HOME CHATTER by Marlin Carruth    There's certainly been a bunch of chatter around Home halls this month, and it hasn't been all chatter, either.  For instance, if you'd know what all the scurry and flurry emanating from these walls means, it might run something like this: possibly the big event of the month was the grade-school picnic in Manitou Park.  It was made especially big in view of the fac that it had to be put off so many times because of the almost daily afternoon rains.  Finally, a week from the date originally planned, two truck loads of youngsters, several supervisors, and the grade school faculty got away between clouds. Several hours' frolic, softball, wieners, sandwiches, marshmallows, lemonade, cookies, and big freezers of ice cream, the gift of the teachers was all the talk for the ensuing weeks.

One week later, the same group were guests of Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Martin, owners of the Alamo Theater at Snyder, where they enjoyed the clean fun of a sailor comedy and animated cartoons.  The Martins were visitors at the Home recently, and the children have long appreciated their thoughtfulness on former occasions.

There have been the junior and senior banquets, the senior play, and now the seniors are looking very sober in long gray robes.   

But everybody is ready for school to close. Immediately following school there will be the two weeks' Bible school and then a two weeks' music school, both annual events provided at the beginning of vacation months and which refresh the children as supplements to their regular nightly chapel hours and Sunday morning Bible classes.

Everybody is looking forward, too, to the summer reading rooms. We have been saving up magazines all winter; and fiction books have been placed in store for these long summer afternoons. We hope to add to the several hundred volumes some two hundred especially selected from the Oklahoma University Traveling Library Association.

HOME CHATTER by Marlin Carruth     A stack of Valentines lies on my desk--some of them bear evidence of having been erased of their original addressee and a second name placed instead; others might not have quite so appropriate a sentiment, and some of the hearts resemble pears or lemons more, but all are very, very red and very, very bright and represent the delight all children find in Valentine's Day.

New brooder houses and poultry pens were under construction this month. There will be two 30-foot brooder houses and more spacious range over wheat pasture. First shipment of 3,000 baby chicks were received late in January.

HOME CHATTER by Marlin Carruth       New fall packages arriving daily have decked everyone out in all the reds and oranges, and yellows and browns of the fall season so that even the children themselves are like little scurrying leaves as they rush to and fro in all the hurry of childhood, so meaningless, perhaps, to grown-ups but so meaningful to children.   We could make no attempt to express appreciation for the truckloads of new packages being mailed in day by day. They show the most personal and loving and special care in selection. Each afternoon Sister Sampson's big room on the girls' side and Miss Johnson's sewing room on the boys' side are piled high with packages which have been recorded in the office and carried back to these two respective rooms for fitting and for marking.   It all sounds very simple, the carrying. You should try to get through the crowds of big eyes and craning necks trying to read on the boxes and shouting at the same time, "Whose package?  Whose package?" And if by some miracle the "whose package" does not have an owner in the immediate multitude, the word will spread like wildfire that so-and-so's package has come and the one thus honored will be accompanied in by a royal escort which stands at attention until it has to be dismissed before further business can be completed.

HOME CHATTER by Marlin Carruth          I've never been able to discover just whose funeral it was--either a bird's or a doll's, perhaps, but calamity broke loose when a large group had gathered out under the trees in mourning for the deceased. The songs had been sung, the preacher was saying the last rites from a tattered old copy of a Ladies Home Journal magazine when someone broke the respectful silence with a horrified exclamation: "Say, we forgot the flowers!"

HOME CHATTER by Marlin Carruth         9:00 o'clock came one night, and with it bedtime again. I could hear voices in the bathroom. When I swung the door open, there was a congregation of listeners politely giving ear while Andy preached from a song book upside down, "We don't have to go to bed now, do we?" they asked, confident they had at last found an ironclad alibi for staying up. "We're having church."

HOME CHATTER by Marlin Carruth            A few weeks ago I was helping put the little boys to bed when one of the supervisors could not be here. I was standing at the door waiting to switch off the light when everyone should get his bed fixed and settled down. Everybody was ready but Travis. He went around from one side of his bed to the other tucking the cover in tightly on each side. Then he would get up in the center of the bed and attempt to stick his feet under the cover without pulling the quilts out from each side. Since there are only about 60 boys in this dormitory, and my mind was somewhat divided into 60 divisions, Travis's difficulty hadn't quite impressed itself on my mind. Finally, he gave up and said, "Marlin, please tuck me in!"

Each month the Messenger seeks to bring its readers something of life at the Home because it seems to be a subject of never-failing interest to friends everywhere. Excerpts from letters written by Mrs. Georgia Ethridge's fifth grade English class give a cross-sectional view of the Home written in all the frankness and honesty natural to childhood. WAYNE: "I will tell you about our playing. We get out and get some sticks and an old burned tin can and maybe five or six on one side and the same amount on the other. The two captains get over the can and knock it one way; then the others try to knock it the other way. The game is called shinney."   BILLY JACK:  "We had a good rain last night, and our yard smells fresh and clean; but it is a bit cooler. I surely am glad I've got my winter package. It was a nice one, too. I got two pair of shoes, ten handkerchiefs, four pair of overalls, six pairs of socks, six shirts, one toothbrush, a package of tooth paste, and a package of gum. I could have stayed and looked at it all day, but the call for bedroom boys brought me out, for I have a job in there making beds. I make six. It is an easy job, and I do not mind it.  Other boys attend to other things. My brother is on the yard job. He cleans it up every morning."  RITA MAE: "I just came to this home last Thursday. I like it just fine. We do one thing one week and the next week we do something else. I am in the kitchen now and next week I will work in the house making beds, sweeping, and mopping. I like to do my duties each day.   Every girl has a locker to put her clothes in. We hang our dresses in the bottom and put our hats and other things in the top.  We take baths on Wednesdays and Saturdays. I brush my teeth twice a day--before I go to school of a morning and before I go to bed at night.  We have chapel every night when we sing songs. After chapel we have a study hall in the dining room to get our lessons. I have a girl friend to play with. I am in the fifth grade and eleven years old. I have one sister and one brother in this home. Thanksgiving we will have a big turkey dinner in the yard if it is not too cold."  DELMAR: "We play when we get our work done. We play with our pets, Jake the dog, and kitty Bill, the cat.  We don't only play with our pets, but we have chickens. We feed and water them. I have one hen. Her name is Doct; two roosters, their names are Flash and Jenkton. I have a pen, a coop for my chickens. Other boys have chickens, too….When Thanksgiving comes we have a good time. We have a big dinner and lots of fun.  Hundreds of people are here from different towns….at Christmas, our house looks like a top shop."   SIDNEY "I came this fall. I think it is very nice here. We have time to work and play, and we all have good times together---My duty is feeding the cows. I go and fill the barrel and then I fill the feed bucket. I give each cow as much as she wants as long as she is being milked, but after she has been milked, she does not get any more feed.  We have twenty cows."

THE DIRT DAUBERS    This may sound like an uncommon name, but the boys whose picture appears on this page are the ones who are too young to go to school.  On a nice day we find them out making mud pies, mud marbles, digging little ditches, carrying water and putting in them and damming them up with mud--and likely to be making mud balls and throwing against the house. That's why we call them the Dirt-Daubers.

For weeks the boys have been asking when they could go barefooted…..the long looked forward-to day came April 4….Ervie had just plowed up the boys' playground on the north of the building….Result: big foot-washing about bed-time.

 An interesting time of day at the Home is just after supper in the evening. Now that the days are longer you'll find the minutes between mealtime and the nightly chapel hour a pleasant playtime for our big family…the trees in the back yard have begun casting long shadows across the big open grounds and scattered over several acres the children can b heard laughing, running, talking, shouting in the hours between darkness and daylight. Some are playing soft-ball, some are tending their chickens, some doing their evening chores, the girls playing hop-skotch, dolls, or writing, singing, or reading.

 You've probably never heard of Jake and Skybo and Bill?--yet they are all members of the Home family, and prominent ones, too. For Jake is the friendly old collie who came from nobody knows where and who with a wag of his tail submits to all the children's pats and shoves and romps. Bill is the wooly, part-Persian cat who can generally be found asleep on the bench down in the boiler room.  And Skybo is Bill's stand-by, a non-descript brindle tabby cat who nevertheless bears the distinctive name given her by her 240-odd masters and mistresses.

HOME CHATTER  by Marlin Carruth           A four-inch snow and 230 children! Fewer combinations could evoke a greater bedlam….snowball fights between the children….sleigh rides….helpers scuttling about warily lest they get a handful of snow down their backs….Sister Carpenter preparing quarts and quarts of snow ice-cream for a mid-winter treat.

Familiar sights and sounds around the Home: Miss Johnson's canary's singing in the south windows of the sewing room on sunshiny days…Miss Lemmons and J.P. lining up the smaller boys for their regular baths and general scrubbings-up…the acres of clothes hanging out on rows and rows of lines west of the wash-room….the girls gathering down the hall to get their hair set for Sunday…..the sudden silence down the long dinging hall as 230 children bow their heads while one of the boys offers thanks for the mealtime blessings.

CHILDREN'S PAGE   There are at this time five set of twins in the Home. Three Boys, one girls, and a boy and girl. At this time we have two hundred and twenty-four children in the Home. This is the least number we have had in about two years.

ROUTINE OF GIRLS' WORK IN THE HOME by Julia          Perhaps you have often wondered how the girls ever know where they are to work or when to start. Then this is written especially for your benefit; to try to give you some idea of how the girls go about their work. The girls, except the smallest ones, are divided equally into three groups, which groups change around, working first in the kitchen, then in the house and on to the laundry. The work in the kitchen consists of washing dishes, preparing meals, attending to the milk and butter, and the general things any woman has to do in her kitchen. Work in the house consists of sweeping halls, making beds, and such things as that. Laundry work goes on just as anyone's does, some iron while others wash and hang out clothes. There are six electric irons that are kept busy most of the time. The girls who are large enough do their own washing.  The ones who work in the House do their washing on Monday, those who work in the laundry do their washing on Wednesday, there is no time when school is in session for the kitchen girls to wash, so they have to skip that week.   There is a head girl in each group, called the captain who helps see that the work is carried on right. Each month two are selected from the groups to do the sewing for that month.  There is plenty of patching to keep two girls busy practically all the time they are not in school.   The girls set the tables and prepare dinner before leaving for school each morning. Then begin supper at about four thirty o'clock, the ones who go to school here in the Home help put the food on the tables at noon, and clear the tables afterwards.  Each larger girl takes care of a smaller one, washes and mends her clothes and sees that she is properly dressed for school every day, in that way every baby girl, or small girl, can always have the proper and individual attention, despite the fact that there is such a large group of them.

Not many days ago the children had a feast of watermelons. There were seventy melons that averaged about thirty pounds all cut at one time for the children, you should have seen the sight.  A long table was arranged in the backyard near the warehouse where the melons was stored, some boys were carrying them to tables where the helpers in the Home were cutting them for the children, and pretty soon could see the children running every direction with a piece of those melons. Every shade tree near the Home had a group under its shade eating melons. This was indeed a feast for them and was the first this season.

THE BOYS GO MOUNTAIN CLIMBING          One afternoon not long ago, about forty of the larger boys had the pleasure of going mountain climbing. After waiting about half an hour for their dinners to settle the boys piled in "Ole Henry," that's our truck, and started out for the mountains, about twelve miles north of here. It took quite a while to get there as the truck was pretty well loaded.   Climbing a mountain is a good way to spend surplus energy, and you can rest assured that there was plenty to spend. Almost all of them reached the top, and gave their lungs a little exercise by talking with their echoes. "Puggy," who is part Indian, showed the boys how he used to climb mountains when he was just getting out of the papoose stage.   Two hours were spent in climbing the mountain in which the boys became pretty well played out. Descending the mountain they found to their surprise and delight some cold and refreshing lemonade. Brother Holmes had bought the lemons and ice before going and the boys really enjoyed this treat. They also enjoyed a few minutes of swimming before coming home.

CHILDREN'S PAGE              The 4th of July was celebrated in the usual way by going swimming, the girls on Friday and the boys on Saturday. We filled the truck each time, taking about 60 in the big farm truck we have. We all went to the river where there is a pretty nice swimming hole and enjoyed several hours of real fun, for as you all know, there is nothing that is more inviting to a boy than the "ole swimming hole."

Juanita H, while washing dishes, was perspiring a lot. She looked up and said, "If I don't stop this sweating I am afraid my face is going to get wet.

The old team we had, got so old that we had to get another one. We now have a good team of horses and we can now get our fieldwork done much quicker, however, we could still use another team to a good advantage if we had one.

BAREFOOTED BOYS              Saturday, March 21, was a real nice spring day, about the first one this spring, and all the boys wanted to take off their shoes. Immediately after dinner two little boys asked Brother Bozeman if they could go barefooted.  He referred them to Brother Shotts, who told them they could until the five o'clock bell rang, and you should have seen how the news spread. In less than ten minutes more than seventy-five had taken off their shoes and were plied high in the east Hall in one corner, and what a stampede took place, in every direction that you might look, foot races, ball games, wolf over the river, and such games got in a big way, faster than anything that has happened around here lately. This was their first time to go barefooted this spring, however they are usually put off until after Easter, as there is some cool weather just around Easter, but this being a warm day, thought it would not hurt them in any way.  This time of the year is a time that will always be remembered by the children that love to go barefooted, especially the boys.

CHILDREN'S PAGE              Basketball Goals by Mildred            We were very proud the other day when Coach Ezzell of Tipton High School reported that he had goals and material to make a basketball court at the Tipton Orphans Home, you should  have seen the faces of all the boys and girls.

Now you can imagine how gaukey you would be the first time to be on a court to play ball, so now for a little description of our ball team: Janet, being one who prefers the house more than the outside sunshine got her nose blistered. Edna, being very tall and graceful and playing forward, shoots at the goal from most any position, making a goal out of every forty-eleven shots. Ruth, the loudest one on the team, has kinda got her eye on a boy named Ralph, while we were playing, someone off the court hollered "Ralph". Did Ruth quiet down? Well, I should say so. But it was the wrong "Ralph." Jessey, 5 feet, 10 inches, asked it she might guard little DeVertis, 5 feet, 2 inches. Georgia Lee, when she gets the ball, she forgets that she is on land and goes to swimming. You have to throw a ball mighty crooked to miss the little swimmer. Violet  decides that she is too fat and is playing hoping that she will lose a few pounds, and she really believes in getting enough exercise while out there, you should see her graceful moves.  Opal, "Little Miss Loud," is about the best player, we have on the team and usually a good guard, about the best you could ask for. Ruth, one who is usually sneaking around doing something very mischievous, hollering real loud, then running and the same thing applies when she gets the ball as she goes hollering and running. Louise as the one who guards her gets to throw the ball in. She is so short, 5 feet, 11 inches, that she only gets the ball about the middle of the court while nobody there big enough to get it. Pearl , when Iva Pearl goes to throw the ball she yells for "Flea," Irene. She will ask, "What am I supposed to do?" But somehow Helen gets the ball. Helen is one that always has some wise crack to say and gets all to laughing and throws the ball to Mildred. Mildred calls for her old pal DeVertis.  If she is being guarded all she says is "Well it is funny to me you have to pick on my partner."  The ball is passed to Cletis then to Vanney , Cletis, Iva Pearl and the outside audience goes to hollering root it, root it (meaning shoot it.) Doris, being a senior this year, decides that it is not much use for her to play, that it would be best for her spend her spare moments studying to graduate. Maurine, our dear old pal we were about to forget, decides that she is too little and is playing hoping that she might gain a few pounds. "Now how would you like to be on our ball team?  It's a lot of fun!

Our cotton crop is much better this year than it was last, have out four bales at this time, and will have some more out by the time you read this.

TIPTON ORPHANS HOME TRUSTEES:   R. E. Chitwood,  L.A. Todd, H. N. Seymour, S. D. Jackson

ITEMS MOST NEEDED         At the present time we are in dire need of the following items: Shoe laces, all sizes and colors, school supplies in the way of pen points, note book covers, ink, prefer black or blue, erasers, note book fillers and pencils; in the sewing department : thread, mostly white; in the kitchen department: flour, sugar and lard; and some hay for the dairy herd in the farm department, together with corn for the hogs, you will be doing a good Christian act by sending in some of these.

ITEMS OF INTEREST IN AND ABOUT THE HOME      A few days ago some girls were discussing some of their older brothers' salaries and how good some of them were. One girl, who was listening, up and said, "I don't like celery, spinach or nothing else."

Quite a few of the girls were a little sun-burnt from the big swim they had on the Fourth of July.

OUR GRADUATES               These three pictures are a fair representation of Frances Windham, Lorene Manuel, and Samuel Blackwell, who graduated from the Tipton High School this last term and expect to enter Abilene Christian College in the fall where they will work with the same energy to attain a higher education that they have had to receive a high school education.

 The above picture is that of our large dining hall just as the children had all assembled for supper at six o'clock. There was around fifty or sixty children to the right front that was not taken because the camera could not be moved back far enough to take them all, so you can see that this picture is only a portion of the dining hall, there are seven windows on the west side up to the offset in the back, but you can only see one of them, we would like to have had the entire hall taken, but this was the best we could do. This hall is sixty feet long to the offset on the right, and thirty-two feet from there to the back making it ninety-two feet long, is thirty feet wide to the offset, and eighteen feet wide in the rear, so you can see that this is indeed a large hall.  There are seventeen tables that will seat from twelve to twenty to each table, and two tables for the employees of the Home, and for visitors that are here at meal time, who are always welcome.

HONORS RECEIVED      Thursday night when the graduation exercises took place two of our boys were awarded an Honor Certificate. This certificate represents the superior work of these boys, as these certificates are only awarded to the upper ten per cent of each class. The two boys are Samuel Blackwell, our senior boy, who will attend Abilene Christian College this fall, and Loyd Hare, who will be a junior next year.

FRYING CHICKENS      We will soon have a few hundred chickens large enough to fry, and that's when we expect to make the children happy, for they all love to eat fried chicken. Of course there won't be many messes of them as it will take about seventy-five to make us a mess, but we will enjoy them, anyhow.

NEED LIST      At our laundry we are badly in need of rub-boards, starch, bluing and soap. In the kitchen we are mostly in need of baking powder, potatoes, beans, tomatoes, sugar, etc.

THANK YOU TO THE NORTH DRIVE SCHOOL TEACHERS       Thursday all the children of the North Drive School were given a treat by their teachers. About 2:00 o'clock they gathered in the large dining room of the Home and were served lemonade and cookies. Every one of them enjoyed this, and one little boy in the second grade declared that he had the best teacher in Tipton.

OUR ELM GROVE      Last year we set out sixty Chinese elms and they took on quite a growth considering the drought. We had to keep them watered to keep them alive.  We had the best of success with them as we only lost one out of them all, and now as we have had some good rains they are looking very thrifty, and it won't be but a year or so till we will have a beautiful shady elm grove for the children to play under during the hot summer days. It will not only be a place of beauty, but will be a fine place for recreation for the children.

TEN STRENUOUS YEARS       Saturday, the thirteenth of April, brought to a close ten years of work with the Home, and during this time we have had the responsibility of caring for seven hundred and twelve children.  It has been the most interesting ten years of our lives, and it has also carried the heaviest responsibilities we have ever had to assume; but we have discharged the obligations the best we knew, although we have made many mistakes, and expect to make them as long as life shall last, but we have the satisfaction of knowing we have done the best we could, so we have no regrets to offer.   Mr. and Mrs. R.E. Chitwood

CHILDREN'S PAGE         When we take the measurements for the children we have them all to come into the office where we measure them. The other day little Billy Ray was sent for to be measured.  He is only four years old and our youngest boy, so it was his first time to be measured. When the boys told him to come to the office they didn't tell him what we wanted with him and he thought being as he was sent to the office that he must have done something that he should not have, or at least he felt guilty because when he entered the office door he had his head down and was crying as he came into the office he said, "Brother Chitwood, I didn't slip any matches out, those boys were just telling that on me." After we had a good laugh at what he had said we told him what we wanted with him and immediately a big grin came over his face, because he was proud that he was going to receive some new clothes like the rest of the boys were receiving.

CHILDREN'S PAGE              Lois told some girls that she had to put 4 quilts on a clothes pin to hold it down.

Little Sedelle was told by one of the larger girls that she could wear her little white shoes tomorrow. Next morning bright and early Sedelle exclaimed, "Is today tomorrow?"

One night while we were having our lesson from the Bible, the question was asked if any one could name the Apostles. Lou said he knew one, and when asked who it was, he said, "Acts."

CHILDREN'S PAGE             Margaret saw a spider crawling close to her one day and exclaimed, "Souie, spider, get away from here!"

Floyd started to put something into his pockets, when he discovered a hole or two in them and exclaimed, "Now how did all of these pockets get into my holes."

One day while the older girls were playing with little Amos, they noticed a little pimple or two on his arms. They asked Amos what it was, when he disgustingly exclaimed, "Oh, I've got the itch and can't scratch it off."

IT'S TRUE!                 The prospects for a good crop around Tipton are not very promising this year.

It takes a hundred frying chickens for a Sunday dinner at Tipton Orphans Home.

STRANGE, BUT TRUE                  There were over a thousand pairs of overalls mended by Miss Johnson and the sewing room girls last month.

It takes over 500,000 gallons of water here each month.

We have not had over a half dozen sick children out of the two hundred during the summer, thus far.

Every child here, above the age of accountability, is a Christian.

CHILDREN'S PAGE               Ernest was told to come and take a bath. He came a little later than what he should have, and when asked why he was so late he stated: "I was out there chicken pickin's."

Junior and some of the other boys were talking about how long they had picked cotton. Junior thought that he had them all beat when he said, "Last fall I picked cotton for three years."

Some of the girls asked our little three-year-old Amos if he liked peaches.  "Naw," he replied, "But I surely do like apple-cots." (meaning apricots)

ITEMS OF INTEREST IN AND ABOUT THE HOME

A truck load of the boys with Brother McGaughey, their supervison, enjoyed a nice swim in the near-by creek last Sunday evening.

All the children are enjoying good health at this writing, for which we are thankful.

The weather has been hot and dry here at Tipton and the crops are suffering for need of moisture.

CHILDREN'S PAGE            While in line one day, just before a meal, Osvill told Elsworth that his comb wasn't haired in the back.

James asked on of the boys if they were through hailing the bay.

HOME STATISTICS        The Home is located half a mile north of Tipton, OK.

The hospital is located upstairs.

There are more than two hundred children in the Home at present.

There are four sets of twins at the Home.

There are eleven helpers who work at the Home.

There are three school teachers who teach at the Home.

There are more girls in the Home than there are boys.

We have about thirty-five dairy cows.

Two of the helpers in the Home have red hair.

There are eighteen dining tables in the dining room.

There are four dormitories in the Home.

The Home building is 280 feet long and 160 feet wide.

About four weddings have taken place in the Home.

At one time there was almost three hundred children in the Home.

There are eighty acres of land belonging to the Home at Tipton.

The Home is blessed with plenty of good drinking water.

There have been over six hundred children lived in the Home altogether.

There are six bathrooms and fourteen bathtubs in the building. There are fourteen sinks.

There are two barns, one warehouse, one brooder house, one laundry house, one milk house, two boiler rooms, one pump house and one storage house.

Three sacks of flour are required to make bread for the children per day.

CHILDREN'S PAGE          Louise was talking to some of the smaller girls when she said, "And one thing you should always do is pay expect to your elders." (meaning respect)

Algie was digging around the roots of a tree when he exclaimed, "Well, these trees' whiskers are so big I shall never get this trunk dug up."

James, while in bed the other night, was talking about being made to stay in bed till seven o'clock, and Jesse said the reason they had to stay in bed so long was because the longer you slept the larger you would grow. James said, "The long and tall and slim boys must have laid in bed a lot."

Wylie and R.T. were discussing a problem in arithmetic when R.T. asked, "Wylie, if I had not deposted that money how much would I have left?" (meaning deposited)

While the boys were unloading the 5,000 chicks we got from Lexington they discovered four large cans of syrup in the bottom of the truck. Loyd remarked, "I wonder if those chickens knew they were that close to some good syrup. "Floyd replied, "No if they had known that, they would have been 'stuck up' by now."

MOST POPULAR NAMES OF CHILDREN          We have 7 Maries, 6 Ruths, 6 Maes, 5 Johnnies, 4 Bettys, 4 Billys, 4 Thomases, 3 Margarets, 3 Annas, 3 Jessyes, 3 Lorenes, 2 Cleos, 2 Roberts, 2 James, 2 Samuels, 2 Irenes, 2 Ivas, 2 Frances, 2 Hazels, 2 Marys, 2 Waynes, 2 Helens, 2 Ednas, 2 Evelyns.

THEY HAVE WASHED TODAY           Many, many times have visitors been heard to say, as they beheld a large washing on the line, "They have washed today."  If you were to come on Monday you could truthfully say, "They have washed today."  If you come on Tuesday you could truthfully say, "They have washed today."  In fact, any day almost, except Sunday you could say the same thing. Because almost every day a large washing is put out. The laundry is one of the busiest places about the home.  The whirr of the washer is heard many times in the laundry and with so many children to wash for of course much washing is required.

CHILDREN'S PAGE            Little Billie asked Mrs. McGaughey if she had another clock for him to wear on his arm like she had on hers.

One day James told some boys that the ants were already blooming. (meaning coming out of their holes)

HOME SINGERS TO BROADCAST OVER RADIO              The fifth Sunday, which is April 29, the group of singers from the Home will broadcast an hour's program over radio station KASA at Elk City, Oklahoma.  It will be from 2 o'clock to 3 o'clock.  If you have access to a radio we want you to listen to these singers. They will endeavor to bring a gospel message in song, singing some of your old favorites as well as a few new numbers.  No doubt many of you have heard these girls before and will be glad to hear them again over the radio.  We are very grateful to the management of this nice station for letting us have this time, and we are sure that you will appreciate it too.

CHILDREN'S PAGE           Nellie Mae said, "Oh! My teeth are so tired from chewing on my gums.

Toye was trying to explain something to Mrs. Slayton, she not clearly understanding, Toye said, "Well, I'll give you and illumination (meaning illustration).

Nathan makes beds and sweeps under them. One morning he asked his playmate to sweep for him. Some time after Nathan asked him if he was going to sweep for him, Herbert's reply was: "Yes, I'll sweep the beds under the floor."

James was standing on the back porch by the window when he said to Walter, "The apples are the only ones that gets the little boys."

Floyd, while making beds, bumped his head on the bedstead and said, "O! Did I bend it?"

Mrs. McGaughey told Andy to go out and play. He said he had been playing already. Mrs. McGaughey told him to go and play some more. He replied, "It might make me sick."

Little Dan was wearing a pair of beads. One of the girls told him he was a little girl cause he was wearing girls' beads. Then he very sternly replied, "No I'm not a girl, cause these are boys' beads.

A group of the boys were sitting out by the road watching a stem roller come by, when one of them suddenly exclaimed, "That sure would be good to crack pecans with, wouldn't it, boys?"

When we were asking the children for something to put on the children's page, Earl said, "I did know something but I gorfot."

J.T. was cooking cracklings and said, "I wonder if this lard will ever turn to cracklings."

Loyd said my head fell off my cap.

Dan, a four year old newcomer at the Home, was enjoying his first meal at the Home. Looking about he suddenly exclaimed, "Say, she puts baking powder in her biscuits, don't she?"

J.P. asked Colleen aged four if she liked him. "What's your name?" she inquired. "J.P.", he replied. "Sure I like you", she answered.

Earl told some of the boys that he snored at night. "How do you know that you snore?" someone asked. "Why," he replied, "I heard me one night.

Lee was combing his hair and broke a tooth out. He said, "Oh! I broke a comb out of my tooth."

Ada Lois said she "oversleeped" one morning.

Toy said, "My dresses are getting so small they will hardly contain me."

Hugh asked Joe, "Say Joe, have you 'et' any of that apple pie?" Joe gave in reply, "Yea I 'et' 'n' 'et' til I just couldn't et no more."

There are four sets of twins here in the Home now.  All of these are boys except one little girl who is a twin to another little boy. There is not two twin girls in the Home. The twins names are as follows: Earl and Murrel, Andy and Alva, Johnnie Lee (little girl twin) and Johnnie P., and R.T. and J.P.

CHILDREN'S PAGE           Johnnie said his sister wasn't his sister now. He said since she was married she was his brother-in-law.

Sue said her footses were very tired.

CHILDREN'S PAGE           Verlie asked, "Is it next year now?"

Roy asked one of the boys if there were three birds on a limb and he shot one, how many would there be left? "Two", replied the boy. "No, you're wrong," Roy said. "There wouldn't be any left because the other two would fly away."

CHILDREN'S PAGE        The boys have the baseball spirit now and they are very thankful for the new balls and supplies sent them by their friends.

Sayings of the Children

George said, "This old cat scratched me with its fingernails."

Reba said, "Who were those manses (men) who were hear awhile ago?"

Verlie overheard someone talking about going to Charlie, Texas, "Say who is Charlie?" she asked.

Someone asked George how old he was, "I'm old enough to eat my thupper," he replied.

CHILDREN'S PAGE        The other night Maxine asked the girls in the quartet if they sang Altus or soprano.

HOW MUCH FOOD IS REQUIRED?          There are many people who doubtless wonder just how much food is necessary for the children in the Home.  It requires no little amount of food for the feeding of over two hundred children. Most children in the early stages of life have good appetites and these children are no exception. Many of them have come out of poverty and almost starvation. They especially need plenty of wholesome food to make their bodies strong.  It is a joy to see this huge family in the midst of a good meal.  If it were possible for our readers to see them eating you would be doubly repaid for food you have given them. In order to give our readers some idea as to how much food is consumed in a single day we give the following information: It requires three sacks of flour each day to provide bread. These are not the small size sacks as some might suppose but the standard forty-eight pound sacks.  As to the meat used, it requires forty pounds of bacon each meal. There is usually one hog killed each week for the children.  About fifteen gallons of beans are necessary for a single cooking. One sack of meal furnishes corn bread for one day. On Sunday afternoon the regular dinner not served and fruit and cookies served instead. It usually requires ten gallons of fruit for these meals. Thirty pounds of butter is necessary for one day.  The boys are milking about forty head of cattle now. The children consume thirty gallons of milk per meal. When canned goods are served, about fifty cans are necessary. With these few items listed it should give some idea of the amount of food used. Vegetables have grown in abundance this year and people have been able to help the Home much in this way.

Cletis had her tonsils taken out, and after she came home she said, "Now, I've got everything but by onions."

Ruth was putting her shoes on and said, "Oh, my feet are almost worn out."

Margaret Johnson was putting on her dress and said, "Oh, I put it on bottom side upwards."

Marie was also putting on her dress and said, "I can’t get my head over my dress.

CHILDREN'S PAGE          During the last two weeks, several of the children have been getting their packages which the different churches send them. These packages are sent twice a year, in the Spring and at Christmas time.  You should be here and see the happy smiles that come across their faces when they receive their packages.  The following is an example of how they act when they receive them:  Yesterday, Leslie received his package. He is just four years old and the youngest boy we have. After he had put on a pair of new overalls, (which had red buttons on them) his new shirt and new straw hat, he began to walk down the halls speaking to every one he met (apparently, so they would notice his new clothes). After he had all the boys' attention attracted toward him he began to step up and down the halls singing for them and this morning he still seems just as happy as a lark.

CHILDREN'S PAGE      Our Chapel Service (by Ruby S.)    A bell summons us to chapel at about 7:00 o'clock each night of the week.  We assemble in the dining hall and start service with three songs led by one of the girls or boys. We then have a chapter reading from the Bible and prayer. After prayer comes the part which everyone from the smallest to the largest welcomes. It is a Bible study and drill by Brother Chitwood. We have been studying characters from the Old Testament for the past few months and have enjoyed it as profited by it.  When Brother Chitwood cannot be with us there is always an uplifting talk by one the helpers. After this part is over we have our closing song and are dismissed to go to our respective places. We wish every one who is interested in this large family of ours to know that we sincerely appreciate the opportunity of our Christian training and education, which you are giving to us and hope someday to be worthy of your kindness.

Lorene said she had her stockings on hind-part-before.

Just as soon as we have enough frost to make the rest of the bolls open we can finish up with our cotton picking. We are having to wait on it now to open. To date we have picked ten bales and are expecting to make five more. There are five gins here in Tipton and each one has ginned two bales for us without any charge whatever and we wish them to know that we appreciate this service that has been rendered.

If you are wondering what you might send to the Home that is especially needed we would suggest sending school supplies, sheets and pillow cases, soap and toothpaste, as these are needed the worst.

Vannie said that Bessie had a raisin on her leg.

As the first bell had rung, Sue said to some of the girls, "Let's go wash and comb our face for dinner."

Ruby after having sent her shoes to the shoe shop and when they came back slightly drawn up said, "I can't get my shoes in my feet."

Anna, who was working in the kitchen, told some of the girls that they had to pick some potatoes and peel some beans.

Reba said she had always wanted to see in the top of her roof. (meaning the roof of her mouth)

Estelle was sweeping around a pile of boxes on the back porch and Hazel told her to move the porch off the boxes.

Little eight year old Mary was bringing in the clean clothes to the dormitory when she said, "Oh, my knees are scratching."

Dr. Ball gave Ruth an impression he had made of her mouth and Goldie told her she saw the expression of her mouth.

Jessie was reading a very interesting story the other day and she told one of the girls that it sure was chilling.

Naomi said her shoe was asleep. (meaning, of course, her foot)

Little Ruth asked Mae Bell who had just had her tonsils removed, where her adenoids, were, in nose, or in her throat, and Mae Bell said, "They're down at the hospital now."

Anna was hanging out clothes the other day while it was rather warm, and said the sun was so hot it burned clear through her soul.

RED SODA POP FOR THE FOURTH OF JULY       The Fourth of July was destined to pass this year without anything out of the ordinary happening, as nothing special had been planned for the day; but right after noon Mr. Earnest Benton of the Benton Hardware firm of Tipton, drove up and informed us that the truck would be up shortly with twelve cases of soda water for the children. You can imagine the pleasure these two hundred children got from this treat since this is something out of the ordinary for them. We hope Mr. Benton was well repaid for his generosity by the joy that was created by this gift among the children and our gratitude and thanks go to Mr. Benton for the twelve cases of "pop" and to the Southwestern Light and Power Company for the ice that was used in cooling it and the service of the truck.

Little Miss Naoma and her sister, Mildred were swatting flies and Naoma noticing that Mildred was not killing them exclaimed, "Mildred, you are just knocking them concientiuous." (meaning unconscious)

Lorene asked some of the girls if Shamrock, Texas was not in Oklahoma.

Ruth, seven years old, said that she woke up early the other morning and found herself asleep.

Evelyn was giving out spelling words to one of the girls and when she came to the word, agriculture, not knowing how to pronounce it she said, "way out in the country."

Francis' shoes were badly in need of repair so she told some of the girls that she would just have to send them to the barber shop.

Margaret was showing the girls her last summer shoes, which were very dilapidated, and exclaimed in dismay, " Oh, I've lost my tougue!"

Sister Chitwood asked Sammie what the doctor did to his sore arm. Sammy said, "Aw, he didn't do nothin' but put some curry comb on it and said not to come back."

Ruby instructed all the girls to always let their backs face the light when reading.

Albert, while talking to one of the girls the other day said, "Ruby a wreck is called a conclusion ain't it?"

We need some pigs to eat the waste scraps. Anyone having a pig they don't need we would appreciate you making it a gift to the Home.

CHILDREN'S CORNER       Evelyn informed one of the girls that if she ate too much sweet stuff she would have a cake worm.

Mamie said she was putting her dress on upside down. (meaning wrong side out)

Devertis said she had her shoes on wrong side out. (meaning wrong foot)

James asked the other day who was going after the packages of hay.

CHILDREN'S CORNER            Irene asked Florence Hampton if the people who clothed her lived in umbrella (meaning Amarillo).

Some of the boys were moving a table and Moden told the other children standing around to get out of the way, 'so they could move that house.'

Fourth of July Dinner              Brother R.F. Whitaker, who has lived in Tipton for twenty-six years, gave the children a mess of roasting ears for the Fourth of July. He, using a large ear of corn for an illustration, taught the children many practical lessons of life. Brother Chitwood had just had the two back porches screened, which enabled the children to enjoy the good dinner greatly.

Friers Arrive           In response to a call made in last month's Messenger for frying size chickens, several have come in and other congregations anticipate sending as soon as they can get them gathered up.

Brother L.L. Estes and another brother whose name we failed to get, came Wednesday, September 4, with two coops of 60 friers from the Church at Gotebo, Oklahoma. This one offering alone was almost enough for a good meal. However, more have come in and the children have immensely enjoyed another chicken dinner.  One might say that this is an annual feast here, for we seldom have more than one such meal during the fried chicken season.

Honey from Texas           A treat that the children greatly enjoyed is the honey received during August. Sweets are necessary to make for variety in the diet of growing children and this honey, being a natural sweet, was enjoyed by every child in the Home.

Health of Children Good          No epidemics of any nature have been experienced so far this year, and the health of all the children in the Home is excellent.  About the only complaint to be heard is the discomfort suffered by every one in common in Southwestern Oklahoma during July and August from the sweltering ray's of a summer's sun, when the thermometer ranges between 100 and 114 degrees.

Melon Feast             Brother R.F. Whitaker, who has a farm adjoining the Home farm, on Tuesday morning, August 13th, brought forty-six fine, large watermelons to the Home, and all the children were treated to a great watermelon feast. It was a great event in their young lives and the way they relished the melons expressed better than words their appreciation of the same.

CHILDREN'S CORNER        Lahoma poured some water in Louise's ear, and Louise said, "Don't put water in my ear, you'll put it out.

Anna told Edna to keep her stockings off her Sunday hands.

Some of the girls were making bread, and Edna told them to reach down at the bottom of the pan, and they could get some dry dough (meaning dry flour).

Isabel was cutting the girl's hair and she said, "Hand me the tweezers"(clippers).

CHILDREN'S CORNER          Little Albert, in the first grade, on being asked if he was going to make his grade this winter, replied, "Uh-huh, I'm going to make a good 'un."

One of the little boys came in to Mrs. Duncan to get him some clean clothes. Mrs. Duncan asked him if he had got his package. He said yes, but he didn't have any clothes in it.

Gova told Ruby she was going to wash out her toothbrush before she used it, and Ruby said, "Well, that has already been sanctified", (meaning sterilized).

Lorene told one of the girls to raise the window, so they could get some irrigation, (meaning ventilation).

Mabell asked Audrey if her iron was hot. She said, "I don't know, I never did taste of it."

Health of Children Continues Good              With the prevalence of a general epidemic of influenza, which, however, is on the decline, it is little short of a miracle, that up to the present time, the children of the Home have escaped the disease, with the exception of a few cases, about the time the epidemic was at its height. Wholesome food, regular hours of sleep, and well-ventilated rooms are about the most effective preventatives, and the results from these measures have proved very satisfactory here, to date. Where there are so many children, a close guard must be kept against all epidemics. All measures at our command are taken at all times to prevent such an occurrence.

CHILDREN'S CORNER             The girls were talking about Hoover being elected president, and Lorene said, "Well after every president gets through presidenting they die".

Mamie was dressing one morning and when she got her shoes on, she said "Oh, I put my shoes on wrong side out".

 Madge asked Maurine what kind of eggs did the rooster lay, and Marine said, "They lay eggs just like a turkey."

Jessie's feet were cold, and she said they were getting deaf and dumb.

Since the report on the condition of the Home crops in last issue we have had a hail and rain storm which all but cleaned out our cotton and damaged the garden and food stuffs. Part of the cotton ground has been planted to feed, as much of this will be needed for the ever growing herd of cows. The remainder, though not a good stand, will be left for what it will make.

                                      LEMONADE FOR ALL     

You've heard of:                LEMONADE!                                               

                                           Made in the shade

                                                  -- and --

                                           Stirred with a spade.

Well, all that what we had here July 3, lacked coming up to this little rhyme was being stirred with the spade; we used stewers that were just as large as spades to stir with and a 10-barrel stock tank to make it in, only the tank was not full. Here is how we made it:

55 gallons water

200 pounds ice

26 dozen lemons

40 pounds sugar

HEALTH OF THE HOME      The health of the Home is splendid at present, and we are using all the means we have at hand to keep the children all healthy and happy. We are strict believers in keeping everything in a sanitary condition, for we believe we can prevent many diseases in that way. The old adage, that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, is one of the most truthful of sayings. Every Summer we take the Typhoid shots as recommended by the health officers, as a preventive to keep Typhoid fever out of the Home, and it has worked fine so far, for we have not had a case of Typhoid in the Home since we have had charge of it. When we discovered we had small pox in the Home, we had them all vaccinated, and out or the 250 children we only had 42 cases. In fact, we got rid of the epidemic in a very short time without the loss of one. The health of the Home has been remarkable and we are striving in every way we can to keep it clean and healthy, and we hope by a continuation of the methods we have used in the past to keep sickness almost eliminated from the Home.

CHILDREN'S CORNER         Lillian says she cannot snap beans because they have no snaps on them.

Arline lost her knife in the garbage and, after searching diligently without finding it, asked Mable if hogs would eat knives.

Madge said George, 6, (her brother) "exposed" (proposed) to Mildred.

CHILDREN'S CORNER       While cleaning out the stove Mr. Victor spilled some soot, and Ruby said, "Oh, you are spilling the fire."

Mamie hurt Madge's foot with a chair and she cried, "Oh, the toe hurt my chair."

Mrs. Duncan asked Annie Mary what hurt her and she replied, "My brains (head)."

Ruth said the water in the boiler was 'paralyzed' (sterilized).

MISS CORNELIA CANTRELL CROWNED CARNIVAL QUEEN

Pretty Orphans Home Girl Wins Over Her Nearest Opponent by 1,500 Votes.

For weeks the Junior class of the Tipton High School worked hard on every detail for a school carnival to raise money for their Junior-Senior Banquet. Last Friday night the big event took place and from all reports it was a gala affair in every way. In the auditorium was the big Midway, showing the big ten in one side show, hot dog stands, hamburgers, candy and cold drink stands, with regular ballyhoo boys and girls who acted like experienced carnival managers making the whole place attractive and fun making. All week the different classes had been electioneering for their queens and at ten thirty o'clock the queen in her royal procession was to march down the big Midway and be crowned by the King. Every cent spent all during the evening previous to this hour counted as votes for the queen. At ten thirty the tellers announced that Miss Cornelia Cantrell, pretty lassie of the Tipton Orphans Home, a Freshman in the Tipton High school was winner, she having received 6,800 votes and winning over her nearest opponent by 1,500 votes. (The article above is clipped from the Tipton Tribune of Friday, April 13th.)

CHILDREN'S CORNER    Era was diagramming sentences. Ruby asked her to teach her how to "grammatize" sentences.

Jessie called Jane a midget, then asked, "What is that, a bed bug?"

Some of the girls asked Oma what was Labor Day, and she said flat beans and potatoes.

Some of the children were talking about clean teeth, and Roger said, "Well, when that Dentist was here his 'Otto' was 'Clean teeth will never decay'."

Ivy had some nuts, and she was trying to crack them. She came to a walnut and said it was too hard to bend.

The main is now being laid from town and we hope to be using gas by the time this issue of the paper is out.

We now have out 21 bales of cotton and will gather about 3 or 4 more. This is from our patch of twenty five acres, and is one of the best crops we have raised. Though last year's crop gave us forty three bales, this year's crop of twenty five bales, or thereabout, will net the Home more than did last year's.

If we had land enough, the proceeds from the farm would go a long way toward the support of these two hundred thirty odd children. The boys have picked all of these twenty one bales and could gather many more what time they are not in school.

Speaking of picking cotton, the little boys have proven themselves to be real pickers. One evening while the older children were in school and the weather was such that one could hardly stay indoors, Sister Johnson and Sister Shaver took the boys under school age to the cotton patch, found some sacks and showed the little fellows how to pick. They did not expect to get much but did it more to please the boys. It was something different from their every day routine of play and they liked it. So, when they weighed what they had gathered, they found they had gotten a total of 81 pounds, and were out there only a short while. Now, they want to go again.

CHILDREN'S CORNER    A bunch of the girls were looking for a good place to play jacks.  Mable saw a rock and said, "Unroll that rock and play on it."

Frank told Sister Chitwood to get him a nickels worth of "cheap" candy.

Mrs. Victor told Inez to get some water and sprinkle the clothes. Inez asked, "What kind, wet or hot?"

Miss Johnson was combing the little boys' hair. When she got to Gene she asked him what side he wanted it parted on and he said, "On the boys side."

When asked what was the matter with his lip, Marvin replied, "I hurt it on a bee."

When Audrey hurt her elbow Ida Mae asked, "Did you hurt your 'pulley-bone'?"

Jane started taking lessons in typewriting and her position at the desk put the light to her back. She said, "I don't like this place; my back faces the light."

Jane had wrapped up some song books to be mailed and wanted Brother Russell to "measure" them to see how much postage they would require.

Laura Mae wanted some bread and butter, so Ida Mae gave her half a biscuit buttered. "Oh," she said, "I want a lid on it!"

Ruby said she thought buckets were opened with monkey-screws.

Mary Jane exclaimed to Inez, "O, the calf got out of the locker."

William swallowed a bead and Brodie asked him what he would do if it should roll into his heart.

Some of the boys were playing with the cat and puppies. Ruby said they were trying to "interjuice" them.

A stray kitten was noticed about the place and Albert asked Sister Chitwood if she knew where it came from. She replied that she did not where upon Albert remarked, "I do. Old Tom 'laid' it."

THE CHILDREN'S CORNER By Miss Lena Ashton        One day while turnip greens were being fixed for dinner some of the girls says, I like cooked turnips. Margurette says, I don't like them cooked, I like them green. (She meant raw.)

The other day when it came such a nice good rain, Artie Watson, was heard coming down the hall crying for some one to help her shut up the windows.

The prettiest sight that I ever saw in my life, was one Sunday morning between seven and seven-thirty, a bunch of the little girls and boys were out in the back yard playing all kinds of games, singing as loud as they could sing. They were all clean and neat and almost the same size. To see them join hands and to hear them sing songs that are familiar to childhood days, is enough to make any one love them more and more each day.

Sister Towery was fixing Irish potatoes for dinner, Flora Belle, ate a raw piece and said, there's something wrong with the potatoes, they are stiff. (They were raw.)

OUR HOME LOCAL PAGE        Edgar and Leon are getting along fine with the cotton crop. They are beginning to think they are extra good farmers now, and they are certainly fine for their ages and experience.

One of our girls, Ola, visited Sister Murry at Altus, and while there Dr. Mabry removed her tonsils and adenoids, and she came back looking much better. Raymond told Brother Tewery that Ola was looking much better since she had her tonsils and Illinois took out.

One day not long ago we had greens for dinner. Billie Ball was seen holding his hand up and when ask what he wanted he said, "some more of those leaves, please.

The Home orchard has yielded much fine fruit this year that will contribute much to the health of the children as well as helping to keep the expenses of the Home down. Besides the berries, plums, peaches, pears, grapes, and apples that have been put up for Home consumption, and great quantities were put up, much fruit was sold. Perhaps as much as 3,000 pounds of grapes and 1,000 bushels of apples were sold. Mother Swinney has been in charge of this work.  

"The Children's Corner" by Aunt Amy

Little red-headed Arline came up to Daddy Swinney and said, "Daddy Swinney, Sammy batted a ball and it hit me on the nose." "Why didn't you get out of the way?" asked Daddy Swinney. "Well, I had my back turned and didn't see it until it hit me on the nose," was her reply.

One of our smallest babies is being taught by his sister to pray. The other night she said, "George, say your prayers before you get in bed." George was very sleepy and decided to offer a prayer short and to the point. And this was the result of her efforts: "Oh Lord. Amen."           (On the right is little George and on the left is one of his sisters.)

Not long ago an elderly lady who is eighty years young sent a sack of candy and asked that it be given to the babies that eat at the baby table. She said that she was unable to give more as she was dependent herself, but what seemed small to her, brought joy into the hearts and lives of fourteen babies.

Daddy Swinney told Flora Belle he thought it would be a good idea to have her tonsils removed before school opened.  Naturally, as those things don't happen in our home every day, the news spread quickly.  When Flora Belle entered the sewing room, Sister Cathey said, "Well, I heard you were going to have your tonsils removed."  "No, Mam," came the quick reply: "Daddy Swinney said he was going to have them replaced."