Chapter 57.
Mother, Dorothy and I. with Jack and Helen, left Port Hope on, I think, January 29th 1896. We started early in the morning, as we wanted to see Dr. Howitt before leaving for Bermuda. However, he would give me no medicine, which I think was a pity as I was in a terribly nervous state, sleeping badly and constantly waking from terrifying dreams of runaway horses and so forth. We spent the rest of the day at Mrs. Irwin’s, but before going there I went to Lady Robinson’s and that was the last time I saw her. When I returned in April my dear, kind old friend had gone to be with the Lord. Then we said goodbye to Jack and Helen and embarked on the train for New York.
We were all excited. None of us had seen New York and the thought of Bermuda with its seashore and sunny, balmy days, was most fascinating. A night in the pullman― Dorothy’s first experience that she remembered—and early in the morning we were in the great city. A sister in the meeting had been asked to meet us, and soon we spied a lady with a large Bible. She thought we would surely know her in this way. She conveyed us to her house or rather small flat, where every inch of room was in use. Dr. Guntner, her husband, was a dentist. His office was in front, then came their bedroom and then the bathroom. A bed was arranged over the bath, where a brother of the doctor’s slept. In the dining room a bed was made for a niece, and the grandmother resided in the kitchen. They had taken rooms for us next door. After dinner the niece, a pleasant young girl, took us to Central Park, where the zoo was at that time, and we were much impressed with the animals. Next morning we bid adieu to our kind friends and Mrs. Guntner took us to our boat.
It makes me shiver to think of it, even now. It was a tall, narrow boat and oh how it rolled. Mother succumbed first, but Dorothy and I, after sitting on the deck till nearly frozen, had finally to follow her, and oh how sick we all were. The stewardess, seeking to comfort Dorothy, asked if she could bring her anything. “Yes,” she replied, “if you would only bring me a cat.” The good woman promised but alas, the cat never came. The greatest misery has an end, and in two days we arrived. It was evening and we did not know where to go, but sought out the hotel we had been recommended to. They said they had no room at all, but seeing, I suppose, our blank dismay, arranged for us to sleep in a clock shop next door. The next morning we took a carriage and drove to a boarding house in West Paget. It was a lovely drive round the head of the bay but rather spoiled for me, as the horse ran away and nearly spilled us over the bank into the sea.
We found Mrs. Astwood’s house at last and very soon came to terms for two rooms opening off each other. We took up our abode there that same afternoon. It was a large white house built of coral, and it stood in its own grounds. In front the lawn sloped down towards the sea and at the back was an avenue of oleanders leading to a road between coral cliffs, up which delicate flowers and maiden hair ferns grew in clusters. There were plenty of trees in Mrs. Astwood’s grounds. I forget which bird used to perch in front of our window and say: “Going to rain, going to rain and I’m so glad”.
You could walk over the hills for about half an hour and then you came to the real open sea, with shells and seaweed in profusion. I think of us all Mother enjoyed it most. She so seldom had a real holiday and it was all so new and different to her former experiences. She gathered shells and got acid and cleaned them and tried to make shell boxes. She greatly enjoyed our trips in the flat-bottomed boats with glass at the bottom through which you could see the coral and curious shells. Then too she much enjoyed visiting the black brethren and sisters. There were quite a number; dear earnest people who greatly appreciated visits from us, though we were “the weaker vessels”, as one of them used to say.
Dear Mrs. Tucker; what a fine woman she was. She had two sons, Lemuel and Philip, and I used to wonder which was the blackest, Philip’s face or his Sunday polished shoes. He had a great admiration for Dorothy, which I do not think she in the least suspected. Before we left Mother gave Mrs. Tucker a feather pillow we had brought with us and great was her joy at receiving it. Said she: “I shall die with my head on this pillow, shouting the praises of God!”
We were the only boarders when we first came to the white coral house, and got to know our hostess pretty well. Mrs. Astwood was a sweet woman and I think a Christian. Her daughter was a woman embittered by her troubles and with no comfort to turn to. We had pleasant evenings reading aloud “Typical Teaching of Exodus”, which we had brought with us. After a little while a Miss Smith joined our party. She was an American, but she and I became friends and had some nice walks and talks together. Others arrived; a Mr. and Mrs. Lambe and Mrs. Minor and her daughter, and one or two others, but all homely, kindly people, and we made quite a family party.
We had several drives and other trips together, visiting the famous caves and the fish ponds, where we saw devil fish and angel fish. One day Miss Smith, my mother, Dorothy and I went to St. George’s dock yard. It was a very interesting place and we were much surprised to find that a portion of the island was actually anchored down. I remember we sat by the sea and ate some sandwiches we had brought and drank English ginger beer. We had come by boat, but for some reason we could not go back the same way, so decided to hire a carriage. Now Bermuda is said to consist of 365 islands. I do not know if that is true, but at all events, to get from St. George’s to our home we had to cross from one island to another, and this was done by what they call the “horse ferry”. We stopped at the side of the water and were given oilskins to cover us up with. Then the carriage drove on to the ferry. It was quite a wide stretch of water and as it was a very rough day the waves looked enormous, and indeed they were rolling in with all the force of the Atlantic Ocean. The ferry rolled and pitched till I was more frightened than I think I ever was before or since, but at last to our intense relief we got safely across and had a beautiful drive home. Mrs. Astwood told us afterwards that a certain governor was crossing, and his coach was pitched into the water. I think the poor man escaped with his life but lost his wig as well as his dignity.
We had one or two drives in a donkey cart. We went to see a sister by the name—I think—of Wainwright. Philip Tucker led, or rather dragged, the donkey and we got there in time. Another day we had a different experience. The donkey cart was brought to the door, Mother got in, I helped Dorothy in and was just going to follow when the donkey started off at a gallop. Nothing would stop him, so Mother and Dorothy took their drive alone.
I had not seemed to pick up much at first, but as the weeks passed I seemed better, so we stayed on a little longer and did not leave for home until the beginning of April. I think we all felt some regret. Mother had enjoyed herself so much and was so much better and also Dorothy. I do not think it was just what I needed. The damp heat tried me so, I used to feel as if I had no energy left and yet I could not sleep. Still, I was sorry to leave my new friend. I think she was sorry to lose me too. We corresponded regularly for a long time and suddenly her letters ceased and I never heard any more of her. I fear she was a victim to tuberculosis, with which she was threatened at the time we met.
Dorothy grieved at leaving the monkeys next door to us. They lived in a good sized enclosure and we visited them at least once a day. We packed our trunks mainly with coral and shells and pretty china which we had secured, and actually had to buy a trunk in New York to hold our clothes. The brethren came in a body to see us off, bringing us lilies and various curios, cocoanut dippers, etc.
I forgot to say that when we left the whole country seemed a garden of Easter lilies, with a few onions between.
We had a rough journey home and were terribly sick. Then we stayed another night with our kind friends in New York. But it was a glad day when we reached home. Before we got home we stayed a short time in Toronto, and there I made the acquaintance of two people with whom I was to have much to do afterwards. The first was our beloved Dr. Becker. He had just come from Philadelphia, where he had been taking a course in homeopathy, and I was one of his earliest patients. The second person was Miss Hicks. She was governess to the Irwin girls. I had met her occasionally but had had little opportunity to get to know her. The girls had now got on far enough to pass into the high school, and Miss Hicks was at a loss what to do next. They had brought her out from Ireland, but she did not feel like going back at once. The Irwin were going away for the summer and she did not know what to do. I suggested that she should come and spend the summer with us and help me a little with the children. She accepted my invitation with the greatest joy and I left a very happy little woman behind me. It is not often I can call anyone little, but one always felt Miss Hicks was such a little, helpless thing; such a dear little Irish thing too. In the future we were to see much of one another and our friendship was to be of many years duration, but at that time all was in the future and we parted with the understanding that she was to join us in Port Hope at the end of June.