Page 85 - Mary E. Blatchford's Letter from Beinn Bhreagh, 1891

ISSUE : Issue 58

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1991/8/1

Magnolia don't run on Thursdays or Fridays in the morning, only on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays!" Then, he added with another chuckle, "The Harlow's come in, you can go on the Harlow, only she's goin' to Newfoundland!" Fancy Charles mak? ing a joke at my expense! I am ashamed to say we all roared, and he fled. Meantime we were struggling with our tea, no easy task with such distractions. Suddenly Mr. McCurdy said, "Why don't you row to the Narrows?" "In this sea?" I gasped. "Why, the wind would be in your favor, it's due east and you'd go in no time." But Gardin? er was not willing on account of the men having to row back, which would be terri? bly long, hard, and wetting. "Well, then, sail down in the yellow boat, she'd go like a bird before this wind, you'd do it in an hour and a half, or if you're afraid of the yellow boat, take the schooner, she's as steady as a house," and before I had time to object Mr. McCurdy was taking his turn at the telephone and had ordered Mr. Mclnnis and Mr. Campbell to bring the schooner up to the wharf. Mr. Mclnnis is the overseer of the whole es? tate and lives about a mile below and has his own wharf; and the schooner is an open boat with two masts, and is used for rough work and carrying supplies. We were all thrown into a state of great excitement at this turn in the affairs, and Mabel and Lina said it would be "awful fun" and they were both going. I only wished they could go instead of me, for you can perhaps imagine my mind at the idea of putting out to sea, at night, when it was too rough for the Marion to come in! But Gardiner was firm and "Don't be a silly old woman" was the tonic I got to pull me through. But Mr. Bell would not hear of Mabel's going, and strongly advised Lina to give it up, for, while it would be easy enough to run down be? fore the wind, it would be very disa? greeable coming back against the wind, if not impossible. He would go himself, instead, but he did not want anyone else. Poor Lina almost wept; she knew I should be sick and she wanted to take care of me. Then they all set to work to send us off in good shape. I wish you could have seen the mass of shawls, rugs, wraps, and cush? ions that Mabel heaped up in the hall and that were carried to the wharf, where we all followed in procession with lanterns. The stars were bright, but the night was rather dark and the water was black and troubled--by no means reassuring to a cow? ard soul--as we gathered on the little wharf and looked at the dim outline of the schooner as it swayed from side to side--a ghostly ship indeed. Mr. Bell was thoroughly roused and in deep earnest, jumped in and called for supplies. First he spread rubber blankets on the bot? tom of the boat, then a layer of life- preservers --snares, I call them, for they go under at a touch and would drown any but an expert swimmer in about one minute. Then followed rugs and pillows and then came my hapless turn. I wore my thick winter jack? et, over that Mr. Bell's blanket wrapper which swathed me from head to foot, over that Mabel's fur coat and thus arrayed I took my seat, stretched out on the bottom of the boat with a hot-water bottle at my feet and a basket of cookies at my side! Mr. Bell, Gardiner, and the two men made up the crew, and we were ready. It was a picture for a master's hand, the group on the wharf was fitfully lightened by the swinging lanterns which shone on Mabel's sweet, fair face, and brought out the bright red of her boating petticoat and showed Lina, like a Gypsy, on one side peering out at us and still wanting to "go, too," and Mr. McCurdy and Dan and the Tour Nova Scotia Govemment Bookstore Outlet in Cape Breton Cape Breton Books First-Rate Literature A Wide Range of Books from Popular to Scholarly THE DOWNTOWN BOOKSTORE" 361 Charlotte St. Sydney BIP 1E1 539-8551 and Lewis Parker Cards: PORTRAIT OF CAPE BRETON fflSTORY BOOKS ARE A GREA T GIFT ANY TIME OF THE YEAR CAPE BRETON TRAILER SALES Trans Canada Highway CAA AH C7 Bras d Or 044-UlO/ ~ YOUR DEPENDABLE TRAILER DEALER ~ Come In and See Our Selection of NEW & USED HARD TOPS & TRAVEL TRAILERS • Visit Our Showroom for a Great Selection • MORRISON FOOD EQUIPMENT COMPLETE SYSTEMS ??i''- 902-468-1280 (Dartmouth) 902-564-1671 (Sydney) Introducing: wat-a-piza? SHAKE SHOPPE ? Soft Serve Yogurt & Dairy Bars MOUNTAIN BOY CHICKEN & RIBS ? J. B. SUBS? • all necessary equipment and hook-up • NO FRANCHISE FEES* • product know-how and expertise • NO ROYALTIES* • on the job training . AS AN ADD-ON BUSINESS* • take out packaging • 2 BUSINESSES 1 OVERHEAD • promotional signs • WE ARRANGE FINANCING

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