
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
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Home of J. M. Cox
Home of W. H. Fowler
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3
Homes of-1. Paul Renaud. 2. Gradus Gosselink. 3. A. C. Van Houweling
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
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Home of Gary Vogelaar
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Home of Dr. J. J. Sybenga
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Homes of-1. John Korver. 2. Nick De Winter. 3. Mrs. P. J. Welle. 4. N. Brand 5. Wm. Den Hartog
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
Home of J. D Gaass
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3
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4
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5
1. J. S. Wilson. 2. Arie Klyn. 3. Mrs. Jos. Hoeven. 4. S. Bert Baron, 5. H. J. Rhynsburger
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
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Home of Dr. Fred Carpenter
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5
Home of Dr. Carl F. Aschenbrenner
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
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Home of G. A. Stout
Home of P. H. Van Gorp
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
Home of J. H. Cochrane
.... .... .... ....
Home of Ed S. Cook
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
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Home of P. H. Kuyper
Home of H. P. Van Gorp
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PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
Home of H. P. Vander Meulen
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
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Home of C. H. Wormhoudt
Home of Mrs. A. N. Kuyper
EE
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5
Homes of-1. Albert Van Bouweling. 2. Dr. S. G. Fultz. 3. Ed Plette. 4. N. Brand 5. W. V. Sexton
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
Home of E. M. Cole
Home of H. H. Geelhoed
Carnagie Library
PELLA'S BEAUTIFUL HOMES
289
W. H. Vander Ploeg
Walter De Penning Home
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
Old Earb Home
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SLOB BROS. & CO.
PELLA'S WEEKBLAD
1.A
West Side of Square
SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
291
ALBERT HOBBS POST, G. A. R., PELLA, IOWA
Top row, left to right-Wm. P. Fowler, Capt. J. M. Cox, Dr. B. F. Keables, W. J. Clark, Jacob Todd, Gerrit Vander Kamp, Jerry Franklin, Wm. Langerak.
Center row-J. J. Bousquet, Martin Engelsma, Herman Rubertus, H. F. Fisk, Arie van Marle.
Bottom row-Eugene Dennis. Harmon Wheeler, Miles Sheehy, John Russell, Stephanus De Kock, Charlie Van Dorn, Joseph H. Young.
KUYPER LUMBER CO
MBER
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ILIUMI ER
Y TYTỷ-
Kuyper Lumber Company
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
Showing East Side of Square and North Side of East Franklin Street
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SPANISH AMERICAN VETERANS Dan De Vries, Phil Van der Meiden, John Luyben, Chas. Le Cocq. John A. Fes, Jr.
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CHAMBER OF COMMERCE GROUP
1. H. P. Van Gorp. 2. J. H. Cochrane. 3. F. M. Frush. 4. W. H. Vander Ploeg. 5. Floyd R. Camble. 6. Y. T. Van Niewaal. 7. Dr. J. C. Mitten. 8. F. C. Warner. 9. J. G. Sybenga. 10. D. Den Adel. 11. W. C. Slob. 12. J. T. Van Zante. 13. Gary Vogelaar. 14. C. Dieleman.
Pella's Physicians, 1922
DR. CREW
DR. FOX
DR. F. F. CARPENTER
DR. SYBENGA
DR. ASCHENBRENNER
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Pella's Dentists, 1922
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3
1. J. C. MITTEN. 2. JAMES LANKELMA. 3. GEORGE LANKELMA.
DENTIST STEFFENS
DR. WORMHOUDT
DR. P. A. EDMAND [ 295 ]
Pella's Attorneys, 1922
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G. G. GAASS
H. E. de REUS
D. C. VAN ZANTE
Park Commissioners
T. S. WILSON Chairman
J. H. COCHRANE
P. H. KUYPER
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3
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BAPTIST CHURCH OFFICERS AND TRUSTEES
1. Rev. A. C. Droz. 2. H. J Vandenberg. 3. F. J. Mowe. 4. Mrs. F. J. Mowe. 5. H. P. Van Gorp. 6. Mrs. Anna Van Spanckeren. 7. A. C. Kuyper. S. R. A. Awtry. 9. Ed Van Gorp. 10. H. Bruinekool. 11. J. H Cochrane. 12. Floyd R. Gampbell. 13. P. H. Stubenrauch.
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
FELLA NATIONAL BANK
1872
THE PELLA NATIONAL BANK PELLA, IOWA
A HALF CENTURY BANKING SERVICE
1922
G.G. GAASS. Pres.
E.S.COOK, Vice Pres.
J.H.DEVRIES. Vice P.
H.P.SCHOLTE, Cashier.
H.H. GEELHOED. Vice P.
C.SMORENBERG Asst. Cash.
OFFICERS OF THE PELLA NATIONAL BANK
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CONSISTRY OF FIRST REFORMED CHURCH
1. A. Van Stigt. 2. G. H. Wormhoudt. 3. J. Braam. 4. Paul Synhorst. 5. A. Ver Ploeg. 6. C. S. Van Hemert. 7. G. H. Gosselink. 8. E. Plette. 9. Louis Vande Streek. 10. J. O. Elscott. 11. H. De Koning. 12. A. Waechter. 13. G. L. Vander Linden. 14. Gysbert Van Zante. 15. Rev. J. Wesselink. 16. T. De Gelder Hospers. 17. H. Van den Oever. 1S. T. A. Tysseling.
A Tribute to Pioneer Mothers
As an ending to his "A History of the People of Iowa," Cyrenus Cole added a chapter which he called "A Postscript Personal," which in the name of his own mother was a tribute to all the pioneer mothers of Pella, and also of the whole state of Iowa. This chapter has attracted literary attention, the editor and reviewer of the Des Moines "Register" saying of it that if all other literature were lost, the future historian might reconstruct from this chapter a description of pioneer life in Iowa, especially as it affected women in their aims and aspirations for their children. With the author's permission, we are reprinting that chapter here be- cause in the history of Pella it has an appropriate place.
A POSTSCRIPT PERSONAL By Cyrenus Cole
I have gathered the materials for this history from many sources; from news- papers yellow with age; from musty pamphlets; from books of decayed bindings, and from lips that quivered when they spoke of the things of long ago. But most of all, I must acknowledge the indebtedness to my own mother. She told me so much about early Iowa that even as a school boy I thought of writing a history of the state-her story of Iowa.
She came to Iowa in 1847, before the state was a year old, and while she her- self was still a girl. Sitting by the side of her father on the front seat of a mover's wagon, she first saw the wonderland of the prairies in the waning summertime of that year. To her eyes it was like the unfolding of a dream of some fairyland. Blashfield's picture in the State House at Des Moines, with the winged spirits hovering over the pioneer's wagon, might have been painted from her visionings. Her father, Mathias de Booy, grandson of Cyrenus de Booy, of ancient name, was a man already burdened with years, but he was permitted to live in the land of his adoption until he had increased the psalmist's limit by more than a score. I can just remember him-a man who had participated in the wars of Napoleon in Europe, and who might have witnessed the inauguration of Washington, had he been an American citizen. It takes only three generations to encompass all of the marvelous history of America.
They journeyed from Keokuk up the valley of the Des Moines river, following, perhaps, in part of the route of the Dragoons in 1835. There were scattered settle- ments, but the country generally was still an open prairie. It must have been a hard journey, but my mother always spoke of it as a beautiful one. In her old age she seemed to think of it as something that she had dreamed when she was a girl. She was young and she was impressionable, and all the things of earth and sky were lovely in her sight. The skies were so vast and so blue, and the flowers were so many and so fair. Doubtless she added to them something of her own loveliness, and sweetened them in her remembrance. But I have tried to write of the prairies as she saw them, and as she remembered them afterwards. Nor have I found her personal impressions of them at variance with the testimonies of any of the earlier writers, whether French or American. George Catlin, the artist, said over and over that he could find no words to describe the beauties of the prairies, and so did Albert Lea, the soldier and engineer.
I have written not only of the prairies, but I have written of savages who paddled canoes on unmapped rivers; of explorers and adventurers and mission- aries; of men who felled the forests and subdued the land; of those who toiled and fought and died; of the sturdy and the strong; of the determined and the valiant
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SOUVENIR HISTORY OF PELLA, IOWA
who helped to make this state; of the wise and the unwise who made and unmade her laws-but with all my writings I have felt that there is something omitted, something left out of the story. And that something is the part women played in the making of Iowa.
History is largely made up of the visible deeds of man. It omits the invisible deeds of women. What wives and mothers suffered and endured and achieved in the seclusion of their homes did not always find its way into the narratives. The pioneer women did as much as the pioneer men. They ventured as far and often they hazarded more. By so much as their bodies were weaker and their souls more sensitive, by that much they suffered more. If the labors of men and of women differed in kind, yet were they equal. Men's labors were sometimes done, but those of women were unceasing. Mothers were busied with their household cares while men dozed before the fires, or slept in their beds. And what the women contributed to the future, was as much, or more. They were the con- servators of the traditions of the human race and the perpetuators of the things that are in all times the holiest. If the men made the farms and built the cities, the women made the homes and re-created the race. And so I have thought, and I am still thinking, that anything that I may write about my own mother may stand as a tribute to all the pioneer women of Iowa.
In many books that have been written about pioneer life in the middle west, it has been pictured as petty and monotonous, and as steeped in melancholies of isolation and despair, but while it often partook of such qualities, there was much more in it. Pioneer life had a sweetness and a nobility of its own. It was vast in visions for those who learned to love it, and who by that love were reconciled to its hard labors. But it was worse than misery for those who despised their sur- roundings and who quarreled with their fate. Its hardships were indeed many, and its discouragements were multitudinous. There were dismal days in sum- mer and stormy ones in winter. Drizzling rains and driven snows found every leak in the roofs and every crevice in the walls of the cabins. In a few cramped rooms the women had to carry on the interminable work of living. Cooking, washing and sewing and sleeping had to be done in a few rooms, and often in only one. Broods of children had to be cared for, and there must always be a welcome for even the stranger. But for the best of them and for the noblest, labor was love, and love was labor. In such surroundings and so hampered, even the golden threads of romance were woven into the textures of life, although the romance might be of their own thoughts and of the future. At least I like to think this was true of the mother of whom I am writing. Over her memories of the past in Iowa there always seemed to linger the scent of roses, of faded petals in a beautiful jar.
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