An old recipe for cough syrup was titled Cocklebur Cough Sirup:
“Gather cockleburs as clean as possible. They can be rinsed off by pouring hot water through them. Put burrs in a heavy cloth sack and boil long enough to get the strength out of them. Strain juice several times to be sure there are no stickers in it. Add sugar to make pretty good and sweet and boil down into a syrup. Use for colds and coughs – even whooping cough. It may make you feel a bit feverish at first, but that wears off.”
Mrs. Wendell Taylor
Luray, Kansas
Back in 1955 a call went out from the editors of the then CAPPER’s Weekly asking for readers to send in articles on true pioneers. Hundreds of letters came pouring in from early settlers and their children, many now in their 80s and 90s, and from grandchildren of settlers, all with tales to tell. So many articles were received that a decision was made to create a book, and in 1956, the first My Folks title – My Folks Came in a Covered Wagon – hit the shelves. Nine other books have since been published in the My Folks series, all filled to the brim with true tales from CAPPER’s readers, and we are proud to make those stories available to our growing online community.
