Whoa whoa, I've seen a lot of Westerns, and you could totally get away with a lot of cool stuff back then. Isn't that why Westworld was so popular?
In a bit more serious vein, I was researching my great grandfather recently for a little project, and in the 1935 census he had taken on two borders. They were both teachers, and they didn't have to pay taxes! I was jealous. But then it said they made $496 that year, so it was a bit of a wash.