into Canada, it was illegal to import the 
     
     trees into the States. He was always 
     
     successful in his border crossings, and 
     
     now, many years after his demise, his 
     
     Island trees are proud and sturdy 
     
     sentinels on his former property in Fort 
     
     Edward, NY, reminders of a time and 
     
     place long past. When he packed the 
     
     little trees, it was a sure sign the good 
     
     times were coming to an end. 
     
    

    
     A summer drawback was the half- 
     
     acre of cucumbers! Our parents grew 
     
     them for a company called Matthew and 
     
     MacLean that used them to produce 
     
     pickles. The crop had to be picked 
     
     every day, as the company only accepted 
     
     cucumbers that were the length of one’s 
     
     fingers. We put in two or more hours 
     
     daily picking the prickly potential 
     
     pickles. The cukes were bagged, tagged