Page 8 - A Visit with Frank Landry, 91. of Isle Madame

ISSUE : Issue 70

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1996/6/1

Frank and Gladys at the woodpile In D'Escousse. They sawed, split, and piled it together. thin. I used to go and meet the train in Hawkesbury or in Maclntyre's Lake, and you'd be out all night. You'd go in fine weather and you'd come out in a storm. You know how much you'd get to go from here to Hawkesbury at that time? Five dollars. All night long with a car. You'd have to drive sixty miles. Just imagine how much money you were getting. You know, the first car I bought was in 1947. And, of course, you know I bought a Dodge, it was a nice car. You know how much I paid for that car? I paid $1,500. (Seems like quite a lot of money.) Not too much at that time. The following year it had gone up $600 in one year. I went and I traded. The fellow told me, he says, "You're not paying hardly anything...be? cause your car is worth so much money more on the trade-in." Well, I bought a '47, I bought a '48, a '49, a '52, a '55, I don't know. That's how we did it, see. Now the last car I bought was a Dodge. I just sold it this summer, I had it twelve years. The last one. Yeah, it was a nice similar car. You know how much that car is today? $18,000! And the car was almost similar to that at $1,500 in 1947.... (My first wife, Gladys) was only 57 when she died. She was teaching ten years in D'Escousse. There was her and another girl, they were next-door neighbours. And, you know, I was going with her for about three years. I wasn't making enough money to get married, for crying out loud. So anyway I asked her to marry. She was sat? isfied, she was getting tired of teaching. She went over to see the secretary of the trustees. He had heard (we) were getting married, so he said, "You intend getting married?" It's not like it is now. "If you're getting married, you got to resign your job." And (she) had to give up (her) job teaching that year if (she was) get? ting married. They're getting married now and they have kids and they're giving them a whole month when they're pregnant, already paid.... I had one little girl, she's retired now, she's 38 years a nun. And she's in Rimou- ski, Quebec. And she's doing social work for nothing now. She's pensioned off. (How many nuns did you have in your family?) Only one. (Any priests?) Oh, no. Oh, no. Oh, we're not that good! I had quite a nice life. Never had much money. But I have a good-living family, that's better than money. I know that. I can see that. There's an awful lot of mixed(-up) marriages today, disappointment and everything. They stay with their wife for a few years, perhaps six months or so, and divorce and everything.... You see, the Catholic religion was first originated by Popes, the Pope was at the... Frank Landry continues on page 83 TAYLOR'S DENTURE CLINIC "dentures I CONSTRUCTED, RELINED & REPAIRED J. B. TAYLOR • LICENSED DENTURIST D.V.A. & Dental Plans Accepted SPECIAL DISCOUNTS FOR SENIORS Registered With "TAPS" (Services for Veterans) MONDAY-FRIDAY: 9 A.IUI. to 5 P.M. (AFTER HOURS ON REQUEST) 92 Charlotte St., Sydney 564-9111 //y/usicsTOP/' CAMERON MUSIC SALES' 307 GRANVILLE ST. PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. BOE 2V0 GUITARS, VIOLINS MUSIC BOOKS, DRUMS f SOUND EQUIPMENT & BAGPIPE SUPPLIES -IjOHN DONALD CAMERON • INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEOS • ' K MANAGER Cape Breton's yUcd Over 70 Stores & Services • Great... Service • Great... Selection • Great... Prices Mayflower Mall ... Where Winners Shop! 800 GRAND LAKE RD. SYDNEY BIP 639

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