Cape Breton's Magazine

to order kegs of salt herring from Ea? ton's. And then honey we got in large pails and occasionally maple syrup through a neighbour, the Stewarts. But we lived. Oranges, bananas, lemons, so forth were a rare treat. With regard to clothing, bundles from rel? atives in the east, from Cape Breton and from Boston, Mother ripped and pressed and made over, sewing by the light of two oil lamps after the family went to bed. Occa? sionally- -but very occasionally--something new from Eaton's catalogue. But that didn't happen very often. Drinking water was highly alkaline. And, I might add, very laxative for newcomers. It was hard, there were no soap suds. The wa? ter was hauled by bucket from a hand-dug well which was about thirty feet deep. A close neighbour lady--who was really four miles away, but she was close--showed Moth? er how to break the hard water with Gil? lette's lye for washing. A washing machine? Two galvanized tubs, a washboard, and Moth? er's strong arm and back. We carried the water in and carried the water out. When the three babies came--Wilf in 1914, Anna in 1916, Muriel in 1919--the diapers were washed by hand, then boiled on the kitchen range, then hung outside summer and winter.... I was the only child for nearly ten years when my brother, Wilfred Broderick, ap? peared on the scene. Baby born May 31, 1914, in the "Little Grey Home on the Prair? ies ." And a won? derful neighbour lady--a farm wife with a graduate nurse from the Lady Stanley In? stitute in Ottawa --was with my mother. The doctor did arrive in time. He was brought by horse and buggy from Chinook--a town twelve miles away. And mother was nearly thirty-nine years old at the time of Wilfred's birth. June the 15th, 1916, saw the arrival of my sister Anna, and again Mother was support? ed by a neighbour--sister of the lady who was with Mother when Wilf was born. She was also a graduate nurse at the Newark City Hospital and had taken special train? ing in obstetrics in Ottawa.... On March the fifth of 1919 Muriel was born and again our good neighbour was with Mother. I remember so well two hours after Muriel was born Mrs. Stewart calling me and saying, "You may now see your mother." And when I walked into the bedroom I near S & M Trucking Ltd. • General Trucking • Local & Long Distance ' Loader & Trailer Rentals Float, Flatbed, Drop Deck Service r- OFFICE 1 567-2260 FAX 564-1443 • ' Operating in: riNS.NB.NFLD. - j';' PEI,GNT.PQ, L GARAGE & DISPATCH • i 564-2011 IF BUSY CALL 564-0204 ' SYDPORT INDUSTRIAL PARK • SYDNEY • NOVA SCOTIA Lakeview accommodation and dining 26 double units with private baths Traditional Cape Breton entertainment (check schedule) Local crafts and watercolours Highland Heights Inn Tel (902) 725-2360 '- '' '?' '*'' '' Living history museum 10 historic buildings, animated staff Scottish concerts and pioneer activities (check schedule) Giftshop and computerized genealogy Nova Scotia Highland Village P. O. Box 58, lona Both facilities located on Route 223, just off T.C. 105 via Exit 6 and Little Narrows ferry Need a Radiator? Muffler? Shocks? Brakes? RAD-PRO Specializing in Radiator Repair & Recores Heaters Water Pumps, Etc. i FIVE LOCATIONS: Sydney Downtown 562-2300 and Grand Lalce Road 564-5547 tniDAS 'Specializing in l/lufflers Brakes Shocks Springs Antigonish: 863-6090 • Port Hawkesbury: 625-3781 • New Glasgow: 752-8777 91