“It would mean another suitcase and I need my other hand to carry the one we are going to buy and fill with new things for you. Besides you will look lovely dining with me tonight in your blue dress.” By this time Sam stood in front of the washstand holding the porcelain washbasin set and poured a small amount of warm water from the pitcher into the bowl. He took off his shirt and proceeded to wash and dry his upper body before taking his shaving mug and brush and stirring up a good lather. Quickly he spread the soap over the day-and-a-half shadow covering his face.
“When are you going to learn I really don’t need you to buy me new clothes?” Sara playfully wrapped her arms around him as she stood behind him and watched their reflection.
He paused for a moment, watching her in the mirror, “When are you going to learn I go deaf when you say such things? You are my wife. If I want to buy you a new dress I will buy you a new dress … case closed.”
Sara let out a sigh, but proceeded to caress his shoulders slowly, with gentle kisses.
Sam raised the straight razor to his chin and immediately a tinge of red showed as he nicked the skin. Pulling the blade away he added, “As much as I like what you are doing, you are going to have to stop before I cut my throat.”
“Well, we can’t have that now, can we?” Sara placed one last touch of her lips to his back before she sat back on the bed and watched her husband shave.
Quickly Sam ran the razor over his chin and down his neck. With each stoke he flicked the lather from the blade in to the washbasin. As he finished he wiped away the remaining soap with the washcloth. Pouring the water into a decorative bucket beside the stand he refilled the bowl with water for his wife, and continued to get ready for the evening.
They walked into the dining room, down the hallway from the bottom of the stairs. Sam and Sara found the room to be dark, with candles directing their way to a small table, elegantly decorated with more candles and a dainty lace covering. Two plates were already served with creamed chicken on toast. Two wine glasses sat at the head of each plate.
An unusual sound, like a large watch being wound, came from the darkened sitting room, adjoining the dining area. The sound changed to someone possibly running a steel brush over metal, but quickly changed into the music of a large orchestra. Edith came out of the darkness and moved her hand to direct the couple to their meal.
Sam pulled the chair away from the table for his wife, but with a child-like curiosity Sara looked at their hostess. “Where is the music coming from? Surely you don’t have a whole musical ensemble in your sitting room.”
Edith’s face brightened and she was obviously pleased with her surprise. She took a candle from the sideboard and asked them to follow her. The music continued to play. Before them was an unusual apparatus with a large megaphone horn standing up from it. A cylinder rotated on the machine with a needle touching it, held with metal following all the way to the horn. The needle followed the grooves on the tinfoil covering the roll and as long as the drum turned, the music continued to the end of the furrow.
Sara stood back, speechless.
Edith gave the handle on the side of the wooden box the machine sat on, several turns and once again the music started to play. “This is called a phonograph,” their hostess answered the silence. “We really couldn’t afford one, but Robert’s employer gave us this. He wanted my husband to spend the winters in Toronto, as he said Robert’s craftsmanship in carpentry is extraordinary and he makes the wooden cabinets. So far we only have one recording. They are also rather expensive as each one has to be made at the performance.” Again the music came to a stop and Edith pulled the needle from the tube.
“But come, you best sit down to dinner as it will be getting cold.” Again she directed them to the chairs at the table and Sam helped to push Sara’s chair under her as she sat down. Edith excused herself, explaining she thought newly-married folks should have the opportunity to enjoy their meal together in private.
“Edith,” Sara spoke, “You have made this evening very special for us and I thank you.”
As she went up the stairs, their new acquaintance smiled back at them.
They enjoyed their lovely dinner and glass of wine. Edith said to leave the dishes in the sink, but instead Sara washed them, using water from the kettle on the stove. Sam found the tea towel and started to dry them.
“Edith seems to be very nice,” Sam said as they stood together.
“We were really lucky to find a place like this to stay. It is much nicer than staying at a hotel.”
“I’m glad you are happy,” Sam placed his arms around her and held her as she finished wiping the basin clean and the water ran down the drain into a pail beneath the sink.
As they finished tidying up, Sam went to each candle and blew them out, one by one. The light from the street lamp outside lit their way through the house as they went up the stairs to their temporary lodging.
They were later getting up in the morning than usual, partly because of the change in time. They also enjoyed the feeling of sleeping next to each other again, skin against skin.
Edith knocked on the door. Without opening it she mentioned if they had any laundry to be done they could bring it downstairs. She would be taking some next door to the washerwoman. She continued to explain it should be ready by the evening and the noon-hour meal would be on the table shortly.
Sara set aside all of the clothing she felt should be washed and had only her blue dress to wear for the day. Sam also was dressed in his better clothing as he carried the laundry down the stairs to the kitchen.
Three small boys milled around the pair and their mother sent them away with a light swat on the bottom of the last one as they all ran into a tiny playroom. It was just off of the kitchen and the top half of the room doubled as a pantry. A bassinet sat in the corner not far from the warmth of the stove and a small baby lay in it kicking and cooing.
“I should have warned you earlier, the bed you slept in seems to have either a blessing or a curse placed upon it,” Edith was setting the kitchen table for the children’s and her own lunch.
Sam’s eyes sparkled at the idea, but he carefully changed the subject when he saw the look of concern on Sara’s face. Immediately he knew this was real cause for her alarm, although as they discussed before she was quite certain it would be too soon to have to worry. “Here is the laundry for the washerwoman,” he said as Edith reached and took the bundle from him and placed it in a clean flour bag with her own items.
As she looked back to her guests she frowned. “You’re not going out to tour the falls in those fancy duds, are you?”
They both looked back at her, rather puzzled at the comment. Sam’s face began to lighten as he glanced at his wife. “I guess we would be easy prey for Davis and his men if we go out looking like these are our everyday clothes.”
Sara still looked rather bewildered as she answered, “But this is all we have that is clean to wear.”
“I think I can find some things for you. I think Sam and Robert are about the same size and I am a little bigger than you, Sara, so that shouldn’t be a problem. After we eat we’ll see what we can do.”
Edith called the children for lunch and eagerly they all ran into the room and climbed up into their chairs. The smallest reached up for his high chair and Sam quickly picked him up and put him in it. A large beam from the child could only be returned with an equally large grin from the man.
Edith prepared an aromatic stew for the family and guests of the boarding house. She explained to the visitors the regular dinner meal would include the three people who lived on the third floor of the house on a year-round basis. They would meet them then. She set the dining table for the Fieldings’ lunch, but Sara insisted they would be comfortable dining with the family in the kitchen.
“It is really hard to believe you two come from the class of people who wear those fancy clothes. I’ve never had anyone here before you folks sit down with me and the children for lunch before.”
“I used to be one of those snooty folks until I met Sara here,” Sam was quick to tell their hostess. “She cast a spell on me changing my life for the better.”
After helping to clear the table, Sam urged the children to show him what they were playing with in the small room. They were quick to grab his hands and pull him with them.
“He will make a good father,” Edith commented as she poured water from the kettle into the sink, “I don’t imagine you two will be waiting long.”
Sara gave a nod of her head but stayed turned away as she placed the dishes in the sink and ran the bar of soap over the dishcloth to start the washing.
The baby started to fuss in the bassinet. “I generally feed Sammy before I do the noon dishes. I guess he is hungry,” Edith stated.
“That’s fine, go ahead and feed him, I’ll take care of the dishes.”
“If you don’t mind.” By this time the crying changed from a slight fussing to full-fledged wailing.
“Of course I don’t mind.”
Edith quickly took the small child and immediately the noise stopped as his fist filled his mouth and he made a loud sucking sound. She sat down in the rocking chair nearby and quickly unbuttoned her blouse.
Sara remained at the sink. Even the sound of the child sucking and the slight humming sound of contentment placed a knot in her stomach.
Sam returned from the other room. He also looked away quickly as he saw the young mother feeding her infant. To the lower and middle class it wasn’t usual to find a woman nursing her baby wherever it needed to be done. But it was completely unheard of among the class of people he became so accustomed to being with. Sam took the tea towel and helped by drying the dishes.
Edith started to hum quietly an old familiar lullaby to her son. The couple finished up the dishes in silence, but gradually they also joined in humming the well-known Brahms Lullaby. Sara grew silent as she listened to her husband continue the song and very well too, she noticed. They finished cleaning the counter and table without glancing at Edith until the mother placed her son on her shoulder, patting his back to produce a burp.
Quickly Sara announced she was going upstairs to get ready for the afternoon outing. Sam noticed her eyes were moist and said he too would join her.
“I’ll be up as soon as Sammy is ready to nap and we will find more suitable clothes for you to wear,” Edith spoke up as they were leaving the room.
As soon as they were out of Edith’s earshot Sam placed his hand on his wife’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Sara. Maybe this is not the best place for us to stay. We can continue on to Montreal or find another place if you like.” He closed the door into their room.
“I’ll be fine … really,” Sara answered quietly, “I’m just being silly.”
“This wouldn’t have happened if we went to the hotel.”
“It’s all right, really. I like it here and Edith seems so nice. I want to stay here. Besides I can’t avoid babies all of the time.”
In silence Sam pulled her close and hugged her tightly until the knock came at the door.
Chapter Twenty
“If you dress like you may be looking for work rather than tourists, you probably won’t have those con men after you as much,” Edith said as she took the Fieldings into the storage room.
“I think that is an excellent idea,” Sam agreed as he held a pair of slightly-worn denim jeans and a warm flannel shirt.
Edith presented Sara with a thick wool skirt and hand-knit top. She also handed her a pair of heavy wool knickers and remarked, “You may want to wear these over your regular bloomers. The wool can be irritating, but I’m sure you will enjoy their warmth.”
After dressing, then donning borrowed outerwear, Sam and Sara stepped out to a sunny but cool day.
Together they walked unhurried through the streets. Sam explained because it was winter many of the businesses were closed for the season, but still Davis waited for anyone who was unsuspecting. Sara asked him who this fellow was, he mentioned his name so often and she didn’t want to meet up with the fellow.
“He is a man who would stoop to any low to take money from anyone. I am happy to say I never reduced myself to his standards, although I am also embarrassed to say I admired and in a way fashioned myself after him … in the old days,” Sam added quite seriously. “Hack drivers from either side of the river bring their fares to the Table Rock Hotel, often whether the passengers want to or not. If it was summer, the five-dollar tip I gave our driver quite possibly would not have worked, but in the winter with fewer guests the hacks tend to take their pay wherever they can.”
“Davis hired a few big men, one a prizefighter, to force patrons to pay for things they never asked for, or told were provided free of charge. These people were often manhandled to make them pay. Because most come from far away not much was done. Davis has often been told to clean things up, but never met the terms and the law wasn’t enforced. News started to travel about the dishonesty here and from what I understand, it kept people away.”
By this time they were walking along what was called ‘The Front,’ the strip following the river. This area was the main tourist trap and the businesses along the street displayed it very well. Many small shacks for selling trinkets and other souvenirs were closed for the season.
Edith was right about their clothing. It appeared few people looked at them, let alone tried to pressure them into any money-spending schemes.
As they walked past the famous Table Rock Hotel they noticed some people who were not so fortunate and two gentlemen were forcefully arguing on the steps at the hotel. Two bigger men came outside to join them and stood behind their boss, arms crossed, feet apart, standing tall and looking unstoppable. The victim angrily gave in to the matter and opened his wallet and counted out what appeared to be a large amount of money. Moving away from the door, the hooligans allowed the man’s wife to exit the building. She looked to have been crying and quickly grabbed onto her husband’s arm, when a suitcase came flying out the door and fell open on the street, clothing spilling from it.
“You have done this to the wrong man, Davis!” the gentleman shouted back, but the three going back into the hotel just laughed at him.
Sara wanted to step ahead to help the older couple pick up their things, but Sam anticipated her move and held her arm tightly. “It is still Davis’ law here. We best stay out of it.” Reluctantly she obeyed as the pair had already stuffed their belongings back into the bag and were quickly walking in the direction of the train station. At this point the hack drivers looked to be ignoring the people. They were sitting outside of their boss’ hotel and not allowed to show any sympathy for them.
Sam took Sara’s hand and shrugged his shoulders, “It is a different world here.”
The roar of the massive falls was becoming quite deafening and seemed to pull Sara toward the sound. As the street was higher than the water and some buildings blocked the view, Sara didn’t see the sight until she could have leapt into it. Her mouth dropped open at the display in front of her, until she came out of the spell. “The falls are enormous. I never in my wildest dreams imagined they could be this big.”
The sight was hypnotizing and even though Sam had seen them many times before he looked at them differently. He wondered why they were not the same this time, but realized it was really the first time he actually looked at the falls. All he had seen before were the wealthy tourists.
Even in the cold of winter the sight was extremely beautiful. The area was humid and this morning the mist in the air created a stunning heavy white frost on the bare trees, shrubs and anything else it landed on. It appeared to be a mystical fantasyland. Sara’s vision followed along the top of the falling water, but the expression on her face seemed to change as she saw the other side of the river. Her imaginary-land suddenly changed back into the reality of the industry the immense power of the falls created. Instead of the tourist trap on the Canadian side, the American bank overflowed with industrialized
businesses. Sara gave a slight sigh, but brought herself back to the beauty close at hand.
“If it wasn’t for being winter we could have toured down to the base of the falls and walked behind them into the ‘Cave of the Winds’. I worked there, guiding tourists down the ladder and into the cave.” Together they started to walk along the street taking them further away from the falls, but providing them with a view at a different angle.
“Why is it they have placed the shanties and fences so the view is blocked from the street.” Sara was quite baffled.
“Money,” Sam answered. “The tourists must pay for the view. If the shops were open we wouldn’t have been allowed to watch the falls without paying.”
As they continued, they came to another hotel called Table Rock House. “Thomas Barnett owned this hotel and he was a much nicer man. He was more interested in showing the people the sights of the falls. More than that, he had a passion for collecting items for his museum. It tended to be an expensive hobby and probably the main reason he went bankrupt.”
“The summer of ’72, when I was here, he tried a grand plan … to bring the Wild West to Niagara Falls. Barnett went down into the United States to bring back items for a show, including buffalo, Indians and Wild Bill Hickok, who by this time was becoming quite famous. Barnett billed the performance, trying to draw people from far and wide to the falls. He was prepared for forty thousand viewers, but instead only three thousand arrived for the big event. In the end it was a huge failure because the buffalo were too hard to keep in captivity. Only three adults and a calf survived to see the act. Even then, the cow Wild Bill was to capture had to be aggravated into running. From what I understood, Barnett lost twenty thousand dollars from that performance alone. I read years later in a Toronto paper he had to sell everything and to kick a man when he is down, the buyer was Davis.”
They took time to stop at the famed museum. It was true Barnett really was eccentric when it came to stocking the amazing and amusing items. Sara was quite fascinated with the idea she stood before a real mummy and many animals she read about, but never considered herself lucky enough to see. She thought for a moment it was unfortunate they were indeed stuffed and possibly lost their lives for such a display. In turn she also realized how lucky she was to see such items. They were nowhere near finished looking at everything when Sam suggested they should go as there was still more for her to see on their tour before nightfall.
New Beginnings (New Beginnings Series) Page 20