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| Many British immigrants who came to Canada had no experience working the land. Percy Criddle was no exception; he was not a farmer when he came to Manitoba. He and his sons had to learn how to make the land yield sustenance. The first years were difficult as the Vane boys were still quite young and Percy was inexperienced. Percy's diary records the difficulty of learning to plough, to sow, to hay, and to milk a cow. At first only Edwy was of any help on the farm but as the other boys grew older they began to help with the farm work and things became easier. | ||||||||
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| The size of the Criddle family was one of their major advantages. Most settlers did not bring eight children with them and so did not have a large workforce. The Vane and Criddle children were of immense help in all aspects of farm work. The large work force increased productivity and created larger amounts of leisure time. This extra time allowed the members of the family to pursue their various intellectual and recreational interests. As well, during busy times, when farmers were expected to lend a hand to their neighbours, Percy could always send one or two of his boys and still be able to get his own farm work done with no difficulty. | ||||||||
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