Mrs. Beat, as she is well known, was born In Newbridge, St. Mary's Bay. At age 20 she married and moved to St. Joseph's. She raised 10 children and has some wonderful memories of the good old days.

THE GOOD OLD DAYS

I was born in Newbridge, St. Mary's Bay in 1917. My parents were Thomas and Josephine Critch. My mother was Josephine Neville from Red Island, Placentia Bay and my father was Thomas Critch, formerly from the Gaskiers, St. Mary's Bay.

I had three sisters and two brothers. I was the third oldest. When I was three years old, I remember getting an apple in my stocking for Christmas. We would go sleighing in the wintertime on a homemade sleigh. In summer we would be down on the beach catching connors.

When I was eight years old I went to a one room school in Newbridge. I walked to school with my sisters and cousins. In our school we had a potbelly stove. We carried our wood to school under our arm. For our lunch we had a slice of bread and jam or molasses. Nothing to drink. We went to school at 8:30 in the morning and came home at 3:30. In our classroom we had 10 or 12 students from Grade one to Grade eleven. We had a slate to write on and when we wanted to erase something we would do it with the heel of our hand.

We would walk to Mass on Sunday morning. I was Christened by Father St. John. Instructions for Confession and Communion were done by the teacher in school, and Confirmation by the Priest in the Church. When I came home from school in the evening I would have to help to make hay and bring in the wood. Dad worked away from home while Mom worked at the neighbours houses. I had to look after the children and get supper. I remember Mom coming to the school for me when she wanted me to do chores at home.

Myself and my friend Betty used to walk to O'Donnell's on Sunday afternoon to visit friends there. Easter Monday night we would have a dance in the hall. We would dance to accordian music till 12 o'clock and then we would all walk home. The next big "time" was Lady Day on August 15. We would have a parish garden party. This was also a Holy Day of Obligation. We would dress in our Sunday best to go to the garden party.