Latah County Oral History Collection

Sam Schrager: This conversation with Marlon Follett took place at his home in Geneseo on May 3rd, 1976. The interviewer is Sam Schrager, who

Mahlon Follett: We're just personal things, you know, things that happened to me.

Sam Schrager: When you were a little kid. Yeah. Like. Like what?

Mahlon Follett: I can remember one thing. For instance, I. I don't know. I was too bad about. I couldn't name our three years old. Maybe for I don't know, just a little follow our own way. I went over to the neighbors. They were, gosh, I believe, a mile away. And the folks never missed it all. I got a while.

Of course, they call in or out and bam started searching for me. And I remember going over to the people that lived there and they were on the mall. Boy, I know. Now that's that's her grandson. And I remember this old lady. She couldn't hear anything. She had a Eric Holder was near full, airborne, up on the air.

Yeah, a great big heart. And I remember I got all those hours that I could remember, but not an Aaron. Want me to talk and do it to her and made it and or who I was or I guess I didn't know. Anyway, they didn't notify the folks. I was there quite a little while before they finally found me.

Of course, they didn't have telephones the whole day they were over.

Sam Schrager: You remember why you ran away?

Mahlon Follett: no. Well, I was just below. I suppose there's one around, really, More than running away.

Sam Schrager: Do you remember what, what the house was like that year that you lived in, in the country?

Mahlon Follett: yeah. We're alive. And, it was a very modern, but I can remember, of course, after moved off, I used to go back and read the place. We used to go out there quite often. So outdoor time it burned or I was out there quite often.

Sam Schrager: Yeah. Was was living out there, pretty isolated.

Mahlon Follett: It sure was. I think possibly that's why it ever took up farming. I can remember that. after I was or I suppose I was in high school, I worked out there for people that rented the place for. I remember I had a local it was a Dallas Seattle. He was working over here with his brother. They came out there and he came out for free or I'd work here and talking to him and he said, Do you like this farm?

You know, I know he's invited me there. If I can't see how he does that, he would tell me you he didn't like it. That's why he went down the street. Because when you get to school, he said, I'll send you letter. But I work for cable and I never knew what goes down with college, far as that goes.

Sam Schrager: What were your father's reasoning on getting out of farming and and into something else?

Mahlon Follett: Well, I don't know. I think possibly it was, so that I could go to school partly and all that, but I. They were too much for. For me. Far a long time. I don't think he was ready. Really. I don't think he really a very good father, probably. I don't.

Sam Schrager: Know, had he come to this country because his brothers were here and they all come together.

Mahlon Follett: What don't his father and mother and brothers had came to the year before he did. he came of nation, came to Arizona and worked in mind out there and was on the coast for a while and then came up here. Her memory is telling me that he came in no railroad of course, at that time, and he came to Lewiston by boat and he told me about hiking up the bush, that these folks, this place out here where they lived.

And he said there was a fence between Louis and the farm. I hiked over there over their trail.

Sam Schrager: But when do you think? About what year?

Mahlon Follett: I don't know. In the 1880s, somebody.

Sam Schrager: Would have had to have been any for 86 because really, when they brought the train in here.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, I don't know just what to what year it was. I think it was the early 1880s. I am I never really did have too much history of my parents or grandparents. I I've often wondered why I didn't. I guess when you're a kid you don't pay too much attention to it. You wish you had.

Sam Schrager: I think maybe not, or maybe they didn't. That your parents generation and didn't talk so much about it either. And I have a feeling they often were didn't tell their kids very much and.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I've passed away. True I think another day or something. But I have read about my grandmother and I asked by what her maiden name was and I don't know, I don't know. However, I remember that she had brothers come here to visit back, and that's real small. I can't remember the name.

Sam Schrager: Well, was there a family on every hundred and 60? when you're living in the country, there are no.

Mahlon Follett: I was around in 60, but there was of course, lots more. There's now, one woman had that very nice, almost a man more than it. And I, I should say most of them I know full of them, but I don't know where we lived out there. Of course I was. And for what I worked out there, it was.

Well, are they or no telephone? No electricity, Of course. Never appealed to me, but I remember my dad used to come to town, ride horseback, really hard drive. And I think I think he tried to get it about once a week or two weeks or something, if news I could. One of the things that I just remember is coming home after we carried that shot and doing a lot of made quite impressive.

I remember I was talking that somewhere, but that was several days after that happened. Now, you know, it was there's no way I happened.

Sam Schrager: I was he pretty upset when at that event?

Mahlon Follett: I don't remember. I, I remember coming home and it, it italia's about it I in the paper and I remember we used to get the Spokesman-Review at that time as a twice a week paper twice a week.

Sam Schrager: Spokesman-Review Do you think that that country living was difficult for the women, the wives? Do you think that for your mother, that that was a rough living or.

Mahlon Follett: I suppose it was, yeah. It must have been the didn't have any modern conveniences, of course. I really thought it was pretty rough.

Sam Schrager: Well this you moved into town and you were only about you said six or six. What are you, what are some of your early memories of Genesee and what the what the town was like when you were first just, you know, a young.

Unknown: Living here in the rural.

Mahlon Follett: You know, it was quite a bit more business here. There there's of course lots more. And now there was all three or four general stores. Number one, there was three hardware stores, a couple of hotels. I don't know how much smooth flour. So it was quite a business down 35 with shops.

Sam Schrager: And there a lot of people living in town at the time. Well, I.

Mahlon Follett: Don't know of any more living in town and there's no I in fact I and very visited but it was more more around in the country the countryside was so many more people. Now the valley that was schools up there had all just a whole bunch of kids. It was terrible the other day. I mean, I forget how many it was and he was going to school, but now I can go out now and see where they used to be.

I remember they used to make families living in the buildings are old who are now no. So they were just an awful lot more people living.

Sam Schrager: With the town. like a lot of people were on the streets walking up and down and going in the store.

Mahlon Follett: yeah.

Sam Schrager: Has kind of a desolate feeling downtown now.

Mahlon Follett: The over. Yeah, I suppose it was. I don't know. I don't remember. Really get the impression very much rather they it was.

Sam Schrager: Bustling through.

Mahlon Follett: The houses didn't mean much to me. Nowadays or started that store. I don't know 1836 maybe. I bought.

Sam Schrager: You know, if he had the if he and his brother had just put it had all the capital themselves, they needed to go in or they had borrowed money or what did you all.

Mahlon Follett: Or I don't know. But I imagine that I imagine that at least one of them brothers had the capital because he sold his father. I imagine they put the money in the store. But of course, it didn't take near the capital, I think had a few thousand dollars or such, but quite a business.

I after I went to work, the store for the father was working in there in the southwest, cleaning out the basement when they ran across the pile on in my sir and I got word of Robert Johnson ran shoe company and then I saw a as well and I don't recall now I came to was very much too much, but I must read a whole load of shoes at that time.

And it was quite interesting because prices were pretty low and anyway, we everybody was looking at their market together. I remembered it, of course. But remember, the shoe salesman came in shortly after that and it was we showed him to it showed in back in 1896. He wanted to know if he could have it. We told him, yeah.

So he sent it back to the company and it happened to be the same year they started business. So he said, Don't even back here. And they had it frame after back there.

Sam Schrager: You know, I, I'm, I wonder now when your uncle started that store in 1896, the Rosenstein store was here was, yeah, and Levi's store was here.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I don't know about Levi's. I can't remember Levi's. It was possible. I remember there was a Levi's here, but Rosales I remember, were here.

Sam Schrager: But that didn't stop your uncles from thinking that they could have a business of their own.

Mahlon Follett: no. they was, however, all stands, and it was a store at one time about a bomber store, I think. I don't know. I remember a man named Mark for running it over Cross Street or I always around and around the corner. Around the corner bar was I was an absolute right man. And so there was at least four store general stores, all of them, and a little of everything except me.

Unknown: That on the story.

Mahlon Follett: I mean, there was and sometimes during three week mark and says I was one. And every once in a while somebody start another one like restaurants, they start up last a short time in the fall.

Sam Schrager: But it seems like there was a they were a lot more casual about going into business to going out of business one day.

Mahlon Follett: Well, you know, let's try to a lot of it started out but didn't last long. But these are three or four general stores they lasted for. Well, even after I was in the store, they were sorry for a while. down to two of us had store they had.

Sam Schrager: Or did your uncle had experience in the store prior to their starting in.

Mahlon Follett: Law? No, no. They were just they were pretty even fellows. They started up.

Unknown: To help open.

Mahlon Follett: Training. One of them, as I say, they had been, and finally sold it for.

Sam Schrager: Did they have help in the store? Did their wives or worked? You know too.

Mahlon Follett: Well, yeah. All Fred, his wife, worked in there for the time. Well, they used to hire several clerks. When I first came to work in there, there was well, there were six or seven working at the store. It three partners. They had a yard, Jackson seven one and myself. So there was quite a few of us. But the first service for business, there were no bills or not many at least, and road works.

It's good. And the country population was much more. You stay open Saturday night. That was a busy time. Everybody came down on Saturday night, all our linen coming in or stayed back all the end of the family oftentimes would be 11, 12:00 or we'd get calls that.

Sam Schrager: Families would, would come in, very nice home with the whole family.

Mahlon Follett: Go, yeah, the it was pretty busy on a Saturday night, and they'd all come in the barbershop to all us, to three barber shops, you know, had better gummy bears in the barber shops.

Sam Schrager: Really bad bands in the bar.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. Yeah. They all had terrific bathtub in there. I well, you take out a fire we never get a bad dirty came down. I mean the fire went probably were bad I mean the hard man Raymond any advice for him. Yeah I think you know I think most of their showers will make it over and take a bath every day.

And that mean you're a long time as I don't think as a sanitary problem, but nobody thought anything about it as it destroyed their.

Sam Schrager: No, I would think it would be even kind of a hardship for the farm family to run with all the problem. You know.

Mahlon Follett: Where we have would be here.

Sam Schrager: He dead all that water.

Mahlon Follett: After he boys or somewhere other on the stoves.

Sam Schrager: Well, now, had you ever had you ever worked in the store when you were growing up?

Mahlon Follett: No, no, I never had him at all. After the war, I picked up the time when I had been working or Spokane for a couple of years at a bank I worked in Man Care for a while and doing the best I can now and then the cashier had lost his work and their power were low. If I wasn't going to work, I was so down to finish school.

He said, Well, work for a while, then go back and finish school. So I did. I worked for I don't remember our six months or so. I went back to finish school, would work at Bank of Tyler, which.

Sam Schrager: Was the business college you went to in Spokane.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah.

Sam Schrager: And did you go there straight out of high school? Yeah. Well, what did you what did you think of what did you were a lot of that at the college was a good. Yeah, it.

Mahlon Follett: Was a pretty good school. It was all requests from business, college. they were for the same thing. Blair Bible I wrote, and as Cameron was one of the professors in the area, he was one of the teacher. He afterwards started Kimball Business College. And I guess, Mrs. God, your best friend is Kindred Men's College. Of course, he is very worried.

And then I guess he I know he started it.

Sam Schrager: Do you remember how you happened to decide to go up there to go to college?

Mahlon Follett: I know. I don't really remember, Howard. I had intended to go to university and I don't know. I went down to 1915 and went down to fantastic to the fair. And over time we got back to the road about where I'll go in the next year and in the meantime, or just going to business, college or university or came along with me.

Sam Schrager: Another So you had the intention of going into business one way or in some form or other.

Mahlon Follett: Probably. Well, I suppose so, yeah, I do, Yeah. I remember one. I did have everybody.

Sam Schrager: Well, how did you come to enlist in the Army.

Mahlon Follett: World War One? If you, everybody was, you know, lesser draft and most everybody of my age, 18 months, I think I would go overseas to send New York City for a year there. I was stationed in the city, the gas mask factory, just a few of us in in their barracks. They would had their allowance for food and lodging.

We lived where we raised for it for duty everyday, just like had a job.

Sam Schrager: I imagine living in New York City would be a little different to living in Genesee.

Mahlon Follett: Yes, it was.

Unknown: You know, or someplace.

Mahlon Follett: I'd lived Spokane a couple of years for winter, so I really lived in a somewhat bigger place. But of course I made New York a that time they were obligated to do it for I'm in New York City and we really had a good time there.

Unknown: I mean, they buy good.

Sam Schrager: They were courteous or.

Mahlon Follett: yeah, and it was a or you could go down there at any time and you get free tickets to the shows half price tickets ready to pour over and, and then any sudden hey if you register you get invited down to there someplace or it would, it was really good order.

Sam Schrager: Were you right in New York City.

Mahlon Follett: Yes.

Sam Schrager: Manhattan.

Mahlon Follett: Queens. And just try that side of the bridge over on the island side.

Sam Schrager: Did you enlist by yourself or were there friends?

Mahlon Follett: well, there were several of us from work. No, it was working at the bank. Okay, hold territory. I was in and we stayed together for a little while. But pretty quickly it all separated.

Sam Schrager: Do you think that, you boys at that time were enlisting because you felt patriotic, or was it because. Because you were figured you would be drafted anyway?

Mahlon Follett: Well, probably a little of both. I would say.

Sam Schrager: But I get some mixed feelings about about that war. When the old timers talk to me about that. I mean, some people really don't seem to have much use for some of these people that were that were farm boys. They didn't really want to go and they had to. And others, too, seemed to think it was a good idea.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I think they were were true of the Second World War and the first but the first World War that was pretty solidly behind administration, very called the war to end of war. yeah, that's what was supposed to be. But there have been several since.

Sam Schrager: Well, how come you wound up going into the store instead of sticking with the bank?

Mahlon Follett: Well, I don't know. I my uncle wanted me to come in and he wrote to me. Well, no, if I let me anyway, of course I started in the bank. Just can't have business cards and didn't have to get a job. Why? I really intended to go back there. I came back, I went in there and they told me I have a job for if I wanted to come back.

Unknown: But probably there was.

Mahlon Follett: A better opportunity going in the store because after all, big banks, you know, get too far very soon, too slow process.

Sam Schrager: Was a store doing a big business.

Mahlon Follett: The how they were. I remember ever you know they were doing a real good business at that time for several years there and doing away. Of course, what hurt the small town was automobiles. We had roads last year to our store with. We didn't do much.

Sam Schrager: When would you say that the business began to fall off?

Mahlon Follett: Well, I don't really know, but so it went on from.

Unknown: I don't know.

Sam Schrager: Would you say would you say, I'm just real curious about trying to place it. You know, some somewhat would you say it started to go down?

Mahlon Follett: Well, I suppose it started to be down there. And then during the Depression, you know, I fell off pretty bad there for a while. Then it boosted up a little better for a while, but. Well, I think what really boosted up was the fewer stores eventually got out or we were really the only general store. There was not a grocery store and they had a clothing store, but we were really well, a general store after and worked it out.

Sam Schrager: Give me some idea of what, of what people were buying from the store. when you first were in was in there or even, or even earlier. I'm curious to know what people were buying in the early days to.

Mahlon Follett: all kinds of clothing. And where was it groceries from? It was the big guy. I mean, all kinds of clothing and then, of course, the women used to do a lot of so I used to sell a lot of the piece goods. We knew blankets and sheets, no light type of stuff. And we we saw a lot of our shoes.

Sam Schrager: This would be when you first were working.

Mahlon Follett: In our.

Sam Schrager: Car. When you say groceries, I had the idea that that most farm families were trying to grow as much of their own edibles as as they could. Is that.

Mahlon Follett: Well, that's true. Are you? It was a little different type of grocery. It was sold those early days and so later days I was and most everything was involved with packaged goods, even coffee. We sold more coffee in bulk. So get coffee and of course, produce wasn't much made in produce, got tired of oranges, lemons, citrus fruit.

Unknown: But so what.

Sam Schrager: Would kind of the the kind of groceries be that people most people were poor by coffee obviously they couldn't grow and they buy that.

Mahlon Follett: yeah.

Sam Schrager: If I saw Pepper probably on my.

Mahlon Follett: Phone or in jeez. That's what makes our wasn't a package. Get around. Got it up and a lot of stuff was involved where you blossomed. I remember when I first went to work, they had a cargo in the back room. So of But the last one, they had left the spigot a little bit. Come down the next morning.

It was a mars. That was the last glass of our boat. Over here. You saw a lot of kerosene. I remember on the side and I used to see a five gallon cans of sake. I bet you that fellow had been off careful, not on or anything or the other stuff. Could everybody come in with a case? Rags?

Sam Schrager: You would take those eggs and trade and.

Mahlon Follett: yeah, we ship a lot of eggs.

Sam Schrager: How much could you give me for eggs?

Mahlon Follett: gosh, I don't remember how much I got over here and all. They got all for cheap pair for on top of here. A while back he brought much Tylenol, offered him ten to does Newman's Own for that. Took him down and gave him another fella But I don't remember that I blow as I have 15 years ago and I can remember what they buried their.

Sam Schrager: Did you take other dairy products too, or just eggs? milk and cream.

Mahlon Follett: No, no, no. Or cream or eggs and butter. A lot of the farmer made butter to that used to be somewhat of a headache because an awful lot of butter came in the summer, wouldn't be too good, could get rid of it for that used to be kind of bad.

Sam Schrager: There was a there was a real variety in quality in the butter.

Mahlon Follett: yes. And some of these quite a lot of up the valley. There was quite a lot of Norwegian people back there still is quite a few out there. Of course, they're second and third generations. But these were people that and they made real good, real good butter.

They probably the South, but some of the others are probably pretty bad.

Sam Schrager: What would be the matter with you know.

Mahlon Follett: They're strong know how to make and I guess I love my butter back a lot. Yeah but I also You was pretty bad.

Sam Schrager: gosh. Well, what could you do in a case like that? Would you tell.

Mahlon Follett: Those thrown out.

Sam Schrager: Of you? But you still give them credit for it?

Mahlon Follett: yeah. You couldn't really tell. Their butter was no good. Who's customer?

Sam Schrager: Yeah. So would you re sell a lot of that butter. yeah. People or.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. well, well most everybody bought country butter.

Sam Schrager: People in town.

Mahlon Follett: Right now.

Sam Schrager: So you didn't ship the butter out like you did. No, no.

Mahlon Follett: They ship out an awful lot of eggs. One girl all around come down the mine district. Calico. I've been there. Used to come. Now they can take all ages. We can get that works. We?

Sam Schrager: I have heard that the credit that the stores extended was a mighty important factor to some of these farmers. Many of the people in the in being able to to get what they needed to deliver.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. There's no doubt about that. that time people didn't pay their bill up in the fall are New Orleans until the next fall and the of the capital I operate them have to borrow money to carry with this bank and very poor system but that's the way it was. And of course we'll never did be fresh in years came along there and on the books I never collected but that was probably the biggest headache of all.

Our merchant credit business.

Sam Schrager: Well, was it was it most most of the families and most farm families have to go to credit? Or was it the exception rather than the rule?

Mahlon Follett: No, I think most of that I of course, in later years it got to where they were quite wet. In the last few years, you couldn't carry for that all the time.

Sam Schrager: But so the merchant would he would lose. So it seemed like he'd be in the middle there. He'd probably, you, you wouldn't be getting any interest on what you were owed, would you.

Mahlon Follett: Know.

Sam Schrager: What you'd be paying interest on, borrowed on.

Mahlon Follett: Well of course kind of offset by it was at that time most the people you bought from the suppliers gave a pretty good discount for pay ten days to some as high as 90 days and your interest discount account would would pay off more than what your borrowed. In other words, your discounts would more than offset what you borrowed at the bank, you know, borrow the money to pay the bill.

But it paid to do it. And of course, in the fall, either by paying up the bills, you get back up. You know, the bank start over again.

Sam Schrager: Did you find it to be, to be, a real headache to have to.

Mahlon Follett: You know, have to.

Sam Schrager: Do it that way?

Mahlon Follett: Yes. It was.

Sam Schrager: You know, like it, it kind of leave you leave you hanging from it. Had it.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, it was.

Sam Schrager: Well, you know who you could trust.

Mahlon Follett: Well, sometimes you did. Sometimes you find out to your sorrow that you didn't really trust. But the big majority were pretty substantial farmers around, and they were also pretty, you.

Sam Schrager: Do you have any way of recovering when somebody.

Mahlon Follett: Or as a general thing, they were pretty hard to collect from? Of course, sometimes you could collect least give some of our accounts, collect the attorneys when they really they cried some, but mostly if you can collect them yourself for collecting it just for our tired of all the last few years, this Merchants Association in Moscow used to collect bills for us.

They as successful as anybody.

Unknown: But can you remember.

Sam Schrager: Ever confronting having to confront people and ask them, we like to work and wonder how you did or how you how you'd go about, you know, doing that. I mean, I don't suppose you'd have much choice. You really.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. You'd have to write them and ask them for it or and probably really saw it.

Sam Schrager: Did you find you had much change in the customers from year to year, or would you carry the same people year after year?

Mahlon Follett: More or less. So yes, most of it wasn't too much. It wasn't too much change at the farm account. Well, even the town accounts, far as I know, they were too much turnover. But like there's now and I like to run a credit business, so. But I, I used to know everybody in town where they lived, what they did and even knew all the kids, little kids down, not around them or have people anymore.

Sam Schrager: Know you think about it. You know, it seems to me that that it would put you in a very difficult position if if you had people that are, you know, local and their residents and they're not paying their bills to you, it's something between you and then, you know, and, you're you know, I mean, I would think it would be their responsibility to do that.

And, and I know if it was me, I would feel real bad if I had to start saying, You're not holding up your end of the deal here.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, correct. It was one of the worst parts of the business, and I never was a contractor.

Sam Schrager: Did you find a difference between Was there a big difference? They with people on one hand who wanted to pay and genuinely couldn't because they couldn't afford it. And people who, who had it didn't want to pay.

Mahlon Follett: I think in most cases people just didn't have it. They'd get them to leave and couldn't get out. Of course, in some cases. But the way big their bill. But worse case was they weren't able to pay.

Sam Schrager: They deliberately deliberately were beating.

Mahlon Follett: Neighborhood over the by and with the idea of they were paying it so they won't do any of that type.

Sam Schrager: Well, what happened when you when the depression when the depression hit, did you just have to extend, extend credit on a, well.

Mahlon Follett: You know, rather strange at that time when the Depression, people seemed kind of realized we were all the same. Both It really paid off better than they did.

Before that, we didn't have the trouble during the depression we did before or so. Bills would be so big and they'd be more careful. But they always seemed to be a period. They knew everybody needed the money and they'd pay a really probably pretty terrible in the Depression. The collection wasn't as bad as you might think. once you know how you'd run across somebody, it could pay their bill for a year.

They'd come in, tell you about. You knew they wanted to do it. Could we carry them on for another year or something more? Some laws pay though. Come in and talk to you about it. Why? They was the guy would pay you. But some of them, he wouldn't talk to you about it per se. You do you what they were you given in or.

Sam Schrager: Probably don't know whether you want whether you'd rather not see em. We're seeing.

Mahlon Follett: How because some are taking their business someplace where they knew they weren't going to be asked for the in the bill.

Sam Schrager: For a while anyway.

Mahlon Follett: Try it.

Sam Schrager: Well, business fell off terribly during the Depression and wondering what did people cut out that they'd been buying before?

Mahlon Follett: I really don't know. I couldn't couldn't say just for it. But I suppose they buy more staples and leave out the luxury items, you know, on a unless of course that time a bank or was in to pay or banks had hurt everybody. The whole Genesis chain, the bank was the main bank here and they covered it.

It really hurt everybody.

Sam Schrager: It did it close right at the banking holiday or was it before there was during the Depression?

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, I kind of they called before the bank and they were like, I'm not sure about that. I don't really remember.

Sam Schrager: How much how much it,

Mahlon Follett: Of course they, they were of course, by the bank where the exchange versions broke and the exchange of cash or on there and that of course they had a big deposit up by this bank that hurt them. Probably was the reason for their failure as much as anything else.

Sam Schrager: Do you think they. They made a big effort to, stay afloat.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. Down. They did. You know, Of course, they were all local directors. They really.

Sam Schrager: Tried. Do you know if they tried to raise money? subscription kind of, deal. That's what they managed to do. And Troy, I know they went out and sold more stock and,

Mahlon Follett: No, I don't think they did that here.

Sam Schrager: They reorganized just what they did. Some of the people that had stock lost quite a bit of people got it.

Mahlon Follett: They lived here. They knew it.

Sam Schrager: Yeah, Not born there, but that's where I lived for a number of years. But how much? what kind of losses did the people sustain who were, who had money, invest in the bank. I assume they, they did lose some of their somewhere.

Mahlon Follett: Yes. yeah.

Sam Schrager: Did they get any return at all for what they had in the bank.

Mahlon Follett: Or the deposits did. Yes, I had when they liquidated and I don't know, I don't remember what percentage I paid out of them, but they had there were several dividends. I got Barter bank so of course a receiver collected on her notes, but she could take. Yeah, but it took all kind over there.

Sam Schrager: yes.

Mahlon Follett: Yes. What's he doing or anything.

Sam Schrager: Working in his garden a lot. Spend a lot of time doing that and I still see him. I go when I drive by the evenings. You know, he used to always work in the front office there, in a little office in the front of the house. So still there, light on. And I, I don't know. He still sells insurance there.

yeah. I think he's still very, very busy with, a lot of people entrust their financial affairs to employees.

Mahlon Follett: Like.

Sam Schrager: Him, and they still do. I mean, people still do. People that he's worked with for years.

Mahlon Follett: I know the rapport with him very. Yeah. So I guess I know him, but I know a lot of people here bank try or did I was a many anymore but that we used to get as many trade checks we got on the local bank.

Sam Schrager: Was this after the bank closed here or before.

Mahlon Follett: No. No afterwards. Yeah.

Sam Schrager: What was the store caught in a bind when the bank went under. Did you have much in the way of loans from the,

Mahlon Follett: The. No, not, not, not. We, of course, we struggled ahead or delayed getting back. What? We had a deposit, which wasn't too much, but people just couldn't pay their bills. We sent out checks, of course, pay our bills. They all about back and it was kind of hard to get all the money to pay. But to pick up these checks about how hard some of the companies were where we that fried Delbert.

The circumstances. Some of them were very good about it and some of them on their money right now when we ran it this some time. But most of give you time enough to scout around yet refinanced.

Sam Schrager: Did business start picking up again as the thirties went on.

Mahlon Follett: yes It, it did. It picked up.

Sam Schrager: Was Rosenstein's store, running when you got into balance?

Mahlon Follett: Yeah.

Sam Schrager: With all the old man still, running the store. Well.

Mahlon Follett: He wasn't too actively. I guess he was. As an. I think he was really running it down by the time I went in. But they over in yesterday we were on a video.

Sam Schrager: Where the, the proprietors of the, of these, stores like you and the, and the Rosenstein's. Were you, friends or rivals?

Mahlon Follett: Well, we were friends later. I don't remember who is friendly with the Roman state where the enemies are, but, they were the type. But people were too friendly with. I guess they, of course, they were Jewish town where there were only Jews and so they didn't mingle with the other people very much. And, well, the girls got.

So they did. But. But later years, when I put him at this job there we he was very friendly. He used to borrow back and forth with us by we'd go for them and vice versa. I better get an order for something they didn't do anything. I'm not your boss. All right, Lindenmayer. When nuclear was in there. Why, We were all friendly, All together during three times a year would make another.

So there was very keen rivalry between the business. I don't know. I think really in the real early days before I was there at the spa, they were the mores and the bar rivalry. Where do you figure that? I don't know. I just.

Sam Schrager: What? More or less what what people said maybe, or what you, what you picked up on sounds like to me like I do have the idea from talking to old timers around the country, around here, that that people were devoted to the store they traded.

Mahlon Follett: And yeah, all that's true.

Sam Schrager: Whatever store it was, some of them traded it to and more than one. But if there's one store they trade with the they got it and this was in the early days they got a you know a good situation going and they kept it.

Mahlon Follett: You know what is true true. They most of our customers, for instance, were pretty pretty solid. That it all our trade while we had people in our labor come in our place and we're trading someplace else but we were always paid or.

Sam Schrager: Was there a competition as far as the prices and all?

Mahlon Follett: Yes, I was. It was sublet. I don't know. Yeah, I guess there was, you know, a few customers come in. Well, I got a mystery for a dime warehouse, but.

Sam Schrager: For a nickel for candy to get three.

Mahlon Follett: Hundred.

Sam Schrager: I know. Yeah, but did they have it like, specials? I mean, these days, it's. That's a real specials, you know.

Mahlon Follett: The weeks.

Sam Schrager: Have. And one of the things I've heard about the the country your time stores was it was it the proprietors would get each item for the for the buyers instead of being self-service is that.

Mahlon Follett: yeah that's right. Yeah. Yeah. There was no self-service up. I just before I went out of the store, they practically never had self-service. I was out of the store but beginning to get to be that right. Well, at the time I went out early on in your order, you put it up for.

Sam Schrager: They have written down and you think.

Mahlon Follett: Well, password, just verbal, verbal. They give it to you, you write it down, then put it up. Yeah. I remember the name of the old grocery chain. Do I. They'd come in my glass for stuff and tell you and then go out to do something else. By the time they came back, they expected you to have it put up or ready to go.

Then you would.

Sam Schrager: This be the roustabout?

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, I used to be. All those dry outfits used to have a one round. I was very much chair left trash man, closed the door. And I guess some things are still right now. I guess I probably about the grandson of one that you steward.

Sam Schrager: I wonder why they they came in from over there instead of the fellows around here doing their own thrashing.

Mahlon Follett: well, of course, I said they weren't all from over there. There was several trash outfits here, but when it was ready, well, there wasn't enough room for or whatever by be anxious to go to trash before storms made it so they'd come over and have quite a little run. Sure.

Sam Schrager: A lot of people from over around Troy that came worked in the harvest here.

Mahlon Follett: yeah.

Sam Schrager: Homesteaders would be on the homestead and leave it to come down, make a little money to have some to buy stuff with for the winter.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. I used to the high school. I used to work out of that shed and then also or always several dry.

Sam Schrager: Was was that called Smolts the confectionary and Delaware or is used to go in there when you were.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. Well we have the high school out of our way out and all kids do they don't have much to do in those days but they're hanging around the place, smoke the place they confectionary straight. I do quite a bit business first, remember? Smokes. He was a cigar maker. The cigar had just a little bit of place that he graduated in, but then came in for a very short.

They went in the confectionery business, made ice cream.

Sam Schrager: Or you say hang out. It was okay for kids to just sit around in there and, yeah, you have to be, buying some and eating something.

Mahlon Follett: yes, of course. You bought a bunny, you bought something. You we didn't have too much money. Maybe some might get a little bit for kind of drying out for ginger. So we went to stay there on time, of course, but it was. Well, I mean, anybody would have been the place to be.

Sam Schrager: Yeah. What about the store? Did did, would people sit around in the store or.

Mahlon Follett: Whatever or in the early days and they'd come to town. Ladies would come in there and, and some stew over over there. They sat around there quite a bit.

Sam Schrager: Mostly the ladies.

Mahlon Follett: The ladies would pass. The men all slowed and when they were around we would women used to do most of the by their large grocery by that by for the dry goods instead of carpeting and dry. And at first the work got so he could understand. But in the end he could talk with a pretty good but I never got so I couldn't so I wouldn't talk English.

Sam Schrager: Just put were they good customers grew most part.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, they were pretty good, but they had a peculiar habit of buying one item. Bring it over, pay for it and buy another. They bought dust items, they buy them all separate and set up one at a time really well. And then you never see them at that. It was all in the carpet by one item on time.

Sam Schrager: Yeah. I wonder why they what their thinking was about that.

Mahlon Follett: Well they were new in the old in. But what about that way or stand or you got over it but they were calling them. But what if they picked up anything. They'd bring it over to you and pay for it. That there were problems still in the Enquirer was the most I don't think the present generation or whereas Hollis the sale people were in our last few years we had a little trouble with them sometimes.

Sam Schrager: With these people that lived near fairly near Genesee Road trade here.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, No, it was Sarah. I lived out there. Well, there's still a lot of reservation land out here in the inland, but so used to live out here, but you don't see much of many more of the business.

Sam Schrager: Would you give them credit to. No. You wouldn't be able to their bank of Regina.

Mahlon Follett: No, no. I never roll in on paper. Right. It or ask for credit.

Sam Schrager: Well, what kind of social activity this went on in town in the these years, you know, and back before the Depression.

Mahlon Follett: There wasn't much I would say I don't know what we did. A time I was really I was thinking about it was thinking it was, there's five or six of us that always were pretty good friends up for two grades in high school, just around together. And it wasn't much room to do Saturday night in the movies, really.

Outside of that, there would be much going on. We were, yeah. They used to have revival meetings all the time, guys. We'd go to them regularly as a good show.

Sam Schrager: Would that be right in town? yeah. Would they put up a ten year?

Mahlon Follett: Well, there was a few cases but in the other the most. But was a methodist church over here and they'd have two or three times a year. They'd have what they call revival services. So outside bridge. You'd come in it bridge. Most of them were pretty, pretty radical. We used to get a kick out. There's something to do, I guess, but we used to go.

We weren't like some of the president of the natives. We always made all right every kind of trouble. Church But we used to get quite a kick out of.

Sam Schrager: Well, when you say we were pretty radical, that kind of preaching style was, was it hell fire and brimstone or.

Mahlon Follett: Hellfire brimstone? We were sure going to hell if you played cards or dance or anything for amusement. Of course, love in those early days, lots of answers. They'd dance every week in town. In town, in the wintertime, they'd be out there with country schools, in band arms out there. Go for about once a week. If you're in where you had some transportation or they were somebody there, but they were got some of these country schools to dance parties, lot of parties.

Sam Schrager: How would a party be different from a dance? Well, would you play games and games?

Mahlon Follett: Probably. Or of course I would go out to the Gulf Coast area. Were slaves. But some of these people who lived out to our destination of the country invited group out. We'd go out there usually Dave would have an oyster feed over my shoulder.

Sam Schrager: Full in town. Where were the dances held?

Mahlon Follett: Well, they used to be a building out here. It was originally built for Armory. Armory and then later called an opera house. And then eventually the school building bought it for a gym, played basketball for years, and that's where the dancers were. Our public dancers and KP Lodge used to have a few dancers there in the area of the station and.

Sam Schrager: KP Large with them. March ninth of Pythias.

Mahlon Follett: Sure, they were pretty active there for a long while and then had to stay, bring up quite a crowd. Practically everybody got invitations to it and I of some absolutely didn't want.

Sam Schrager: Liza regular dances that you'd have on Saturdays were were they attended by mostly the just the young people or was it all.

Mahlon Follett: Ages. All ages all ages the all the intermarried people used to go to all of it. Of course the younger people. And over the years after we married, we used to hold dances. I never did like to dance very well. You used to go to and they'd get a referee in town some extent down there. That's about as far as you wanted to go with the team.

Sam Schrager: What were the night the previous? Did they have members mostly from, from the men in town in Jersey, or was it all around the country?

Mahlon Follett: Well, a.

Sam Schrager: Long period.

Mahlon Follett: Mostly the down or the farmers from their membership at one time. Of course I have heard of them several lodges. I was a prison warden, basement. And another thing I can remember, my dad was, well, when we lived on this farm here, he'd ride in horseback to go to lodge six, seven miles. Gosh, I wouldn't do it nowadays.

I wouldn't even drive in, I don't think, to go over.

Sam Schrager: But maybe the fellowship important.

Mahlon Follett: That's right. Right. They said get out. But it much may they do do visit your neighbors maybe.

Sam Schrager: Well in town. Do you think that the, the people that lived in town or, or let's say the business community on the main street, did they know each other very well? Cooperate?

Mahlon Follett: yes. yeah. Because I think in those days there was lots more visiting back and forth. More people, because of course they may have radio, television and they have all there was to them.

Sam Schrager: Do you think it was pretty much the same? And this is something that I've been quite interested in trying to figure. Do you think it was pretty much the same and the country, as the town in a way of visiting and, yeah. yeah, Not much difference between the two places.

Mahlon Follett: But also my early remembrances. One was on the farm was going well. It's about an and a half later in the afternoon.

Sam Schrager: And would you do the same thing in town? this family. Yeah, I.

Mahlon Follett: Tried.

Sam Schrager: I heard a lot about the country, but not very much about it. Towns?

Mahlon Follett: yeah, they did here in town. But, I can remember practically every suddenly knew. I hear my folks would have come here. They'd be going someplace. They're.

Sam Schrager: Was it a very small circle of friends they had or.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I suppose a rather small circle, I would say.

Sam Schrager: If you were going to try to guess, would you say maybe two or three families or five or six?

Mahlon Follett: we had several and had five or six of our families. And of course I was in this side of town were mostly all Germans.

Sam Schrager: To the west.

Mahlon Follett: We are the West and up the was back all our wages south. It was a little of everything, but.

Sam Schrager: I imagine the different groups stuck together pretty much.

Mahlon Follett: That's right. And the different churches that do. Yes. Catholic and everything to do with the Protestant brothers generally do the Catholics here on Good Friday. I was last Good Friday, they were sending the Catholic and really the church went together and the priest and the preacher were part of the ceremony in the church. Well, now, a year ago, if I wouldn't have, I had never heard of such a thing.

It's going to be brief. Going into a private or a Protestant church or vice versa. Protestant minister, on Thanksgiving eve, they had a big service at the Catholic Church, and all three ministers spoke. That's a difference in a few years would make unheard of for the years ago or or.

Sam Schrager: Were there in those early days, were there things that that the whole community, regardless of nationality, would get together on or was it not? Was there just really just like four or five different communities here?

Mahlon Follett: Well, yeah, the dances friends. That said, they come from all different, but and they used to have a celebration or July or a show when they go there and the whole community would take heard.

Sam Schrager: Sounds like you're saying the town was a then was a way was when people came to town that they became one one community instead of different one.

Mahlon Follett: Well yeah, I guess.

Sam Schrager: It's kind of what it sounds like. And I don't mean to put words into your law.

Mahlon Follett: There was different groups really got along pretty good. It was friction, but naturally they were rigid, kind of great together. And so the German to more or less I can I remember one of the first to the store, a lot of the Norwegian ladies had come in the store, Boy, I'd have an awful time understanding the town's pretty broken.

I got so I good, nice ladies. Could they talk? Pretty broke.

Sam Schrager: I think a lot of them didn't have much, much opportunity to learn the language, being involved with each other.

Mahlon Follett: All the time. True. Then of course, a lot of them came over from Germany. Sooner or later.

Sam Schrager: They were already grown.

Mahlon Follett: But right.

Sam Schrager: Well, what nationality is your who is your family?

Mahlon Follett: I don't know. On my father's side, I never did. Don't I know them? I didn't know about America first. I knew back. But my mother's side, they were French Canadians. My grandmother lived with us two, three years. She could talk better French, she could English.

Sam Schrager: Well, in among the business, people in town were were most of them American?

Mahlon Follett: yeah. Yeah, they all were. They all were. Radio over and they all were trying to think we were in. I don't remember any of them were.

Sam Schrager: This a horse show? And 4th of July they brought in people from all over.

Mahlon Follett: yeah.

Sam Schrager: How they can or they especially big celebration.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah they were, they were pretty good celebrations. I remember two or three days, pretty good sized car was used to give a car over. They really used to have a big crowd and you didn't how would they had a stock show down there But they showed both horses and cattle and this horse shows here Now, horses are used to a stock show and they've got an awful crowd.

And of course people are very, very link appear. Those were the days before tractors, everything else was horses that used to be pretty competitive. Who'd have the best horses. And of course nowadays every time we had a baseball team I ever saw, they were someplace rather where they played it, but they played pretty good baseball today, at least.

It was interesting.

Sam Schrager: Some of these little towns, they seem to have fights as a regular part of the baseball game and fight with the other town.

Mahlon Follett: Well, yeah, Sometimes they get almost on the verge of fighting you way in competition, especially especially between town jealousy but all that used to have every do you try you didn't have golden Josie.

Sam Schrager: You know and Moscow I've heard it around Moscow I heard people say that there was a real there was a real difference between the people that were farm people lived in the country and the people that were town, people who lived in town. When the country people came into town, they stood out as being from the country. What would you say that would be true of Genesee?

Mahlon Follett: No, I wouldn't say so. Here. Possibly in a few cases that would be, but not very often. But I suppose some families come to town and be pretty countrified. Maybe, but most of year they were all just the same.

Sam Schrager: Do you think it had much effect that I've had the idea that the farming around here was more developed than, you know, it was more Deville further along than it was. And most of this county, you know, and places where they had to clear their homesteads and.

Mahlon Follett: You know, I imagine that's true. And there was it was, of course, you know, all over land or.

Sam Schrager: I imagine that there was more really more prosperity around here because of the of that.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, I imagine that's true. I think the early days to kind of go the other way now, but it.

Sam Schrager: Going the other way.

Mahlon Follett: Well, the town is very good as a business town there anymore. And it used to be, I think for instance, Troy or Kendrick or whoever they much better business towns than those.

Sam Schrager: Wonder why it's hurting Tennessee more than it has a place like Troy.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I think possibly because of Maine. Well, I have Fair Trade restaurant in Moscow all the way. So I would go to Moscow and do the trade, but don't even have a barber.

Shops or have a doctor that used to be to doctor here ever since I could remember, until the last few years. Last 20 years? Yes.

Sam Schrager: I guess people's loyalty to the town stops when they feel it, you know, gets too expensive. Maybe because. Because you'd think that maybe if a town was serious enough about keeping some businesses and they patronized it enough, they could keep it. Well, I think so.

Mahlon Follett: They they like to go where there's a better selection or when they go there, you know, our first witness working in a store, we used to have a railway or they go there or after a few years you couldn't it because you didn't could carry them for the selection that like a larger base camp the changing of the times.

Sam Schrager: Know and you mentioned the revivals a while ago in Moscow they caused a lot of hot debate and and really some disturbance because the one or two in particular but in Moscow at all they really did.

Mahlon Follett: An all.

Sam Schrager: Business of drinking and dancing was pretty controversial and. our school.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I guess was the last one in town or the churches used to be pretty much against it. When I was a kid, I, I think it was terrible. And now the ministries themselves play cards and everything. You don't think anything about it. But in the early days, right?

Sam Schrager: do you think that the of the revivals stop people from playing cards and drinking.

Mahlon Follett: No, I don't It ever did that. They did a very good probably didn't do any harm either but I just doubt that they ever had much effect people maybe some of the older people I can remember we had a minister here. He was here for years on the mill road. I, I he was here. He came here as a young boy.

His first preaching as a boy. He got so that everybody in town browsed carefully created by a friend of theirs and when back another and I think possibly that kind of started people a little bit to be a little broader minded because before then when I said a lot of people, a lot of the church people thought that by mall Saturday was a terrible sin and there's no line.

He put it pretty fair picture and he used to play ball day himself. He used to tell a story and he kept a uniform in his pocket so he could make it on in the town. They we're a little bit exaggerated, but, yeah, but when he first started by some of the older people in church, I didn't like it too.

But after Betty here, well, I guess he wore them over.

Sam Schrager: I though he pitched for the for the Genesee.

Mahlon Follett: County there,

Sam Schrager: Well, that's interesting.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah. So. But I haven't say of my time how much broader minded all the Church of God.

Sam Schrager: Was there a lot of drinking at the dances. during Prohibition when you were.

Mahlon Follett: All I would say a lot, they, they were some, of course it was. Well it was, it wasn't too bad They didn't get rid of most of the Nazis anyway. Too bad somebody used a guy to take care of all their.

Sam Schrager: Do you think that, the the moonshine that was around was mostly locally produced or brought in from outside?

Mahlon Follett: I would say most was Raleigh. I Don't like it, but I know one or two that was doing little manufacturing, but for it to are called up but I don't think it very much really still around here. I think it was most people brought in.

Sam Schrager: Or thing about that that I kind of wondered about that this country around here is whether it was pretty well accepted, you know, for people to drink if they wanted to during during those prohibition times or if it was frowned upon pretty

Mahlon Follett: I wouldn't know. I, I think it got accepted more or less by a lot of people. Of course. And people that were would bring it of course prohibition.

Sam Schrager: Prohibition was the prohibition itself probably didn't make all that much. It didn't make too much difference. But you know how I felt about it one way or the other.

Mahlon Follett: You know, I've always thought that maybe more people were drinking, you know, during prohibition. That was heavy drinkers drinking more than they have since before. I think more people now take a social drink or two, but I don't think there's many that drink really drunk like I did.

Sam Schrager: Because it was illegal.

Mahlon Follett: To legal, I guess. And I think more people started on it than tell them we can't have it. I they seem to want it that much more now. Practically everybody will take a drink. I say everybody were very few in their group. But what if cocktails or something, You know, what would drink? That don't mean that very many of you get drunk.

Sam Schrager: Was there politics? What's your town politics? And Tennessee in the early, early years?

Mahlon Follett: No, I don't think so. it was also I wouldn't say a lot. I wouldn't say a whole lot of interest in politics, although a political speaker could get quite a crowd out because wasn't much else to do but go over well.

Sam Schrager: I noticed in looking at some of the old things about Tennessee that J.R., was very prominent.

Mahlon Follett: I, I heard a few of them when I was young.

Sam Schrager: Well, there are a couple of things, though. More things I was thinking of asking about. One is, do you ever hear much about former J.P. Vollmer.

Mahlon Follett: Or over.

Sam Schrager: Here? Well, I know, but I mean, back in those early.

Mahlon Follett: yes. Yeah. What was his biography on the bank here? And at one time journal well I guess before or before where at time money I think he had a regular wholesale store here so they used to trade all the stuff from here up on the prairie. There was no railroad had life. We all I had to bail on out of here.

This was the first railroad, and he had a and he owned the bank. A lot of land that he. you hear a lot of stories of I of course I.

Sam Schrager: Will tell you stories that I that I hear about it were not very complimentary. So you got you got a lot of land from people over a barrel.

Mahlon Follett: And that's true money, I guess. There's no doubt about that. That's the impression I was gonna have. Of course, I, I never knew him all my time, but he was active. I think he was still alive back I the river. But his family were in the way. I work the bank here while they owned the bank.

Sam Schrager: And still owned it at that.

Mahlon Follett: Price. His son was really running it and the bank didn't do much business because people had like the lawyers.

Sam Schrager: Was the only bank.

Mahlon Follett: And no, there was two at that time.

Sam Schrager: The other one got more of the business.

Mahlon Follett: yeah, My father.

Sam Schrager: What did you think of the son in law?

Mahlon Follett: Well, I never really knew him well. I talked to him on the phone.

Sam Schrager: He was not actually here.

Mahlon Follett: I think he was here a time or two, but I don't remember him or what? Start time or the problem was no one. Nobody in the bank liked him at all. They had problems because they have a lot.

Sam Schrager: Well, was there anything in the bank policies at the time that you were working there that was different from the other banks or. no.

Mahlon Follett: No.

Sam Schrager: So it was more of the bad taste they had.

Mahlon Follett: That's true, Yeah. yeah.

Sam Schrager: Did that bank fold before the other ones?

Mahlon Follett: You know, it never did. It never ever fell for them. No. Or was it person or was that in the army. But operator factories.

Sam Schrager: So is that still in running in town.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, of course. They sold out to for security but it ran over it never did close for holiday what was working there. They didn't have much business.

Sam Schrager: What about the moving of the town from old town to to this one? I know that was before your time, but I'm curious about what you heard about what caused that move.

Mahlon Follett: Well, it was the railroad commander. They came in this far and we're in that involved? Yes, in the old town. And whoever owns the land between people up there. I know who I think owned it, but I see the when they made up this history of the country, they claim Negroes. They don't. I don't think you did. But anyway, who owned the name?

well, it's much part the railroad when they were moving stuff right here, but deep over here and stopped moving out. They were. I suppose it's half mile. Wow. We're old. So in order to get the railroad, they had to move.

Sam Schrager: Did they move much of the town from there to here, or did they abandoned most of it?

Mahlon Follett: already know they moved so long that no road it tore out there. You that in wrote for quite a few years here in town about they saw the building tore down and otherwise I don't know how much how many buildings were removed but I can remember as a little kid going in the farm, we used to come in through all town news.

my baptismal building there at that time, people lived out there, you know.

Sam Schrager: People lived in the town, in the old town. And so it was old buildings.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, Yeah. Few people still lived after I had their place without the days.

Sam Schrager: There were no more stores.

Mahlon Follett: There. no, no, no. Not my time.

Sam Schrager: Over.

Mahlon Follett: There. Really? Business out.

Sam Schrager: There. who do you think? The land.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I thought flats did, but I may be wrong. I thought about it. You know, Kenny from right. And B his grandfather, I think he or from I. But I may be wrong as this history they've got out for they say the Rosedale did.

Sam Schrager: Well I.

Mahlon Follett: Hope they don't make sense related. Well they don't want to know they like to keep coming out there so we we have really story.

Sam Schrager: And that's a good point.

Mahlon Follett: It don't necessarily make sense.

Sam Schrager: No it doesn't figure.

Mahlon Follett: And I was I was when I was a kid, I always heard that it was time flat. But you were too much for the land right away. For all all to go out there.

Sam Schrager: As I recall, Vollmer was the one that said that was interesting, held him up. And this was in the early 1930 history. But, you know, they used to say that about Vollmer and Troy, that he tried to hold above and Troy. And and that was part of why they changed the name from Vollmer to Troy, because he was trying to hold them up for for more money.

And the townspeople were very angry about that.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah. I really couldn't say for sure. Always. The first possible ones were were the time.

Sam Schrager: A real bustling town for a while. did you. Do you remember people talking about it? About it being a real center of town? I guess. When? Before the railroad hit Lewiston. Then, as you say, there was all that traffic coming from the Canterbury country to.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, great. Greater. Really? After all, a parade up there from here came in on the railroad, of course, and came by boat place. Otherwise it was all over on or farther and before my time or.

Sam Schrager: I heard a lot of people came wound up coming here because it was the end of the track. The end of the line. And a lot of people also were waiting for the reservation to open up to for a settlement.

Mahlon Follett: I am very I don't know. I don't really know. I love the people you got who wonder how they were able to come here. All right. But was they had some reason.

Sam Schrager: Are there any people that were kind of characters around town when you were.

Mahlon Follett: yeah. They had all of a sudden. Yeah. Was always a few. I guess every town has them.

Sam Schrager: Can you tell me in in in particular because I've heard you see like I read from their real early days, you know, but, but the only guys that I've heard about were, Mike Driscoll to.

Mahlon Follett: Write about him. I think he was kind of a character soap opera character.

Sam Schrager: Or who was the sheriff when when, you were in town. There was still a sheriff, wasn't there?

Mahlon Follett: You mean county sheriff?

Sam Schrager: No, I mean the town marshal. Really?

Mahlon Follett: The. there had been several of my Hickman was Hickman.

Sam Schrager: Yeah.

Mahlon Follett: Well, he was a quite clear character. Very good. He was all right. He was, you know, our neighbor for years. There were automobiles. Come on. We're used to all people. Cars. There was miles go by and later became town marshal. But he was you, right? You'd go on character all along.

Sam Schrager: Well, I think of the character to me is kind of a guy. It's a common ground. It is. It pranks or.

Mahlon Follett: All that fly by by this guy. Heard a lot of stories about Alfred. He was just a big Irishman that had a lot of fun and used to play all kinds of tricks on and guess I don't know, before, you know.

Sam Schrager: My kid used to play tricks on it.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah. Or Dell about it.

Sam Schrager: I there were a lot of people coming in here at harvest time or looking for work to.

Mahlon Follett: yeah.

Sam Schrager: My harvest tramps, they go.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah, hobos. Yeah, yeah. They used to have what they call a jungle around here and be quite a few and.

Sam Schrager: The townspeople.

Mahlon Follett: Took a lot of them on the farm and do the farm work going the days of miners. But often, you know, Man, are these fellows. Some of them were pretty good or no good kinds of people.

Sam Schrager: But the townspeople didn't mind having a jungle right on the edge of town there.

Mahlon Follett: I don't think so.

Sam Schrager: No bother.

Mahlon Follett: No, I don't think so. Of course I was. I was a school that I know it bothered everybody. I remember I rushed into the airport, trash fishing, and used to send me on the back of a manner to get out there and pick up a couple of women. The next day I'd bring them back or go fathers.

Sam Schrager: You really didn't know what you're getting and go.

Mahlon Follett: And I want you to stay over the season.

Sam Schrager: Did you enjoy working out for Thrashing Crew? Did you find that to be, good work or not?

Mahlon Follett: Well, of course. I was pretty young. I liked it. All right. I guess, I don't. I don't remember that. I dislike the project. Anyway.

Sam Schrager: It's quite a big operation. The impression I had.

Mahlon Follett: Was it was, If you look back a little way, I don't what I was so impressed with the time, but I.

Sam Schrager: Mean, I should be getting going. I don't know whether it's, things we haven't haven't hit upon. I hope it seems ti does seem to me that that, the Genesee, the town's awfully important to the to the country, to the people on the farms and having a, you know, for the tree.

Mahlon Follett: Yes. I guess for Yeah. Yeah.

Sam Schrager: It does seem to have changed more than most of the towns and.

Mahlon Follett: I think so it seems like it, it I think it goes downhill faster. I know. Much more so than. Well, try to carry one.

Sam Schrager: Would you say that the turning point would be when it started to decline. We're talking about this at the beginning and I'm just wondering.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I.

Sam Schrager: Know it's hard to say, but it's.

Mahlon Follett: Hard to tell. And it was gradual. Of course I made it out. And no, I know I wouldn't know.

Sam Schrager: And so it's your time before. So maybe you've never really recovered after the Depression.

Mahlon Follett: Well, I'm quite sure I don't think it ever did. It kind of gradually began doing that. Now, when I first go out and then another.

Sam Schrager: Did your business dwindle a lot? yeah.

Mahlon Follett: Yeah. I. I know I can recall three restaurants in town, maybe three or four, and now they can support one, you know, everything down there. Of course, all of them stay very long. Smolts And the other one that kept going would be here for a few months and forward or so down on the side of the dining room.

Sam Schrager: Did you, yourself very seriously consider getting out of the, grocery business and, and and doing something else as the years went on here?

Mahlon Follett: yeah, I thought about it after sold out at one time, I was out of there for a year, bought it back.

Sam Schrager: I guess you must have missed it then.

Mahlon Follett: Well, then, yeah, I guess. After all, you grow up in a place, get used to doing something. It kind of hard to change.