During the early part of fathers and mother's wedded life they had a fire place in their little home which not only furnished the heat for keeping the room warm but also furnished heat for cooking and some times light by which father like president Lincoln, used to read. Mothers first cooking was done in a bake oven a tea kettle and a long handled skillet.
They bought their first stove at the low price of $110.00. A piece had been broken off the hearth or it would have cost more. They sold some cured bacon at 40¢ a pound to help pay for it. This was while they lived at old Paradise.
Some of their first lighting was a bitch or slut which was made with a narrow rag with a button tied in one end. The button end was then placed in a can of melted grease. By lighting the other end the grease was drawn up the burning rag giving off a dim light. However its burning wasn't so sweet a smell.
They next used home made candles followed by the coal oil lamp which we used until the Utah Power brought electricity to our doors. Some times now when our power goes off we have to turn to the coal oil lamp for light. I wonder how we got along with it though at the time we thought it some thing great.
Author long dead