IMH 74:4 344

"Chronicles of Upper Burnet" (1)

Friday November 12th.

The day was put in or the greater part of it in extending the kitchen. The end was sawed out another sill connected
with the old one by some short pieces three feet long, then it was sided up as before and a roof sloping to the
north and consisting of one course of shaved oak shingles and one course clapboards was put on. It was not
finished to-day. While Father and Alvin were doing this I swept off the main floor of the cow-barn and about
ten o'clock went to gathering corn gathered about 5 bushels for the hogs before dinner, and finished up the
"crooked field" after dinner. I quit awhile before sundown and Alvin and I hauled up three loads of the
buckwheat and put it on the floor I had swept. The day was cold raw and generally clear

Teaching Notes: Buckwheat is not a wheat at all  and has and interesting shape. Here is a link that shows the shape.
It looks like a small beech nut. To remove it from it's hull, William Gregory is getting ready to "thrash" the vines
which will dislodge the grain from the hulls. Two expressions come from this activity. One is thrashing. If at
that time you were going to take a "thrashing," you were going to be beaten. The other is the expression,
"separate the wheat fromt he chaff." This means to separate the good or significant from the bad or insignificant.