THE SEVENTH SON OF THE SEVENTH SON Leonard MacDonald of Bear River , and formerly from St. Margaret 's, is the son of the late Joseph and Flora ( Maclntyre ) MacDonald. He is the seventh son of the seventh son, the second youngest and only surviving member of a family of twelve children. There were eight boys and four girls in this family, and they were raised at a time when money was not very plentiful. However, it was a home where they were deeply loved by their parents, which is something that money can not buy. Mr. MacDonald recalls his father saying jokingly that during the hungry thirties, times were so tough that when the mice came to visit they always packed their lunch. His father went to Maine and worked in the woods for five or six months of the year, and this helped to supplement the small farming operation that they maintained. They had vegetables from their garden, as well as pickled pork and beef. There was no refrigeration, so the beef was placed in an outside building, where they would saw off a portion when needed. Molasses was a delicacy found in most homes at that time. Mr. MacDonald says that this is why he dislikes it now. He can still recall opening his school lunch-bag and seeing his sandwich saturated with that black, sticky substance. There were few times in mid-season when food would be scarce, and they would have to skip a meal. As for clothing, they did not receive care packages, so often their wardrobe was inadequate. They would go barefooted when the snow left in the spring, and not have to worry about shoes until the snow returned, recalls Mr. MacDonald . "I would have to set my alarm clock so that I could rise early in the morning, to choose my wearing-apparel for the day. If I did not do this, there would be no clothes left to wear," chuckles Mr. MacDonald . 136