Chapter 41.
We had now been married four years, and though of course we had our ups and downs, no severe trial had come near our dwelling. But the winter of 1889-90 was one which we will not easily forget. The summer was well over and October half way through when Jack came home one evening complaining of severe pain. This grew worse and worse until in desperation I went out and telephoned for Dr. Howitt. Young women were not in the habit of walking the street alone at night in the days of good Queen Victoria and I well remember how timid I was and how glad to get once more into the shelter of my own home. Dr. Howitt was soon at the house and pronounced Jack a very sick man. Oh the weary anxious weeks that followed. At the end of three days mother took the children away, as the patient had to have perfect quiet. I sent the “general servant” with them, as she had appeared to be good with the baby, but her care of him was anything but satisfactory and by her neglect she laid the foundation of many months of illness.
Dorothy took ill with a slight attack of scarlatina and mother, fearing the infection, left the baby entirely to this woman’s care. But of these things I knew little, for I was too busy nursing my sick husband; early in his illness he could retain no food and his weakness increased rapidly. Finally Dr. Howitt ordered him one teaspoon of strong broth every fifteen minutes. This we heated on a spirit lamp. All day long it was being made; three pounds of round steak squeezed daily, a chicken and several pounds of mutton made into broth with no water.
I cannot tell of all the kindness of our friends. Mr. Morton used to come and look after the furnace for me, night and morning, and on several occasions sat up all night that I might have a little sleep. Dear Mrs. Cartwright came over nearly every morning and sat with my dear one. Many people brought little offerings of food or other things. Ethel Sydney came over to take charge of the books and shop, to relieve me of that trouble. I had a dear little girl called Rosy, whom I had engaged a short time before to take the children out. She too was very useful in many ways.
At the end of about three weeks, when Jack was beginning to mend a little, coming down one morning I found both Rosy and Ethel very sick. Rosy lived quite near and I sent her home and Ethel to bed, where the doctor, on looking her over, insisted on her being kept. He did not tell me until a long time afterwards that it was diphtheria the girls had. Now I had two patients and I was almost in despair, between cooking, nursing and the shop. At that juncture dear Mrs. Irwin came over and leaving her own children to her sister, stayed with me several days. My own sister was away in Clarksburg at this time with her pupils the Frank Cayley children.
Jack and Ethel were both still in bed, but decidedly better, when one day towards the end of November I went to John Street to see how the children were getting on. I found all excitement there. My mother had a woman working for her who had two children and these children had taken the measles. How well I remember kind Dr. Howitt coming to see them and on deciding what it was going forth in a pouring rain to get a cab for me to take my children home. The woman who had been caring for them had left, so I had them both on my hands. Rosy was however soon better, and once more came to help me. Ethel was ill longer; I think she was three weeks in bed.
All this time I had the depot on my hands and ended by making a foolish mistake in sending some hymn books to Ottawa. Gospel hymn books had been ordered but in my haste I sent fifty Gospel and fifty children’s. I received a rather annoyed letter to which I replied explaining how matters were. The next day Mr. Heney came down to see Jack and I think he began to pick up from that time. However, the Christmas orders were coming in and it was more than I could accomplish, so one morning before breakfast I ran down to the Gausby’s and begged Alice to come and undertake the work for a few weeks. That day her work in the depot began and it has only now ended (1926).
Through December Jack was gradually improving, Ethel had gone home a convalescent and I was feeling, though tired, quite triumphant, when Mrs. Cartwright was taken ill with diphtheria. Her two boys had had it very lightly and she had nursed them, but with her it took the worst form and on December 23rd she passed away. I cannot say what a sorrow it was to us all. My husband had gone to Bowmanville for a little change and the next day, when I went down to bring him home, I found that he and Mrs. Reid had just read the notice in the paper. It was a terrible shock to us all; she had been so much a part of our lives for years.
The New Year began with a terrible epidemic of grippe. Everyone seemed to take it and numbers died. You could hardly look out of the window—we were on Yonge Street—without seeing a funeral. I was terribly anxious about Jack, who was far from well, for fear he would take it. Dr. Howitt had been at death’s door with pneumonia. He was now getting better and invited Jack to go away with him to his mother’s house in Guelph. He went, I remember, about the 10th January. That night the two children waked up, one after the other, violently sick and in a burning fever. In the morning I sent for Dr. Tyrril. He said it was grippe, but very soon we found it was not only grippe but whooping-cough. Things got worse and worse. The nice servant I had got took ill and went home, then I took ill. I just was able to drag myself and the children to mother’s. I found her also ill with the grippe, but she got up out of her bed and I got into it. Dora went up with the children to the depot to sleep. Dorothy was very sick but dear Mrs. Irwin took her to her own house and kept her for two weeks. Dr. Tyrril came to see me and told me I must lie still or I should run into typhoid, as I was so worn out. He gave me no medicine and did not come again.
Things were in a very bad state in Toronto. Nurses and doctors were hardly to be got. I was two weeks in bed. My head was terribly bad all the time. At last mother gave me some “antipyrine” and I got better. The first day I was up Dora brought Christopher down to see me and forgot to put his scarf on. It was a cold day and he took bronchitis on top of his whooping caught. It did not develop for some days and I meanwhile went home as soon as I was able to get about, leaving the baby with mother. How well I remember driving home and passing the Cayley’s house. I well might remember, for at that moment dear old Mr. Cayley’s coffin was carried out. He was an old man, sixty-six, and had been failing all winter. The loss was too much for his wife and in three weeks she followed him.
I reached home safely, but two days later was called to the telephone to come immediately, as Christopher was very ill. It was, I believe, pneumonia. He was also cutting several teeth and later we found he had gatherings in his ears. The whooping cough had returned in a worse form than ever and we dared not leave him for a moment for fear he would choke. My dear mother kept him in the daytime while I went up to see after my house and Dorothy. At night Dora went up to sleep at the house and I sat up with our baby.
The 12th of February, his first birthday, was celebrated by the burning down of the Toronto University. There was some entertainment going on and two servants carried in a tray of lighted lamps. The tray broke in the middle and the fire followed. All night the fire went on, bells rang, horses rushed past, men screamed to one another. Jack and I sat up all night with Christopher, fearing every moment he would go into convulsions. In the morning we found he had cut four teeth and was somewhat relieved. I passed through much exercise during those twelve anxious nights. Mother would go up to bed, leaving me in the dining room where we could have a fire. I dared not close my eyes (I do not know how I kept awake as I never had more than one hour’s sleep in the day) and I thought out many things. I had refused to give up my husband and now my first-born son was asked for. I felt the Lord had tried me again and through His grace I was enabled to say: “Thy will be done”. It was the twelfth day and he appeared much worse; after each cough he would lose his breath and we feared each paroxysm would be the last. We could get neither doctor nor nurse; everyone in the city seemed sick. In despair mother looked in her medicine book and found a medicine cuprum which seemed to cover the symptoms. To our joy we found we had it in the house. The first dose eased him and from that time he began to recover. But it was months before he was a well boy.
The Federal Bank had now come to an end and Jack’s work was also ended. He was still very weak and not fit to look for other employment. Just at that time his sister, Mrs. Davidson, wrote and asked him to come and visit her. We felt the change to the sea and his native air might do him good, so early in March he left Toronto for St. John, New Brunswick. I was very desolate. Next door to us was a picture framing shop and I went in that first night and bought a frame for his picture. It has stood on my table ever since, though he has changed from the boy he was when the photograph was taken to an elderly, Gray-haired man, but to me that picture is still my Jack. Alas, shall I ever see it again; it is one of the things left in Yeung Kong and here am I far away in Gordon Bay.
I am afraid Jack was desolate too, for he had not been away long when I got a letter saying he had taken rooms and I and the children were to come at once. The depot was quite safe and prosperous in Miss Gausby’s care and I lent the house (I meant to rent it) to a Mrs. Staunton in my absence.