FUN, FROLICS AND FORERUNNERS

As a young girl many years ago, Kay Maclnnis, daughter of

Peter and Zilla McCloskey, lived in Bear River with her family. She

was one of six children, and she often had to do chores around the

farm, where they raised cows, sheep, turkeys and horses. Often, five horses could be seen grazing in the pasture at one time.

One of the duties was to take the cows to the woods in

the morning, and return to fetch them in the evening. Pasture was

scarce at that time, and there was luscious grass in the woods where

they might graze. This particular evening, Kay and her brother Tom, went to get the cows, but they could not find them. They searched intensively, then began to panic when they realized that they were lost. The sun disappeared, and everything was pitch black around them. All that Kay could think of was the huge black bear that she had seen wandering across the road and into this very woods a few days earlier. Every little sound made her tremble. As she stumbled and fell, her cotton dress was tattered and torn. Her legs were bleeding, due to several scratches. Suddenly, a full moon arose in the east, and they decided to walk in that direction. Then they heard something that brought joy to their ears. It was a horn that their father blew when in distress. They followed the sound, and they were soon reunited with their father, and were now safe from the bear. When they arrived home, Kay went to the back entrance, and someone passed her another dress to put on.

Kay lived near the railway station, which was a meeting-place for the young and old. One winter, the snow was so deep that the train was stuck on the tracks in Bear River for a week. A month had elapsed before it reached Elmira. During that time, Kay was busy helping her mother prepare meals for the crew on the train. She recalls peeling a

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