The Darling Dahlias and the Cucumber Tree (Berkley Prime Crime)

over from Lizzy and Mildred Kilgore took over from Verna, and by the time Mildred handed the shovel over to Earlynne, they were nearly ready to lift it out. It was square, about two feet by two feet, and about eighteen inches deep.
    A few moments later, the box, rotten and splintering, was sitting on the grass. Eager hands were opening it—carefully, for it was obviously very old. And when the lid was lifted, there was a collective chorus of awed ohs and ahs.
    “Why, it’s the Cartwright silver!” Bessie cried in great excitement.
    That’s exactly what it was: a set of thirty-six place settings of sterling silver flatware, Gorham’s Chantilly pattern, engraved with an ornate C. It was stained black from nearly seven decades underground but otherwise undamaged. And when they began to look more carefully, they found several pieces of old-fashioned jewelry—a bracelet set with a square-cut emerald, a pair of pearl earrings, and a small diamond ring—and a bag of twenty-dollar gold coins. Ten gold coins. Two hundred dollars’ worth of double eagles, still as perfect as the day they were minted, in 1852.
    “Yankee money,” Earlynne Biddle said, and sniffed. Earlynne’s mother had been a charter member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and Earlynne had inherited her distaste for all things Yankee—even money.
    “It’s Cornelia’s legacy,” Bessie said in a reverential tone. “Right where she said it was. Under the cucumber tree.”
    “It’s Magnolia acuminata,” Miss Rogers said sharply.
    “It’s our roof,” Aunt Hetty Little said happily. “Glory be, it’s our roof!”

Makin’ Do: 12 Ways to Stretch Whatever We Have
    Compiled by the Darling Dahlias
    May 1930
    1. Save all your bits of bread, the heels, crusts, etc. Use them for bread pudding, in stuffing, and to bread catfish. With the right care and attention, you will never run out of bread crumbs. (Lizzy Lacy)
    2. Don’t throw away old feather beds or feather pillows. You can wash the feathers and they’ll be good as new. Take out the feathers and wash in a tub of real hot suds. Then spread them in the attic to dry, in a single layer. Do not dry in the wind, or you will have feathers all over the place. (Bessie Bloodworth)
    3. If you have old woolen coats that have already been cut up for children’s wear and will no longer serve as garments, cut the fabric into strips and braid for doormats and rugs. Children love to help with this. Worn-out tablecloths can be hemmed and made into nice napkins. (Ophelia Snow)
    4. After you’ve done your laundry, throw the soapy water on your bushes and young plants. They will appreciate the suds, but the bugs won’t. Also, pour the soapy water into a bucket and wash your brooms. A clean broom sweeps better! (Mildred Kilgore)
    5. Keep moths away from your woolens by packing them in a tight box with pepper, cedar chips, tobacco, santolina, wormwood, or lavender—or a mix. In fact, almost anything with a strong, spicy smell will work. Camphor is good, too, but some people object to the way it smells—and you can’t grow it. (Miss Dorothy Rogers)
    6. Save old letters and envelopes and use the backs for notes and lists. But be careful not to use a letter you don’t want someone else to read. (Myra May Mosswell)
    7. Do not turn up your nose at hand-me-downs. Give an item to someone else if you can’t use it. (Aunt Hetty Little)
    8. You can have a supply of horseradish all winter. When you dig the roots, grate them, put the gratings into a bottle with a good lid, and cover with strong vinegar and a tight-fitting lid. Do the grating outdoors—you’ll know why if you’ve ever tried it. (Earlynne Biddle)
    9. Don’t spend money on expensive hair-setting lotions. Simmer 1 cup flaxseed in 3 cups water for a few minutes. Strain the flaxseeds and add back enough water to give the desired consistency. Comb through your hair and roll in rags or curlers as usual. (Beulah Trivette)
    10. Be a string saver! Wind it into a ball and you’ll always have some handy. Buttons, too: keep them in bag or a box, so you’ll know where to go when you want one. (Mrs. George E. Pickett Johnson)
    11. If you have cockroaches, don’t spend money on expensive bait. Boil up some poke-root and mix it with molasses, then set it out in the kitchen and the pantry in saucers. Be sure and keep the cats and the kids out of it. (Alice Ann Walker)
    12. Keep a soup pot going on the back of the stove. That’s where you should put