EARLY DELIVERY
By Ronald A. Donovan
Copyright © 2000 by Ronald A. Donovan
Ronald A. Donovan at Smashwords
This novel is a work of fiction. The characters, names, incidents, dialogue and plot are the products of the author's imagination or are used factiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, institutions, or events is purely coincidental.
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CONTENTS
I was not worth much in the first place; at least that's what my Grandmam said. She said I was that small and scrawny that they shoulda sent me back but the stork, who seems to have made an early delivery, never left a return address. I grew up believin' that I was a no-count, useless person. It was for me then, an upward fight.
My Da came from over in Newfoundland. I only knew as I was growin' up that it was somewhere northwest of the great Island of Cape Breton on which we lived. We used to be told that all the riff raff from Newfie came to Cape Breton.
He was plannin' on goin' further than Cape Breton but while he waited for the train in North Sydney he had a glass or two and it turned into more than two. He woke up next mornin' on the bench at the train station. A cop poked him awake and asked him what his business was there. He mumbled about a train to Halifax and the cop told him to move on, the train was already gone. Did he have a ticket; he should change it for the next train? Da reached in his pocket and there was no ticket and no money. The cop told him to move on. He'd have to find another place to sleep. His head hurt and to hear him tell it, he was a pitiful sight to behold. He sat on the edge of the sidewalk outside the station and tried to see what was goin' on around him. He told us later his eyes weren't seein' anything but red.
He finally got to his feet and crawled down the street to the first pub. He went in and asked for a chance to earn money for a drink and train ticket. The bartender put him to work sweepin' and moppin' the place out. He lasted about an hour when the hangover got to him. He pleaded for a drink and the barkeeper gave him a draft beer. That made him work for three more hours and then he was paid off. He immediately sat down and spent the earnin's on draft. In the course of the late afternoon he met up with a man who was drivin' down to New Waterford. That's where he ended up. He was broke, dirty, thirsty, and needin' a place to sleep. The friend gave him a bed for the night. He told him they lived down by the shacks by sixteen. Da didn't know what sixteen was but he was ready for any kind of bed and asked no questions.
In two months he went through three jobs, gallons of draft beer, precious little food and two or three different dirty rooms in roomin' houses, as he would get kicked out one after the other. That was my Da.
In the course of the next eight months he met my mother. They got married, with some pressure from her parents, and in five months, I was delivered to them by the stork. They always said I was an early delivery but didn't explain what that meant. I don't know if I'm glad they kept me or if I wish they'd sent me back somehow. It was a terrible life, but I survived along with my two brothers. My little sister didn't. The stork brought her in December and in February Mam woke up and went to her pram, but she wasn't movin'. She called to Da and he cum and took his darlin' little Mary in his arms and kissed and hugged her. It was no good. He passed her back to Mam and went out to call the doctor. In a while the doctor came, but he just wrapped her in a blanket, covered her head and all, and took her off to the hospital. Da told us to stay in bed till he got back and he and Mam went off trailin' the doctor. Soon as they left, we were up and lookin' out the window. There was frost on the glass so thick you could scrape for hours and still not see out. I, bein' the oldest, tried to light a fire in the stove. It was an old cook stove and didn't wanna light. I went and got the kerosene can and with a mighty explosion, that managed to burn my eyebrows and a bit o' me hair, the thing caught fire and in a little while we was warm. I put the kerosene can away so's Da wouldn't know I'd done what he told me never to do. I learned in the experience that he was probably right when he told me not to do it as I saw I coulda burnt meself and the whole house. I did it anyway and we had a good hot fire burnin' and I and the little guys was soon happy in a warmer house. I thought to meself, "why shouldn't I get a fire goin' the best way I knew how? He did it all the time so why couldn't I?"
A while later me Mam come on home but me Da was missin'. Mam mentioned that he was probably gone fer more of the devil's drink. We knew what she meant as we'd seen enough to sickin' us fer life. It didn't matter what Da went out to do, if he had money he ended up not doin' it but he ended up with the devil's drink. It was fierce stuff and made him rave on a lot but never seemed to make him grow strong enough to work and buy groceries fer the family. Da would come home singin' and us kids would see it all as our house was only one room. He would grab me Mam and tell her she was the best and he'd start removin' her clothes. Mam would say, "Harry, now stop it the kids are watchin. Don't be doin' that foolishness now." That would just make Da all the more anxious. "So yer refusin' me my husbandly rights are ya woman. Well ya know damn well the priest will confirm that yer not to hold me back from me rights."
I knew from past experience that Da would have his rights. Since we only had one room there was not a place private, so he'd pull her dress up and her underpants down and he'd unzipper his privates and they'd plunge around the bed. Sometimes I wanted to clobber him over the head but it appeared once they got started my Mam was happy with him and they seemed to have a good wrestle or whatever. It didn't usually last long and soon Da would jump up and head fer the outhouse and mom would redress herself and start cookin' or whatever the job was she had been doin' before my father demanded his rights. I was sure hopin' that I would not have to demand my rights from a wife anyway soon. It looked like a disgustin' ceremony and I was not sure I wanted any part of it.
John Perkins down the way told me that when a woman and man did that it was the means of havin' more kids. I knew me Mam and Da didn't need more kids and besides I knew that John was confused. I knew fer sure, cause Mam had told me babies come from the stork. Though of course I'd never seen a stork or a delivery by a stork. I believed me Mam fer sure and that settled it.
Anyway the night I'm speakin' of, the night that me little sister Mary was taken away by the doctor, me Da didn't make it home. It was not until the next mornin' he staggered in and began this God awful blubberin'. I didn't know me Da could blubber that way. When he hit us and we cried he'd accuse us of blubberin', but ya never heard such goin' on as was that mornin'. He was moanin' about little Mary, his princess. She was taken from him and he'd never see her again. I didn't believe that because me Mam had told us that God had taken her to Heaven and one day we'd see her agin. However, I finally figgered that me Da was not makin' it to Heaven so that's why he was carryin' on about losin' Mary ferever. I wondered if damnin' the priest and demandin' his rights from me Mam would damn him to hell. I knew the priest had big powers. He lived in that big house by the church, drove a big fancy Chrysler car and dressed in fine black clothes, although I surely felt bad fer him that he had to wear them big black dresses. It must be hard on a man to walk about in skirts. But seein' how powerful they was I was sure if me Da damned them to hell they'd know it and they'd see that he got his dues. His dues I was sure was hell. I figured that was exactly what was happin' to me Da. He knew he was bound fer the fires of hell and would never see baby Mary agin.
That was when I made up me mind that I would stay friendly with the priest and do what was expected of me and not be rushin' to demand me rights. John had told me, and I figured he was two years older than me and knew what he was talkin' about a bit. He told me that it was a great thing to demand yer rights. He said there was a girl of about fourteen that he knew and he heard that she was lettin' some of the guys have their rights. He assured me when I said I wasn't interested that it was me age. I was too young to demand me rights. He said he was goin' to check this Flossie girl out and see if he could get his rights from her. I made up me mind then and there that I was goin' to forgoe me rights so that I'd get one day into Heaven's doors and see our baby Mary again.
Life went on with not much excitin' happenin'. Oh me Mam told us that we'd expect a visit from the stork shortly after Christmas. I'm not sure how she got this message but when I talked to John Perkins he assured me it had to do with the rights. I wanted to hear no more of that so I began to sit up on the steps and see if I could see a stork.
I heard that Mrs. Woodley next door was plannin' on hearin' from the stork any day. At least I heard her tell me Mam that it was almost time fer her delivery. I got up early every mornin' and I watched the house. Surely the stork would be large and I'd see him fer sure.
Nothin' happened until one afternoon we saw the doctor arrive in his old car. He carried a bag in the house and stayed fer some time. Me Mam and some of the other neighbour ladies talked about a hard delivery. I wanted to tell them they was all wrong. There was no delivery because I'd seen no stork, but I kept me peace. I figured I wasn't up on all these details, and I figured that John Perkins was onto somethin' with them rights. I'd just wait fer a while and see what was happenin.
Any minute now the stork would fly in with a baby and I'd see it and then I could tell John Perkins he was all wrong with his rights idea. I knew that I'd never have to mess with that carryin' on and I could tell me Mam that she didn't have to put up with that foolishness any more as the stork was lookin' after everythin'.
I was wrong. The stork never came. The doctor left still carryin' his little bag. Later me Mam said that the lady next door had a wee baby girl. It was a hard delivery but everything was well and the baby had a strong set of lungs. Now don't be thinkin' that I was dumb enough to ask a question here. I didn't know what these strong lungs was but I wasn't about to ask a dumb question either so I kept me mouth shut and spent my time tryin' to learn how the stork got there without me seein' it.
I was still workin' on the stork. I know there must be some truth to it as me Mam told me about it. However, I was wonderin' how the stork and me Da's rights fit together. I'd have to talk more to me friend, John.
It was gettin' warm after a long, hard winter. It was pretty cold in our little shack. We just moved there before last Christmas. We used to live down by number sixteen. That was the name of the coal mine and it was a pretty bad spot. It was hardly safe fer us to play outside in the evenin'. There was drinkin' and fightin' and all kinda stuff goin' on. They had stills there where they made home brew. I knew two or three guys whose fathers had these here stills. They would have them set up in the sheds behind the house. You could smell them real strong. I think that's how they got caught by the Mounties. They would smell that strong that the whole neighbourhood smelled of home brew. Gary, me cousin, told as how his Da sold the stuff. People would come in the yard at night with no light showin' anywhere. They'd make a run fer the house in pitch dark and tap on the door. Then they'd yell out "Gimme three, or gimme four," and the door would open quick like and money would be passed in and bottles passed out. I knew it was wrong but it seemed everyone did it. Gary said our Aunt Bess would keep a supply in her house and serve it to her customers before she gave them whatever service it was she provided. That was somethin' else I don't even wanta talk about. I never could figure out what it was that Aunt Bess sold besides home brew. I had a lotta stuff to learn.
The house was the worst you could find. When it rained the road by our house turned into a dirty water drain. It was so bad that our house would almost float. We could keep nothin' dry. Worse was the neighbourhood and Mam determined that it was time we found a better place. We looked and found another house and again it could be called by the name of shack and still be stretchin' it. It was bad. We had mud floors and the walls were covered with some kinda cardboard, probably beer boxes. There were windows but mosta the glass was broke so there was cardboard on the windows too. We got it fer cheap rent but it was a mess. It was just the one room as I've already said. We had to all live together and there was no way to be private. The best we could do is not take too many clothes off. There were lots of creepy crawlin' things and we would often be scratchin' and sometimes even makin' ourselves bleed as the blasted critters bit and scratched. The toilet was in the backyard and it stunk so bad that I hated to use it and only did when I had to do the act sittin' down. Otherwise, I peed against the back wall of the outhouse as the smell was not so strong there.
We carried our water from next door. On Saturday night Mam would make us go one at a time into a part that she screened off and we had to remove our clothes and wash in a basin of cold water. She would take all our clothes and wash them. Then we'd be in a pair of drawers each to sleep while our clothes hung out to dry. Yer sayin' why didn't ya put on a change of clothes. That answer is fairly simple. We didn't have any other clothes.
Sometimes when there was a bit of money we'd go see the Sisters who had used clothes and we'd buy some clothes. It was only a few cents but we couldn't do it often as we didn't have those few cents. One day we went down to the Sally and an officer, I think he was a Captain, gave us a bag of used clothes with some stuff in it that would work fer us. It was the best dressed we'd been fer a long time. I thought we had things goin' good then, but the Captain told us he would record our names and we could not come back fer more clothes only once every two months. There went my dreams of bein' a well dressed b'y. I had ideas a walkin' up to John Perkins and tellin' him me rich uncle had left me lots of money. I guess we had to be thankful for some clothes from the Sally every two months. It was more than the Sisters could do.
Anyway, the end of school was comin'. We would be free the last part of June and would be able to do anything we wanted fer the summer months. Ma said she wanted we should try to gather up a supply of wood and pile it in the backyard so we would have free heat fer the winter. We had a coal bin out back too but the colliery coal truck charged three prices and me Ma never had one price so it was not often we could get enough coal fer the stove. On the other hand, it didn't matter how much we burned in that stove it didn't keep the house warm as the wind just whistled through the cracks and through the broken windows. In the winter the snow would often blow in. At least the floor got harder when the mud froze in the cold weather. It was indeed a cold little shack.
In April my Da got another job. He came home so happy and told us we'd soon be on easy street. He had a job workin' fer the car dealer. He was to wash all the cars every day, clean up the yard and make things look good fer people shoppin' fer a car. He was happy and ready to start lookin' fer a better place to live. My Mam didn't get too excited. I wondered what was wrong. She'd yelled at my father every day that he should get a job and now he had one and she was not very happy. She knew somethin' we didn't know.
It lasted fer a week. Saturday came and Mam reminded me Da twas pay day and she hoped he'd come home with the pay envelope so they could go and buy some food. He was to get off at noon and bring home his pay. Mam made us a bowl of soup at noon and we had a bit of bread so we feasted and we could tell that Mam was excited, as she kept lookin' out for me Da to come. He didn't.
At first he could of been late when one o'clock came, but by three o'clock Mam knew that he wasn't gonna come home with the pay. Finally it was gettin' dark and we knew that all the stores would be closed when he came rollin' in. He had been at the devil's drink and we weren't uncertain about that. He smelled of the liquor and he was loud. This time when he tried to take his rights from me Mam she threatened to hit him with the skillet. We had never seen Mam act like this before and we were more than a little frightened. Da was surprised and made a feeble effort to calm her but she stood back with the skillet in the air and told him he'd best lay back or he'd lay on the floor. He backed down.
"Now Harry, ‘tis payday and ya were supposed to bring home the pay so this bunch could have some food. Now shut your dirty mouth and make with some money."
Da stood back in fright as she spoke so rough to him. It was a new way she had a talkin' and we didn't know what to think, nor did Da. "Aw Mary, don't be that way. Ya know I brought ya some money. I used a wee bit at the tavern but I brought some to you." As he was talkin' like a blitherin' idiot he was reachin' in his pocket. As he turned each pocket out there was no sign of money and I could see Mam raise the skillet higher. I knew she would bring it down over his head any minute. Finally I breathed as Da pulled out some money from his back pocket.
"Ya drinken bum ya call that payday money. There's two dollars and forty-five cents here. Does that mean ya poured all the rest of it down ya gillet?"
Mam sagged and fell into the chair in tears, throwin' the wee bit a money on the table. She began to cry. Now I never heard me mother cry before, not even when baby Mary had made her trip to Heaven. This was a new thing and not a nice one fer us to behold.
"Twenty-five dollars is what ya were supposed to be paid and ya bring home two dollars and forty-five cents. Aww what's the use of talkin' to ya. Ya spent it all on that damn lousy draft beer and what is there fer yer brood? Nothin'! Nothin'! What can I buy with two dollars and forty-five cents. Tell me man what good is that?"
"Aw Mary, fergive me. The next time I get a job I'll bring all the money home. I swear off the draft. I don't need it any more."
"Next time you get a job? Aww Harry, don't tell me ya lost the job already. You've worked one rotten week and ya lost yer job. What's the use? We'll never have anythin'. I'll have to go to the Sisters and see if I can get a grocery order. I already owe me Aunt Black Bess ten dollars and promised I'd get it to her this day. Now what do I tell her?"
"I was so weak this mornin' that I asked the boss fer me pay early and he paid me off at ten o'clock and told me he wouldn't need my services any more. I was so desperate I took the money and spent the rest of the day at the tavern tryin' to make meself feel a little better to come home and face ya. I knew you'd ream me out proper fer losin' me job, but it was no fault of me own. He just up and told me the job was finished."
That is the way our life went. Just when it looked like our ship had come in the dirty devil's drink stole the boat from us. It had happened again. Mam and Da raved at each other until he fell asleep still in his dirty work clothes.
Did I tell ya too that our houses were close to each other? I mean they was so close that ya couldn't pass a fart without the neighbour knowin'. The yards were not divided like they were in the fancy houses in the other parts of town. The garbage and stuff just ran from yard to yard. When Mam made me go out in spring to clean up the garbage in the backyard I usually found that the stuff was from the neighbours instead of our own. Not as it mattered as we all threw the same useless stuff away.
My Da never seemed to get any better. That time he had a good job at the car lot and it only lasted a week was the last job fer sometime. I mean come June there was still no job. We managed to live by collectin' welfare which was not a hell of a lot. Mam said it wasn't and I'm still fer believin' me Mam fer most things all though I'm still havin' problems with the story on the stork. I'm thinkin' that John Perkins is onto somethin' that's got a bit of truth in it. I know fer a fact that this takin' rights has somethin' to do with the whole process. I'm still not into findin' out although I'm gonna try to get John Perkins to tell me the ins and outs of his visit with Flossie. Of course I can never be sure that John is tellin' the truth or not. He makes up so many damn stories ya have trouble believin' him.
Mam took me and me brothers Andy and Harry with her when she went to get extra clothes. She said it was fer checkin' size but I'm thinkin' we was such a poor lot that she was hopin' to raise some sympathy by takin' us along fer show. I know we was about as poor and hungry lookin' as three boys could be.
We went first to the Sisters who said that they were not gettin' much used clothes in the parish collection. She said it was mainly that the Salvation Army were puttin' on a lot of pressure and pickin' up truckloads of clothes. That was fine with me Mam as she was plannin' on the Sally next and would check this thing out better fer herself.
We got some pretty good stuff at the Sisters but Mam was certainly not goin' to waste the trip so she dragged us over to the Sally. It was there we had to go to the Captain's house. He seemed to have his office in his house. He checked and reminded us that it had not been two months since we got a big order but me Mam carried on in such a way that she seemed to win his sympathy.
"Sure Captain and look at these three wee ones. They have to play and the clothes don't last them long, and then too they are growin'. I know with the food situation it's precious little they grow but its enough that the clothes don't fit them fer long. Which reminds me, I hear from some of me friends that there's extra food available fer families on the welfare. Ya know how precious little we get from welfare and we have to pay the rent with it as well as everything else. I managed to get a bit a coal sometimes but there's little left fer that. Come on Captain, could ya help us with a bit of groceries fer the household this month?"
"Well Mrs. Thorn there is not a lot of funds available. I would think that the Sisters could do more for you as you support the Roman Catholic church when you have money. I am sure they are anxious to help their own. Why not try the Sisters again?"
"Oh Captain, we tried the Sisters but they claim there's too much call fer them to give and their funds is as dry as their religion. I'm thinkin' that the boys here should be goin' to the Sally Sunday school fer their religious trainin'. They goes now to the regular school as I'd no uniforms to send them to the parish school. So now I'm thinkin' if I can get them cleaned up in nice fresh clothes and feed them some good breakfast I could send them off Sunday afternoon fer the Sally Sunday school. Would that maybe be good fer them?"
The Captain kinda looked away from her and I thought he was a chokin' but then I thought too it might be laughin' that was botherin' him. I wondered why he'd laugh at me Ma's offer to put us in his Sunday School.
"Mrs. Thorn, if you are a Catholic I would not be encouragin' you to leave your church. Of course we welcome anyone at the Army but we do not give only to our own. You will receive as much as we are able to give whatever your religion. So now your choice of church and Sunday School is completely up to your individual wish."
Mam came away with an order of coal and a paper that gave her the right to pick up some groceries at Gaffin's supermarket. Me Mam was happy about that as she found the prices better with the Gaffin's store and she could sure get more fer her money there. We left the Sally with me Mam assurin' the good Captain that we would be along to Sunday school on Sunday afternoon. We headed then up across the Plummer Avenue to the coal yard. She presented her order and arranged to receive her coal the next mornin'. From there we went on to Gaffin's store and got a cart and bought as many groceries as our ten-dollar chit would allow. Knowin' me Mam we got more value than most shoppers. She was able to find everythin' that was on sale or even some stuff that she bargained fer. We would surely eat good this week and it would be a week before the welfare came so we was in good shape. This is thanks to me Mam as me Da was not up to goin' fer extra help. He was better at tryin' to get a few cents from me Mam fer the devil's drink. She was hard on him these days though and there was no money passed his hands from her.
As we were approachin' home with our carriage filled with groceries and young Andy sittin' surrounded by groceries and Harry and me walkin' on beside and whinin' that we was tired walkin' we noticed that there was a lot of noise and smoke comin' from the south end of town where we lived. Mam began to hurry us more as the smoke got thicker. We were still two blocks from our house when we was blocked from goin' further by a big fireman. He told us that there was a fire that was burnin' some of the shacks and we would have to wait till things was under control. Me Mam went wild and said she lived there and was it her house. The fireman wouldn't or couldn't tell us anythin' so we fussed to go home. Finally, me Mam was desperate as she steered us in the opposite way and then out of site of the fireman she found a path that would lead us home. The smoke was heavy and it was comin' from the way of our house. We got a little closer before we was stopped again, but this time it was by the mob of people bein' pushed back from the fire.
"Oh my God, it's our house! I'm sure of it. Oh Mrs. Brown, can ye tell me is it our house which is burnin'?"
Mrs. Brown looked with a sympathetic sorry look and answered, "It's many houses and I'm sure Mrs. Thorn, yers is one of them. When they pushed us back it was my house and the two next to yers that were flamin' and I'm sure yers was smokin' and smolderin'. It's likely that yers is in the inferno now. And there's naught we can do as they've drivin' us back fer fear of our lives. Have ye all the children with ya? Ah yes, there's the wee one in the carriage and the two hangin' onto ya. It's glad ya should be that at least ya have your younguns with you. Mrs. Woodley was screamin' that her wee baby was in the house as it was burnin'. The firemen were tryin' to rescue it but there was little hope with all the smoke. Sure it was so young too."
When the smoke settled the light of day had gone too and we soon found to our great sorrow that our house was in ruins. It was sure that nothin' was saved. All we had the clothes we'd collected from the Sisters, the groceries from the Sally and the coal comin' tomorrow to a yard with no house. It was pretty desperate that we were. I heard the firemen say that there were six houses totally destroyed and many more damaged by the fire. My Da missed the excitement. He went that day on a garbage truck as a helper and when he got paid fer the day's work ya know where he went to spend his money. He was in the tavern after the devil's drink and never moved till the money was gone and both the fires, the one in his head and the one in our house, was out. When he came by our home he was upset and got mighty sober. We were not to be found as the Sally Captain came along and said they was openin' the basement of their buildin' fer us to come and sleep. We went with him with our groceries and clothes and settled in the big hall of the buildin' next to his house. Some ladies came in and helped us settle. They found some cots and some mattresses so we had a place to sleep. One of the ladies managed to take the groceries from me Ma, although she put up a fierce fight. She only wanted to cook the things that we could eat but me Mam liked to control the stuff she owned and it took some fight fer her to give up her hard-earned groceries. She had us hide the clothes under the cots and we managed to have our own corner and a place to sit until we got some food.
By now there were three families in the room. My Mam said that she heard the Woodley's went with relatives and the ones whose houses were not burned, only damaged with smoke, were with the Sisters. They would likely get into their own houses in a day or two. I didn't know what we was gonna do. Our house was just a pile of black sticks and lotsa smoke. I figured we needed another house and how were we gonna find that with no money and nothin' to carry with us. Me Mam told me to stop worryin'. She said I was worse than an old man fer me worryin'. She said she wished that me Da would show some concern. She didn't even know where he was but figured the tavern would be the first place to look.
We had some supper and Mam made the three of us settle on our beds fer the night. Just as I was ready to drop off to sleep I heard the Captain's voice. I listened up. He said "Now Mrs. Thorn, I think maybe we should go and look for your husband. I am sure he is very worried about you."
"Worried is it? I believe he has himself worried right into the Pit Head Tavern with a draft in his hands. That's the kinda worryin' he does. I've about had it with his good fer nothin' ways of drinkin' and idilin'."
"I'm sure that there is cause for you to be angry with him Mrs. Thorn, but I'm sure if he has heard about the fire he will be concerned. Tell you what, I have my car out here, let's you and I go and look for him. Mrs. Brown, who is here volunteering, will be happy to keep an eye on your two youngest and there's no reason why we can't take young Sam with us. He doesn't look very ready to go to sleep."
I was outa my wee bed as soon as he spoke and pulled on my trousers and shirt and was ready to go with he and my Ma. I never got to ride in a car only once in me life and that was a police car and I don't even wanna talk about that. It's enough to say that I learned an important lesson that day and if you wanta know more you'll hafta ask someone else. This was gonna be an experience. I was ready.
"Are ya sure this Mrs. Brown will keep an eye on me two boys? I'm not good at leavin' them with just anyone."
With some assurance Mam finally agreed and we was off with the Captain. His car was nice and big and I had a whole back seat to meself as we drove over to our part of town.
We drove first to the burnt house. The firemen were still there pourin' water and tryin' to find what they called hot spots. They said they was makin' sure that it would not start again. And there was me Da standin' lookin' forlorn and lost. He saw us quick like as we got outta the Captain's car.
"Mary! Where the hell have ya been? I been askin' all over and no one knew where ya went."
"If you'd been here with some care fer yer family you'd know where I went. The Sally here gave us a warm place to stay and it's him that brought me here to find ya."
"Mary, ye know I been workin' all day and when I cum home this is the sight that meets my eyes. I been that worried that I thought ya mighta been inside."
"Harry, if ya been workin' just show me the money ya earned and I'll be the first to believe in ya."
"Mary, why do ya carry on so? I been a worried man and I been searchin' everywhere fer ya."
"The only place ya been searchin' is in the bloody tavern. I can smell it on ya along with the dirt of ye. Now show me the money ya earned today and I'll be beggin' yer pardon."
Me Da went through his usual and started to diggin' in his pockets. He finally produced a dollar's worth a change. That was it. It came out then he'd collected his pay and stopped at the Pit Head fer a spot of drink and got delayed. It seems he just got at the house a few minutes before we got there with the Captain.
"So it's no different than any other time. I suppose in that Pit Head ya couldn't hear the fire whistle and all the noise nor smell the smoke of this fire. Ya sat there with yer good fer nothin' friends and swilled that damn draft until yer money was about gone. Harry yer no good and ye never will be. The only thing ya love is that devil's drink. I'll have no more to do with ya thank ye very much."
The Captain quieted me Mam a bit and said that because there were women and kids at the Sally basement they would have to find him a different place and the Captain took him up to the Odd Fellows who were findin' shelter fer some o' the men. Me Da was not happy but it was the best he could have so we left him there.
It was a rough time losin' our house and me Mam not lettin' me Da have anything to do with us. On her own she worked with the Sally Captain and got us a place to live. Would ya believe it had a real floor with boards and a piece of coverin' on most of it? The Captain said that the Magistrate's brother, Mr. Hinchey, owned a bunch of houses and he was ready to rent this one to us fer ten dollars a month. The Captain said the Army would pay the first month's rent. He called Sydney and the Sally there sent out a supply o' furniture until we had three beds. There was a livin' room, a kitchen, two bedrooms and a toilet in a little room in the house. There was water that come through a tap in the kitchen. It was better than any thing we'd ever had and me Mam seemed pleased. I got to have me own bed in the corner of the livin' room and the two little brothers had their bed in the other bedroom. Mam had her bed in her bedroom. She was not havin' Da live there and declared it was all over. I was not sure about me Da's rights and especially when he reminded her that the Priest demanded that she must give him his rights.
"Harry, the Priest be damned. It was no priest that found this house, this furniture and all the other stuff. It's the Sally that did all that. The Captain says I can go to me own church and he'll still help me but come Sunday I'm takin' the boys and goin' to the Sally to Sunday School. So don't come tellin' me what the Priest says yer rights are. You have no rights and he has no rights so be gone. Take yer filthy booze to bed and that's all ya'll have as far as I'm concerned."
We didn't hear from me Da fer some time and it's glad I was that he stayed away. We had a fine little house and it was warm and comfortable. The Captain helped us get the furniture, some coal and groceries. Then we stayed on the welfare and Mam says without Da to feed and beg money from her she could manage to look after us on the amount she got from the welfare. It looked pretty good to me. I remember Mam sayin' that she was expectin' the stork just after Christmas. I wondered if John Perkins was right. Would the stork come if Da was not there havin' his rights? I wished I could ask someone about all this but the only one I knew to ask was the Captain and while he was a nice man I didn't think I could talk about this kinda thing with him. I decided to keep me big mouth shut.
When we got settled in Black Bess, me Ma's aunt. came in to visit and admired our house and all the things we got from the Sally. She reminded me Mam about the ten dollars and me Mam gave her a dollar on account and suggested that Aunt Bess should try to collect from me Da. Black Bess was a big woman. Bigger than any woman I'd seen. She dressed in black and lived in a little house down by sixteen. We went there sometimes and I knew that Black Bess helped me Mam when there was no food. I wasn't sure what Black Bess did to get money but she always seemed to have some. I heard me Da refer to her as a whort or somethin' like that and I didn't think it was a nice thing and me Mam hushed him up. She reminded him that he didn't mind takin' her money when he needed it so he should keep his trap shut about her prefessin' or somethin'.
After she left me Mam said that she was probably wrong to send Black Bess after me Da as she'd likely crack his skull but she said she was tired of stickin' up fer him and makin' excuses. Black Bess maybe had a lot o' faults but she was good to us and she never pushed too hard when we owed her money. She said it was likely that Bess would take some o' her dandies and they'd work me Da over good if he couldn't pay.
Mam said it might be good to bring him down to earth he was always chasin' fer the pot o' gold at the end of the rainbow. I'd heard her say that before but I never knew what she meant and she'd never say. I watched the rainbow come after it rained a lot but I didn't know how ya'd get to the pot o' gold at the end as the end was usually way out over the ocean and I didn't know how to reach it. Probably me Da didn't either as he never came home with the pot o' gold. It's probably as well he didn't as it would probably kill him drinkin' all the devil's brew he could buy with a pot o' gold. It's fer sure he'd never bring any money home.
They had a funeral fer Mrs. Woodley's wee one and all the neighbours and friends attended. It was held in the big United Church where she belonged. I wondered how they could tell when someone was a Catholic, or United Church or Sally. Must be somethin' in the way the stork delivers them or how they are born. I'm still puzzled about this whole matter and I need to get to the bottom of it. Now mind you I still don't fancy takin' me rights. If it's the way Da and Mam did it I'll just let it go. I must talk to John Perkins some more on the matter.
The funeral was a fine affair. They placed the little white coffin at the front of the big church and the minister read a bunch o' stuff and people tried to sing a song about Jesus lovin' the little children. The Priest or Minister whatever they called him, he stood up and said that God sometimes goes into the garden early and picks little blossoms before they are growed to full size. That is what he did with the Woodley baby. I thought it was poor to blame God for the little baby goin' to Heaven when it was the fire that burnt her and all the houses and stuff. He said though that death is like a passin' over to a higher road. He told us we must all prepare ourselves fer the higher road someday. Thanks very much but I'll keep me feet on this road and try to live here. I was wonderin' now what I should do about the powerful Priest and the Sunday school we were goin' to attend at the Sally on Sunday. I got the feelin' the big powerful Priest would not be happy with me goin' to the Sally. Thought about how the Captain was good to us and even took us in his car and helped us find Da. It did a lot of good cause Mam sent him packin'. At least the Captain made it so that Da knew we were all right. In spite of the devil's drink I missed me Da and wished we could all be a happy family. I wondered if maybe one day he would come back and Mam would say it was all right fer him to be with us. I wondered too where he was sleepin' and how he was eatin' and if he was findin' a way to get his rights. My Mam told me not to be worryin' as he'd find a way to get food and a place to sleep. As fer gettin' his rights she told me if she heard any more of that talk she'd use the soap on me mouth. I guessed it was better fer me to keep quiet about things I was not sure of. I did take one more chance and asked her if the stork was still comin' after Christmas. She said I was askin' fer the mouthwash with so many questions and then she patted me on the head and said the stork would find us soon after Christmas so I was not to worry. She said she guessed I was growin' up and learnin' all these new things. She told me to take me time in the learnin'.
Sunday was a special day. We got to the Sally and all the beds and mattresses were gone and there was chairs all over the place in little bunches. They was a guy in the middle of the floor in a uniform, but I don't think he was a Captain. Some girl was playin' the piano and he was tryin' to get everyone to stop talkin' and start singin'.
They put each of us three boys in a different spot and said it was because of our age. I was in a class with a bunch of boys and girls who were ten like me. The girl I was sittin' next to started fussin' with her teacher that she wanted to move somewhere else. "I smell a terrible smell and it's makin' me sick." I wondered if she was talkin' about me. I had a bath a week ago when we was stayin' here in the basement. A Sally lady who lived just down the street from the Sally and was helpin' gettin us all settled after the fire, took me home and made me climb in a big tub of hot water and gave me soap and told me to wash all over. I never been in a tub like that before and it felt great but I wasn't sure about this washin' all over. I sat there and splashed around and tried dunkin' my head and all in the water. It was hot but I managed it and got out and dried myself on a towel and she came in before I was dressed, but I had me towel wrapped around me anyway. She said they had found some new clean clothes that me Mam had got today and she had those with her at her house and I could put them on and so I'd not only be clean but I'd have clean clothes.
Well the clean lasted now fer a week and I was not aware that me smell was bad but I got the feelin' that this girl thought it was me that was causin' the bad smell. I turned to the guy on the other side of me and asked him if he had farted and fer sayin' a simple thing like that I got in big trouble. The Captain came along and the teacher told him what I'd done and he explained to me we did not use that word that I'd used. I asked him what was I supposed to call it then and he said you just didn't say words like that nor did ya do that kind of thing in public. Well, this is where I had to listen to the Captain so I thanked him fer the information and said I'd do my best not to do or say that again. I wasn't sure how it would work out.
The teacher moved the little girl to the other side of the circle and there was no more discussion about smell so I figure it was her smell that she found hard to take. I knew it couldn't be mine what with me havin' a whole bath a week ago and havin' clean clothes a week ago as well.
Well the Sunday school went all right. After we sang some more of them songs which I couldn't sing we had to bow our heads and the guy in the middle said a whole long prayer and then we all said a prayer like the Catholics do about "Our Father" and stuff. I was able to say some of the stuff but I never could figure what some of it meant like witches are in Heaven. I wasn't gonna get in any more trouble so I let it go by. Then they passed a plate and collected some money. Mam had give me a nickel but I had a penny of me own. I made a decision that I thought was good. I gave away the penny and kept the nickel, figurin' it would be good fer candy later.
Then the lady in our circle started this big long story about Moses bein' born and the king wanted to get rid of all the kids so she hid Moses in a basket and put him in the river. What kinda basket would float? I wanted to ask that but figured I'd used up all my problems fer the day so I just listened to the whole story. It was a good one all right and the first time I'd heard it. I guess it was not one that the Catholics had in their books as I'd never heard it before.
"Mrs. Little, when is it we say the Hail Mary stuff? I ain't heard any yet."
I was in trouble again as the teacher made this big talk about the only God we talk to is the big God and His son Jesus. I figure that's all right as it's less stuff to have to remember so I clam up again and listen to the rest of her talkin.
At the end o' the lesson the Captain got up and talked to everyone in the Sunday School. He said he was glad to welcome a new family who had a tragedy in their home. He said how our house burnt down and I thought to myself that wasn't a tragedy as it was somethin' good that we got a better house, lots of food and all that stuff. I wanted to get up and explain it but I thought I'd finished showin' meself off fer the day so I sat still.