Bill and Marjorie Mentzer are two of the friendliest folks you’ll find in Iola. They greet everyone with smile and salutation and seldom turn down a chance to help with church and community affairs.
Much of Bill’s amicable nature come from his parent’s direction, growing up on a farm when all hands were on deck each day.
Son Craig has the same approach, farming what Bill and his dad once did.
A story Bill wrote for the current issue of Farm and Ranch Living about his fascination with threshing machines gives ample evidence of his dedication at a young age — and the making of the man we know today.
To paraphrase:
When he was 10, Bill was offered a job as water boy by a fellow who owned a threshing machine. Then, owners of the mechanical devices that separated grain from plant traveled about the country at harvest.
The job paid 25 cents a day, and the only hitch was his parents’ approval. His mother didn’t like the idea of young Bill hanging around older men, but when he convinced dad, pointing out he could buy his own clothes and firecrackers from his wages, they teamed up on mom. A provision of hers was he keep moving so he wouldn’t hear foul language coming from the harvest hands.
He washed out some vinegar jars and wrapped them in burlap, then pumped them full of cool well water.
He was intrigued by the process of men throwing bundles of wheat onto wagons. Shouts of “water boy!” broke his concentration.
At noon the workers sat down to a bountiful meal prepared by farm wives, consisting of platters heaped high with fried chicken, mashed potatoes, tomatoes, fruit and enough pies to make the rounds twice.
By harvest’s end, Bill admitted to being “older, richer and better educated.” His fingers also were burned from firecrackers going off too quickly and he had had his mouth washed out with soap several times by his mother.
The experience was well worth the effort, and “to this day,” Bill concluded, “I can still hear that far-off yell, ‘Hey, water boy!’”
