This story was great!! My youngest daughter's MIL is Mennonite, but raised Amish. She still does a lot of things "simple", but she uses an electric sewing machine. She said when she got married it took some getting used to using electrical things, but one thing was easier for sure, and that was an e-sewing machine rather than treadling! When I told her I treadle, she said "Why?" Hahaha!!

Today I would like to have a "maid for all things" just to keep me on task!

Thanks for sharing. :)

too funny....

There's a great quote in a similar article I've been dying to find again (I saw it several years ago), about how sewing machines are Bad For Society, because it gives women too much free time, time that they were using to Become Educated Above Their Station, Plus, the user-serviceablilty of them was giving women Ideas of Mechanical Aptitude, something they surely didn't have, as they were women, not men.

Can you tell that the caps for emphasis of old writing makes me giggle? :D

Also, if 'the action of treadling excited women in an indecent manner', they're either doing it wrong, or need to share the secret with the rest of us!