Tribute by Victor
duPont In the early fall of 1960 Erskine called
and introduced himself as the new owner of Old Welbourne,
the farm directly across from ours. I remember thinking to
myself, "what in the world do you see in that old farm?"
Years of misfortune had allowed the old place to become very
run-down and neglected - Old Welbourne had no
curb appeal. But Erskine, with his vision and
attention to research knew what was there with regards to
soils and the other raw ingredients necessary to make a good
productive farm. Many of you know of Erskines
hunting capabilities. I would like to share my observations
on the father and farmer side of this man, and since we
shared a common interest in farming and our children were of
the same age, a lot of time was either spent at Old
Welbourne or at Hastening. Erskines knowledge and love
of agriculture and the land were a huge part of him, and I
cant help but think this made a significant
contribution to his ability to provide wonderful sport for
the fields he led fox hunting. Erskine made a number of contributions to
farming here, and his introduction of no-til
planting really sticks out in my mind. No tillage went
against all conventional methods and the comment around here
by the locals may have been "what was Erskine smoking in
that pipe?" Before long the Extension Service was holding a
field days at Old Welbourne to demonstrate an
unconventional method that today is conventional. Erskine
wasnt afraid to get a little dirt on his hands and he
loved to pick stones, chop wood, and mow either at home, or
at Glenwood Park. Mr. Fred knew what he was doing when he
left that charge to Erskine. Most of us have no concept of
how much time he spent there. The next time youre at
Glenwood, notice how wonderful it looks and think of
Erskine. Our families were back and forth between
the two farms a lot either having coffee or a drink or
something to eat, depending on the time of day. Life at the
Bedfords was never dull, and there was quite a
menagerie, usually dogs, ducks, pigs and goats that you had
to make your way through to the back door. On one
particularly cold morning, I stopped by for a cup of coffee
and coincidentally, Joan was there showing off her brand new
forest green Chevy station wagon with the luggage rack on
the roof. I never could understand why she wanted that rack
when we ordered that car. Her hay bales had ridden over to
Erskines perfectly, on that rack, and the two goats
standing on the roof couldnt have been happier as they
munched on Joans fancy alfalfa hay. It was always fun at Old Welbourne.
Often, after supper on a summer evening, it was fun for
Joanie and Wes to hop on their ponies and go over to see
Bear and Cricket. As time has marched on and Ive had a
chance to listen to my children reminisce about their
childhood, especially the boys. Erskine was their choice of
confidants when the old man was being too tough
on them. Kids always gravitated to him because he made them
feel that he enjoyed being with them and they were
important. Erskine wanted some cattle to graze his
new farm over the winter in 1960 and someone, perhaps here
today, gave him my name and introduced me to one of the
great friendships of my life. Whoever you are or wherever
you are - thank you.