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October 02, 2006

Vintage Fiction

With so much to read and with more and more being published every minute of the day, do you ever wonder about the books written in the distant past? Do you ever revisit the books that were once required reading in high schools (and college)? Do you constantly seek out the new and wait for the next volume a writer may be working on?

As much as I want to be a great American writer I do not believe I have the talent to be so. And that is okay. It is something I accept. It has freed me to write for myself and not worry about what a reader would think -of my talent, my skills, my word choice and even of myself. Perhaps I will one day finish a novel and maybe it will be next month during NaNoWriMo. And maybe it won't. But the desire is there.

Saturday Steve and I stopped in a used book store run by Friends of the Library. Many of the books were old from the 1930's and 40's. Some were more modern. Much of the fiction was the likes of V.C. Andrews and John Grisham, etc. There wasn't near as many paperback books as you would expect to find in a used book store.

As I worked my way around the walls of the narrow little building I delighted myself with a few cookbooks from the 1930's. (50 cents!!) I choose a couple of first edition books from the turn of the century with such mundane (hahaha!) topics as Napolean and Queen Victoria which will be excellent gifts for Colby for Christmas. She will just scream with delight.

Steve was much more methodical and studied sections of books like a scientist. He chose several books that dealt with the history of the world and such having been written by H.G. Wells and whatnot. Not really my cup of tea but the cookbooks weren't his so we were even.

In a box on the floor I thumbed through old hardbacks of ladies fiction and was pleased to read the dust jackets. For some reason it just made me smile. I did choose one of these books and brought it home with me for $1. I like the title and lovely red binding. If it turned out to be boring and a struggle to get through I hadn't really lost anything because for the moment the books had given me at least a dollars worth of pleasure and delight in its discovery.

Last night as I soaked in a hot bath I broke open the red book and instantly fell in love with the charming lead character and the voice and tone in which the author wrote. So pleased am I that I formulated a plan to hurry back down to the store today ASAP to see if the sister novel to the one I chose might be in that old box or somewhere on the dusty shelves.

What did I find?

I am so glad you asked!

The Man Miss Susie Loved by Augusta Tucker. The sister novel Miss Susie Slagle was adapted to a screen play in the 40's and featured Lillian Gish.

I was so charmed by the style of writing that I did a little research and found this on rootsweb:

Tucker, Augusta. Second Interview. Hazel B. Greene Journalist February 9, 1938 Interview with Augusta Tucker Fort Towson, Oklahoma

I was born in 1867, at Indianapolis, Indiana. My father, Dr. O. N. Tucker, was born in South Carolina, but my mother, Sara Ann Apple Tucker, was born in Indiana.

My father, Dr. O.N. Tucker, was selected by the Choctaw council as a white physician to administer to the sick, wounded, etc., of Doaksville and the surrounding community. There were plenty of Indian Medicine Men, but some of the most progressive citizens thought that a man who had graduated from a Medical College should be more competent to care for the sick, so they held a meeting and decided to "import" a white doctor.

My father applied for the honor of being selected by the Council of the Choctaw Nation, and won the place, over the applications of several more, so he and his family of children some of us grown, moved over into the Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, in January, I believe of 1884.Before coming to the Territory we had been living at Paris, Texas, to which state we had come from Indiana.

I, being one of the grown children, and being qualified to teach school, began doing that all over the country. I taught up north of Doaksville, I taught at Doaksville, and I taught a school on Scott Hill, which is now called Terry Hill at the west edge of the present town of Hugo. I also taught out at the Long Creek School, in the Turnbull neighborhood: that was about 3 miles northwest of the present town of Hugo. Then of course, there was no Hugo and Goodland was the railroad station. In those days, "the teacher" was considered pretty smart, simply because she knew enough to teach school, and she automatically became a leader in all social and religious activities.

She was suppose to lead the singing at the funerals; she was supposed to be always introducing new games at the parties of the neighborhood. She was called upon to write deeds and mortgages, and pioneer teachers in the Indian Territory frequently held Notary Public commissions.

Being "the teacher" was, I suppose, one of the reasons that Thomas E. Sanguine selected me to make notes for him at a meeting that was held at Goodland, and I believe that meeting was one of the first meetings of the Dawes commission to be held in the Choctaw Nation. Few who were there that day are living today. The party got off of the train at Goodland and walked about an eighth of a mile to a grove of trees, where benches and a speakers stand had been placed for the comfort and convenience of the people who would speak and listen to the speakers. I am not sure of the date of that meeting, but of course, it is a mater of history. I simply am calling attention to the fact that I was one of the many in attendance that day, and am one of the few who are living today. I am past seventy now.

Among those present whom I recall were: Bailey Spring, Thomas E. Sanguine, Green McCurtain, Willie W. Wilson, V. M. Locke Sr., Frank Ledbetter and I believe George Scott of Stigler was there. He is the son-in-law of Green McCurtain. The object of the speeches was to persuade the Choctaw Indians of the advisability of individual allotment of the Indian Lands. I made notes of all of the speeches that were made that day, but unfortunately I never kept them. I imagine that they are on record somewhere.

I remember, especially one old "Snake" Indian, Ben. He had ridden his little pony all the way from away up in the sand hills in Cedar County, to be at that meeting and represent his community. But he was never convinced that individual allotments were the best thing for the Indians. Poor old fellow, he was so old then that he looked pitiful after his long ride. He lived to be nearly a hundred years old and dropped dead after a ride of about twenty miles on his little pony to attend a funeral of a granddaughter.

As I searched a little more I found this in the New York Times:

Paid Notice: Deaths TOWNSEND, AUGUSTA TUCKER

Published: March 9, 1999

TOWNSEND-Augusta Tucker. 94. On March 5, 1999. Survived by many nieces and nephews. Funeral service on Thursday, March 11, 11 AM, at the Episcopal Cathedral of the Incarnation, Baltimore, MD. Graveside service Thursday, March 11, 2:30 PM, at St. Anne's Cemetery, Annapolis, MD. John M. Taylor Funeral Home Inc.

I can't help but wonder what she was like in person as charmed as I am by her words.

I have decided to try and read more of those dusty old books at the used book store and not try to seek out the newer popular fiction. For some reason new fiction doesn't impress me these days. I find I am easily bored with the popular writers of our day. I find that a lot of the subject matter doesn't suit me. Heaven forbid I should get offended by some of the subject matters. Maybe I am tired of the attempts to be titillated with less than savory characters or stations in life.

Whatever the reason I am now charmed with the past and will be seeking out more of these old books to be my companions through the long cold winter.

I have also decided that I should try to find my voice in my writing style and will give much attention to an attempt at writing and being charming next month for the NaNoWriMo -unless real life gets in the way -which it does tend to do at the most inoportune time.

Is anyone out there considering giving NaNo a try this year? I need a buddy to kick me in the rear encourage me when I start slipping this time. Raehan? Are you writing this time? Badger?

You can add me as a Buddy through the profile section. Here's mine.

Anyone?

Please?!? ...

Steve did some maintenance on his Deere saturday. It needed a good lubing and an oil change. Steven helped.

Content to just sit with his Daddy and play.
Inspecting dirt -one grain of sand at a time.
Dirty Fingers = Hard Days Work.

Posted by Angie at October 2, 2006 05:36 AM

Comments

Posted by: kenju at October 2, 2006 08:06 AM

Posted by: Badger at October 2, 2006 09:49 AM

Posted by: Raehan at October 2, 2006 11:43 AM

Posted by: CPA Mom at October 3, 2006 12:20 PM

Posted by: CPA Mom at October 3, 2006 12:22 PM

Posted by: InterstellarLass at October 3, 2006 01:49 PM

Posted by: liz at October 3, 2006 11:31 PM

Posted by: liz at October 3, 2006 11:31 PM