Chapter Seven
At lunch the followingday, Myrtle told her friends about the men who met her on her way to town every day to buy her wares.“I get about halfway to town, and there they are.The first day, there were two.The second day, there were four.And the ones I saw yesterday told me they’d be waiting for me today.”
Belle laughed.“That’s how it was when I first started to bake.The men would crowd into the store and be there when I arrived.Once Emmett was annoyed because all his men had abandoned their tasks, and he scolded me in public.The next day, there was a man telling me he didn’t mind if I was divorced.He’d marry me anyway!”
Myrtle giggled.“I haven’t gotten a marriage proposal yet.”
“Hopefully, you won’t!”Maggie said, shaking her head.“Sometimes it feels as if the men were starved before we arrived.”
“I know!”Myrtle said.“That reminds me.I have Eskimo fry bread for anyone who wants dessert today.”
Sally tilted her head to one side as if she was considering.“What will you make tomorrow?”
“Donuts with cinnamon and sugar.I think I’m also going to try a few meat pies and see how they sell.”Myrtle looked at Belle.“Would you be willing to share some venison roast for my little experiment?”
“Since Lulu and I both got bears yesterday, you can have lots of venison.We should be set for the winter for all of us now.A few more days of hunting, and we won’t worry about meat at all,” Belle said.
“I’ve never had bear,” Josie said.“Is it good?”
Belle shrugged.“I like it.I use it in stews or roasts.It can taste like salmon or berries.It tastes better if the bear has eaten a lot of berries and fewer fish.The main thing is you have to cook it long and slow.No pink.The meat can kill you if it’s not cooked all the way through.If you don’t cook it a long time, it can be tough to eat.It’s kind of like beef but sweeter.”
Myrtle tilted her head to one side.“I wonder if that would be better for my meat pies than venison.”
“I’m not sure.I prefer it as a stew.It’s good with carrots, potatoes, and onion.Some of the onions you can find foraging really help the flavor,” Maggie said.
“Thank you.I know how to cook it now!”Since the men always brought their plates, she could even make a stew, but she wasn’t sure how easily Katie could sell it.For now, she’d stick with venison pies and experiment with different ways to make bear stew in the winter.
Lula related the story of how she’d shot the bear.She seemed proud of herself, but she tried to be modest.
Maggie was still taking it easy and caring for both babies while the other women worked.“I may just make my job taking care of all the babies,” she said and everyone turned to look at her.
“I thought you were going to wear your baby when you foraged,” Belle said.
“I was thinking about it, but all of us will keep having babies, I think.If we have one person designated to watch them, it will be easier on the children,” Maggie said.
The women all looked around, waiting for someone to respond.Finally, Belle said something.“I think if you show the others what they can forage in the spring, that will work.You could wear the baby for that short time, and then none of us would need to worry about how we’d do our chores.”
They all nodded in agreement, but Myrtle was surprised.Didn’t Maggie want to keep earning for her family?Perhaps she was expecting to be paid for watching the children, which seemed fair, but...it was just different than she’d expected.
After lunch, Myrtle set out for town with her wagon.The group of men had more than doubled in size.She sold them what she had.
“What are you making for dessert tomorrow?”asked the same man who had wanted to know yesterday.
“Donuts with cinnamon and sugar.”Myrtle saw that she only had ten loaves of bread left.The new stove couldn’t get there fast enough.
“We’ll be here,” one of the other men replied.
As Myrtle continued walking, the money she’d received from the men in her apron pocket, she decided to start making payments on the stove with the money she made on her way to the store.That seemed like the perfect plan to her.
It was all Myrtle could do to save a loaf of bread for Katie as she walked through the store, the men grabbed things from her wagon and moved to stand in line to pay.It seemed strange to Myrtle, but Katie seemed to take it in stride.
She walked up to the counter, ignoring the line, and gave Katie both the food that was left in her wagon and the money she’d earned on her way.“I hope to have that new stove paid for before it arrives,” Myrtle said softly.
Katie grinned.“You’re making a good start.”
Myrtle all but danced on her way to her cabin.She couldn’t wait to tell Aaron that she’d already started paying for the stove.She knew it would ease his mind.
She made meat pies for supper with the venison Belle had put on her table while she was gone.The hardest part was chopping the meat fine enough, and Myrtle realized she would need a meat-grinder with a hand crank if she was going to make meat pies often.It took too long to chop the pieces small enough with a knife, though she managed to get it done.
