Page 51 - Mary Ann (MacLellan) MacEachern

ISSUE : Issue 70

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1996/6/1

(It must have been a nice surprise.) Yes. Poor Alec Dan. (Silence, then:) How old would he be now? (If he was here today he'd be 112.) I am 97. (Long silence.) Alec Dan could have been getting the war pension years and years before he got it. That's what John Jameson said. It was John Jameson that got after him to get the war pension. "My God," he said, "what's wrong with you? You should be getting that war pension, and you were hurt, and all the kids you got. I got it." John Jameson got the war pension for him. (That was good of him.) It paid the bills and got stuff at the store, or if they bought anything to feed the kids. My brother Johnny enlisted in the war too, but my father went down to Glen? dale and got an exemption for him. My fa? ther was getting old, you know, my brother Ronald was in Halifax, and my father couldn't do the work. So Father MacLennan got an exemption for him. Father MacLennan was in Glendale then. When Father MacPher? son went over to England, Father MacLennan came in his place at the parish. Father MacPherson was over in the war, over there until it ended--giving soldiers confession or anything like that. He wasn't killed at all. I and my father went down to Glendale, and Father Mac? Pherson came home. I was tall you know. Father Mac? Pherson said, "I'm going to get a big stone to put on top of your head. You're getting too tall, Mary." (Laughter.) For fun. Hillsdale was helping with the haymaking, so he was staying over at our house. Jim was away somewhere. I had a plaid dress, and it was black and white. Isabel the piper was down with me, and we decided to play a trick. So we stuffed the plaid dress with wool, the sleeves, the stock? ings, and everything. We put a hat on her too, and sat her up in Charlie's bed, with her hands like that (crossed in front of her). Duncan Fortune was out with Charlie, and they came home fairly late that night, and we were still up. Charlie was the first one to head to bed. Charlie went in? to his room, it was pretty dark, and he made an awful holler! "What's wrong?" I said. "There's an awful woman in my bed," (You seemed to be full of the tricks when you were growing up. Did you play any on your husband Charlie?) One time Duncan Fortune from MYERS MUSIC Sydney's Newest Music Store ?l Guitars J Pianos ?l Keyboards W Violins ' Mandolins ACCESSORIES • BOOKS INSTRUMENT REPAIRS GUfTAR and PIANO LESSONS 288 Welton Street Sydney, N.S. B1P5S4 562-3738 e-mali: myersOatcon.com OPEN 10 AM-6 PM Thursday 10 AM-9 PM Saturday 10 AM - 5 PM ' CD'S AND TAPES BY LOCAL ARTISTS J Refinance your mortgage for as little as $99 in lesal fees. At Scotiabank your mortgage can actually for you. For as little as $99' in legal fees (hundreds less than what it might cost elsewhere), you can refinance your mortgage using the equity you've built up in your home That means you can borrow at mortgage interest rates for home improvements, your children's education. We have 8 locations throughout Cape Breton to service your needs. financial investment, etc. We've reduced your cost of refinancing by making special arrangements with legal firms. And this program is available even if your mortgage is with another financial institution! Scotiabank S Get the credit you deserve. www.scotiabank.ca * Registered Trade-mark of The Bank of Nova Scotia, * Offer expires October 31, 1996.*Costs do r interest rate differential that may apply to an existing mortgage by the current financial ii )t include pre-payment penalties 'hen it is transferred to Scotiabank. BATTERED WOMEN and your children If you need help: 539~2945 TRANSITION HOUSE

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