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annotation: cop. EHE 11/26/1966 /annotation

July 23. 1859 John had written to you on the other side and had just got ready to take it to town and see if there was any mail for us, when one of the neighbors brought us mother's letter with the rest of that rennet. The way we manage our cheese making is somewhat laborious for want of unclear conveniences at night we strain the milk into our stove boiler what it will hold and set it in a washtub of cold water to cool so that it will not sour, the rest we strain into a wash-tub which we use for a cheesetub and place a tin pail ful of well water in the tub, In the morning we lift the boiler on the stove and warm the milk and turn it into the cheese-tub, and put the mornings milk with it. I have 2 or 3 pailsfuls in the boiler more than the tub will hold I raise it all to a temperature of 86° and put in the rennet so as to bring the curd in one hour, I then dip the curd with a dipper into a basket with a strainer placed in page is tornnd whey the curd off in that way, I then have to work it firm with my fingers back again into the boiler to scald then return it again to the basket which is this time placed over the cheese tub to catch the "white-whey" separately when this whey has sufficeintly drained the salt is mixed in and the curd transfered to the hoop I then scald the white whey and set it to make butter to grease the cheese with. John has got a good hired hand who interests himself in John's affairs the same as if it were his run no better help can be found any where, as for hired girls they are hard to come at and of little account when found I had a girl 2 weeks Early in June but she lived 7 miles away and had to go home once a week so the 2nd time I let her stay there. Since then I have hired three weeks washing done and now since day before yesterday there has been an old woman here helping me. She is excellent help but very disagreeable

in margins: She and her family fight so at home that they cannot live together, so she came here & wanted to hire out I was pretty well tired out and was glad to get her a few days when I expect she will return and quarrel on again as long as she can stand it and then put out again as long as she can stand it and then put out again some where else; we shall not have wheat ----------- we have had for three weeks till yesterday the hottest weather I ever knew at this time of year. The early frosts cut off all our peaches. visit Kansas soon