2 Recent Topics from The Radio Program

The Magnificent Coal


Today we offer you a page about coal. We will travel to Wilton and Snow, ND to reminisce about coal and coal mining at the turn of the century.

Matt Sawicki arrived in this country in 1913 as a penniless immigrant. “Believe in God and God will help” he prayed.

Arriving from Ukraine, the immigrants were first taken to Mannhaven, north of Bismarck.They were not impressed with Mannhaven, and moved to Wilton to work on the railroad and to file on homesteads.

Wilton had a bonus for the new homesteaders – coal. Coal to heat their homes. Coal to cook their meals. Wait – there is one more benefit – coal mining offered a salary. Mrs. Anna Solodiuk whose husband worked in the mines 18 years said, We were not as poor as the Ukrainian homesteaders in Belfield- the Wilton men worked for a salary in the coal mines.

To learn about coal mining in Belfield and Billings County, we went to Hawks Point to talk to Nick Symionow, the son of homesteader, Andrew Symionow. Andrew homesteaded in Sec. 8 – SE1/4 in 143-98 in what was known as Snow North Dakota. Nick recalled that right after harvest, farmers harvested coal. Imagine if they hadn’t uncovered coal, what would they burn to create heat for cooking and baking and heat to warm up the house. In Ukraine, trees and brush were plentiful and they scrounged in tree lots for wood fuel. It was plentiful.

According to Nick, coal was plentiful on North Dakota prairie. It was almost on the surface. Using a scrapper, they removed whatever soil covered the coal. If the coal vein was solid, they dynamited the coal by drilling holes in the coal and inserting dynamite. After everyone was a distance away, they lit the fuse. The explosion produced a lot of coal in sizes 2 ft by 1 foot or bigger. These blocks of coal were then loaded on to the wagon, sometimes in 2 or three layers. At sunset or later, the wagons formed a procession and began the trek home. Hungry, their faces covered with coal dust, these miners were welcomed home by the children. They helped Dad unhitch the horses, watered them, led them into the barn and tied them to a manger filled with hay. With plenty of hot water heated on the coal-burning stove, the miner washed the coal dust off his face and hands and proceeded to the supper table. That night as he knelt to say his prayer, he thanked God for his goodness.

The Cat – Veselka


Today we will talk about the habits of cats and about one certain cat.

The cat is a friend to children and adults. According to one cat writer, cats are the smartest of all tame animals. They make faithful friendly companions.

Cats also help man. They kill rats and mice and they can be trained to leave birds alone. Some of the cats’ peculiar characteristics are their eyes. They see better in dim light than a person can. Cats have a keen smell and hearing. They purr when they are happy and hiss or growl when angry. Cats usually arch their backs when they meet an enemy or are frightened. When their fur stands on end and their tail puffs are symbols of anger.

Cats are clever hunters.They can creep up on an enemy swiftly and quietly on thick padded paws. They can also wait patiently for an unsuspecting animal to come closer and they can spring upon it. Their claws also allow them to climb trees to search for food.

Cats live happily either in the city or country. However, no matter where they live

They need someone to care for them. They need a place to live.

Most cats do not like a bath but they are among the cleanest of animals. At least once a day, the cat licks a paw and washes his face and head with a wet paw.

Cats eat many kinds of food – chopped liver, heart, kidneys. Most cats like milk and cream. They need fresh water and a place to exercise their claws. A piece of wood wrapped in soft carpet makes a good scratching post. The cats’ eyes are blue, hazel, brown, green even orange. The iris, the colored part of the eye is wide during the night and just a slit during the day.

Cats have always been part of our lives. They generally live outdoors or in the barn. While children, we had a huge domestic short hair cat. He liked to spend time outdoors sitting on the windowsill and looking indoors. That was the window which did not receive a storm window in winter. I remember when he died. We kids, conducted the funeral, dug the grave, made a cross to mark the grave. I think we sang vichaya pamiat – eternal memory. That could be the reason we remember him.

At the ranch, we used to cat sit Fr. Bobersky’s cat when he went out of town. I can’t remember the cat’s name. I remember she liked to sharpen her claws by scratching on the couch causing snags. But that was o.k. She was Father’s cat, his pet. She did whatever she wanted,

Out of the clear blue sky, a cat appeared at the cabin on the Gorham farm this past summer. That’s what Bill says. The cat is kind of a miracle cat. He appeared at the end of a rainbow – gold in color with white paws. The date of his coming to the cabin was May 8th, the fifth anniversary of Bev’s departure. Is he a gift from Beverly?

This cat really does not have a proper name. I’ve heard him called kitka but that’s a feminine name. The masculine for Cat is Kit – somehow that name doesn’t flow. The way this cat arrived at the farm where Beverly spent the first 10 years of her life is a miracle. Perhaps “rainbow” or the Ukrainian translation “veselka” is apppriate for this resident. Give us some more hints, Bev.