Meeting Aunt Lou and Salary News

John said to take Sadie, whose name was on her stall. She was cooperative, but pretty darn tall for a mare. Harley showed the other fellas how to put the harness on and hook her to the apple wagon. Someone, probably Aunt Lou, had painted the wagon green and decorated each side with a big red apple, so it was easy to spot behind the barn. There were four long burlap bags in the wagon bed, with shoulder straps on them. The other three men each grabbed a bag and hopped in the back of the wagon. Harley guessed they wanted him to drive, so he did.

Uncle Gene had said they would be able to tell which trees had already been thinned and which ones hadn’t, which was true. It was astounding how many little apples were on those un-trimmed trees. Harley figured there were at least 200 extra apples on each one of them. They started slowly, not wanting to break the branches; Gene had warned them about that. As they went along, however, their technique improved. Several times they shared tips with successful ways they found to do the job more efficiently. Harley was proud of his crew and encouraged them.

It did turn into a long four hours after lunch, though. Most of the work was over their heads, but within their reach. They were using arm muscles which had been loafing for months and sometimes years. Now and then, one of the fellas might take a break for massaging his own arms. Ed and Adam both expressed out loud that they wished there was a tub for soaking in at the bunkhouse. Harley had not really noticed and neither had the others, but they were all praying there was one. They had worked for what seemed like more than four hours, when they heard the big bell clanging by the bunkhouse.

They were about a half-mile away, but it was loud and clear. The truck was nearly overflowing with apples. It was a good thing the young apples were tiny, or they would have had to empty the wagon at least a couple of times. As it was, he drove Sadie back slowly, so as not to drop any on the ground. That horse sure was patient. The men had all given her a pat and some chat when they emptied their shoulder bags into the wagon bed, and she was a sweet horse. Leo, Adam, and Ed had to walk the half mile back because the wagon was so full, but no one complained. Adam remarked that it actually felt good to stretch out his legs after standing all day.

Dinner was lamb stew and Aunt Lou’s delicious biscuits. Harley figured her main jobs around the ranch were taking care of the main house, tending the giant garden, and cooking for the hands. He was glad there weren’t so many hands that Uncle Gene had them cook for themselves because he sure did like Aunt Lou’s cooking. It was almost as delicious as his mother’s. He had heard about her in letters that Uncle Gene had written to Lena over the years, but still had not had a chance to meet her. Maybe next time he went up to the main house to call home, he could meet her properly.

Fortunately for the four new hands, there was a tub and a big hot water tank. All four took their turn to soak and took some razzing from the other hands for being soft, weak, and several other names. Harley knew his friends and that they would be proving themselves eventually.

Friday and Saturday were good days. They were ahead of the schedule Uncle Gene had laid out, probably because they worked faster than those quitters. Whenever mention of them came up in any conversation, no one on the ranch used their proper names; they just called them quitters, and sometimes spit on the ground in disgust after speaking it. Gene had himself a crew that valued hard work and it appeared as though they could finish by Monday noon, instead of using the whole day. Harley would have mentioned it to his uncle if he was one hundred percent sure, but didn’t want to jinx it, so he kept it to himself. The thinned apple trees looked happier, or at least that is what Harley knew his mother would have said. He was thinking he could learn a whole lot about growing better apples and take it back to his mother for their trees.

Sunday turned out to be exactly like Uncle Gene had described. Some men went riding, some slept in, and some played cards or horseshoes. A few were seen writing letters, and one fella even wrote a letter for another hand who said he couldn’t read or write. After the church service, Harley wrote to his mom and then went out to watch horseshoes. Leo tagged along. Harley had seen men at the Iowa State Fair in horseshoe competitions, and these fellas were not that good, but Harley knew they were better than he was, so he just observed. Leo actually asked to give it a try, and the other hands had many suggestions for him, but he had a long way to go before he would be ready for a real contest. He was able to laugh at himself and seemed to fit in well with the other hands. This was encouraging for Harley, who really hoped that all three of his rail-riding friends would want to stay on the ranch when he left and not return to the disappointing lives they had previously experienced.

Harley wandered up to the main house in the middle of the afternoon. He wanted to ask Uncle Gene about the pay. He had promised his friends he would do that when they were picking apples on Saturday. He knocked, and then started to write a note for the message box when Aunt Lou came to the door.

“Is that you, Harley honey?” she asked sweetly.

“Yes, Aunt Lou, er… I mean, ma’am, it’s me…straight from Iowa to Washington.” He added, “This is some kinda ranch, ma’am!”

“Aunt Lou, Harley, not ma’am. Call me Aunt Lou!” she laughed.

“Yes, Aunt Lou, I will. It is so nice to finally meet you.” Then he blurted out, “You sure are a fine cook!”

She laughed again. “Thank you, Harley. Were you looking for your uncle?”

“Yes, ma’am, I mean Aunt Lou, I wanted to ask him a question about the pay…for the new men. He said he would talk to me, but he didn’t get around to it yet. I know he’s busy, and I don’t want to bother him, and we know he’ll be fair…” Harley knew he was rambling on, so he decided to wrap it up. “Is Uncle Gene available for a minute?”

Aunt Lou was amused and understanding. “I will get him. Why don’t you come in and sit down here in the front room, Harley?” She motioned him into the entry way and pointed to the right. “Just find yourself a seat in there and he’ll be right down.”

Harley found the front room quite spacious, with chairs covered in leather and decorated with horns of different styles. There was an enormous ram’s head above the massive stone fireplace. Harley supposed it was a mountain sheep, but he had only seen photos of them in his mother’s National Geographic magazines. He was surprised to see a painting above the fireplace that was signed by Lou. It showed the entrance gate to the ranch and was, by Harley’s untrained taste, a beautiful rendition of just the way it looked to him when he arrived. He stood admiring it, when Uncle Gene entered the room.

“Having a pleasant day of rest, young man?” Gene inquired.

“Yessir, Uncle Gene, very pleasant. I hope I’m not bothering you.”

“Not at all. I’m sorry I forgot to talk to you men yesterday. Pay here is generous, as long as you keep working the way you have been. I went out to the apples, and it appears to me that you fellas are going to be finished early. What do you think?”

Harley was taken off guard. “Yessir, I was hoping to have that be a surprise for you on Monday. We should be done by lunchtime, sir.”

“I really like that kind of work ethic, Harley, but I don’t like surprises, even good ones like that. I need you to communicate with me about things, because I have a lot of jobs here to plan for and knowing who is going to be available ahead of time helps me plan better,” Gene said.

“Sorry, uncle. Really sorry,” Harley said, hanging his head a bit.

“No need to apologize, Harley. Just so you know now, alright?” Gene reassured him.

“Thank you, sir. I will update you whenever there is a need,” Harley promised.

Gene invited him to sit down with, “Try out one of these custom-made hide chairs, Harley. I think you will find them quite comfortable.”

Harley sat down, resting each forearm on one of the enormous cattle horns on each side of the chair, and Gene sat in the matching chair across from him.

“I pay twenty dollars a week, to start. After a month of dependable work, it goes to twenty-two dollars. After three months, it goes to twenty-five dollars, and that’s where it stays. There is a Christmas bonus that I pay on the first of January. I don’t like the way some of the first hands I had here spent their bonuses on foolish things in town, so I pay it after the holiday. If a man wants to buy gifts for someone special, he will need to save his salary up for it.” Gene leaned forward intently and asked, “How does all that sound to you?”

“That’s a very generous wage, Uncle Gene.” Harley was stunned. That was over three dollars a day to start with. He had heard that men in California were fighting over jobs that paid $1.50 per day. “The fellas I brought with me are really fine workers and they will earn it, I promise.”

“I have noticed that, Harley, and I have noticed you are a fine leader for them. I plan on keeping the four of you together as a crew whenever I can. Would you like that? Oh, and by the way, pay is in cash, the last day of the month,” added Uncle Gene. “So, you will all have your first pay next Friday. It will be twenty dollars, because you will have only been here a week, right?”

“Sounds good, Uncle Gene. Thank you. I am going to head back to the bunkhouse now.” With that, Harley stood up and put out his right hand. His uncle stood up and took it. He had quite a grip, but Harley did not let on as he felt it tighten. He strengthened his grip a bit to try to match the older man’s.

“That's a fine handshake you have, Harley.”

“Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me,” Harley replied.

“Come and see me after lunch tomorrow, when you do get those trees finished. If you can’t find me near the barn, just ask John and he will have your crew’s next job ready,” Gene added as they reached the front door.

“Yessir. Thank you again.”

“Harley, I am so glad I am in a position to help you get your higher education. I can see, just from the short time you’ve been here, that you are going to be successful in whatever you do,” added Gene. “Keep up the good work.” Harley stepped out onto the porch, as his uncle smiled and closed the door.

Harley stood up even straighter. He knew he was fortunate, especially in these times, to have family who cared, and friends who helped. Sunday was a good day to be counting his blessings. He hurried back to the bunkhouse to tell his crew about their pay.