knew that some fam ies took turns plowing and tractor twenty four hours a day. In 1929 and 1930. the Whitakers and thousands were filed with dust. Make of other farmers turned sure Jeremy is in the house she shouted at millions of acres Ed. She fined her steely eyes en father gass and into wheat fields that stretched as she helped close and latch the barn door across the horizon. They made quite a bit se the beginning of wortd Fortunately, Jeremy was play nrnr the vegetable garden and heard Ed War had sent wheat prices to a record het. at him to inside. Just then a car raced down the dirt road The goal was to turn every acre of the southern that was in front of the house. As the car erkad Great Plains into ta a step, a man, woman, and threa small Tho farmers saw little whirtwinds dirt cance across ther fields during "Please. please give us shelter!" the man spe is, but few notced as these whirlwinds gew beued as he Gestured toward the nat thicker and taller each day. More cloud. Just after he spoke, thousands of birds the farmers, who were mostly from importantly. lew overhead. They were screeching in fear of northeastern the wall of dirt behind them. states, did not realize that the lush felds were temporary They had not exaerienced the cycles nearly four hours. The storm whipped tooetrer for Edis parents herdod everyone into the house. of rain and drought that have always ocar red on longer they huddled blowing clouds of dust around them as dry turned remembered with a sinking heart that the into night. The windows rated and the wais in the summer of 1931. shook as the storm forced its way through tiny Ma ons of acres of wheat turned into dry Ks. cracks. The Whitakers had stuffed rags Into the and the Rinds to blow, sometimes for much as one hundred hours strage. The was cracks, but nothing could hold back the teree wird earn ng mulons of tons of on. Seen both couad with fine particles of dust from the dry tam es were choking on the dust and haping fields. People began to wear cloth face masks to protect themselves from the dust in the ak Chidren that they would live through the storm. The Whitakers and the other famly sumed wore the masks when they walked to school. that day, which now is eated Buck Sunday. R Looking out at his family's bare, parched fields Dust Bowl They, along with others who made was the day of the worst "block of the In the sunshine. Ed thought about the last dust storm. People were saying that R had destroyed R through the dust storm. will never forget that ne million acres of but Ed hoped that day others were not as lucky. That day as those storms were history now. some people tried to set home before the storm 0 The Whitakers ate lunch outside on their pene hit, they became lost in the dark dust clouds. table, something the dust had kept them from They suffocated in their cars and trucks. Some doing for years. Aftemand, Ed did some chores animals, their lungs ord soomnchs Goated with outside so he could soak up more sunshine dirt, died in the fields while his parents handled some repors In thelr barn. the middle of the afternoon, he notiaed N As the storms continued unmerefully over the next several years, desperate familes ta that the air temperature had plummeted. abandon their barren fams. Mary people headee chattering nervously in the battered trees nearby. for CaMorria to work in otter farmers' felds. The Ed headed for the farmhouse, he heard brds Whitakers and other families that stayed were determined to support themselves, Then he happened to gance at the horron. eventually they had to ask the govemment for financial hap. His mouth fell open as he watched a huge, Farmers learned some things from the Dust threatening black cloud rap dly moving toward the disaster Today they plow the pralnes In farmhouse. He ran toward the barn scream N. ways that reduce wind erosion. They know more -Dad, Mom! A big storm is coming. You've got to about conserving the soil. They also know that come inside!" the barn door and saw the black storm clouds. they can't control the weather, tut they hope they His mother turned micky and med out are better prepared to face the dry times.