The Rural Voice, 2003-10, Page 39BUILDERS
fastened the loose end to a post and
then with one person on each end of
the pipe we walked along the fence
letting the wire unroll. I was about 10
or 12 and helped unroll many miles
of wire. It was a father and son
bonding experience. If either person
didn't keep up or hold their end of the
pipe level the roll of wire slide their
way and the barbs jabbed the hands
(even with leather gloves on).
Rail fences needed to be reset. The
rails were set up zigzag fashion and
not held together with wire, nails or
posts. They'd slide down as the rails
shifted from frost and the weight of
snow or when the cattle rubbed
against them. Cattle like to use fences
to scratch where it itches. Rail fences
were the poor man's fence. The rails
could be handmade from cedar trees
found in most bushes.
Good fences made good
neighbours. It was the tradition in the
country that neighbours shared the
fence between the two farms.
However to save disputes, it is the
rule that your responsibility is for the
right half of a fence as you face it. So
you own the right half and your
neighbour owns the left half of the
fence between the two farms. It is
understood that a farmer must fence
his livestock in but it also made good
sense to keep your neighbour's cattle
out of your grain and hay fields. In
the event that neighbours couldn't
agree each municipality had "fence
viewers". This was a committee of
one to three people appointed by the
local council to settle disputes over
fences. Dad and most of our
neighbours considered it a total social
failure to ever need the involvement
of the fence viewers.
Our farm had a river running
across it. This was a blessing and a
curse. The river provided water for
the cattle during the summer. The
curse was putting up and taking down
river fence every year. Along each
side of our farm a fence had to be
erected across the river to. keep our
cattle in and the neighbour's cattle
out. The fence could not be left up
over winter as the spring floods
would wash it away. It was always a
cold wet job getting the wires across
the river in the fast -flowing spring
water.
One year Dad decided to make
cement post holes along the river flats
and at the river edge. The holes
would each hold a post that could be
prritage
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HELP FOR ONTARIO FARMERS IN CRISIS
Queen's Bush Rural Ministries
ft -
Provides - a free confidential service
to listen and offer a network
of helpful contacts.
A
Call Collect 1-519-369-6774
Harriston, Ontario 519-338-2111
OCTOBER 2003 35