Many a Tear has to Fall

by Joan Jonker

  George nodded. ‘There’s no problem there. Lizzie told me to tell you if the Caldwells are still in the throes of emptying their house when you get there, then go down to hers and she’ll make you a warm drink. Oh, she’s had the coal man throw a bag of nuts in the coal shed, so you’ll be able to light a fire as soon as we move in.’

  ‘She thinks of everything does Lizzie. I’ll be forever in her debt.’

  ‘Oh, that’s not all! She’s ordered her milkman to leave you a pint every morning, starting from today. And we’re all invited down for something to eat at tea time. She won’t be thanked, either! I did try and she went all uppity on me. I can’t take her off, I’m not good at that sort of thing and wouldn’t do her justice, but this is what she said: “Yer can’t drink yer bleedin’ tea with no milk in. And all yer’ll be getting for yer tea is harmless, ’cos I’ll be too busy helping and I can’t be in two bleedin’ places at once.”’

  Laughter was heard in the room for the first time that day. ‘Oh, I do love Mrs Lizzie,’ Tess said. ‘Even if she does use naughty words.’

  ‘They don’t sound naughty coming from her,’ Maddy said. ‘You can’t help but laugh.’

  ‘I agree, but I wouldn’t like to hear them coming from your mouth. So while you may laugh, you may not copy.’

  ‘Too bleedin’ true!’ The words sounded so strange coming from her husband’s lips, even Ann couldn’t stop the gurgle of laughter that erupted. But when she saw the girls doubled up, she tried to be firm.

  ‘Really, George, that’s no way to talk in front of me and the children. Please don’t encourage them.’

  ‘Yes, dear.’ George sounded suitably contrite. ‘I’ll do what Lizzie does. When you’ve gone, I’ll give myself a jolly good talking-to. I could even end up giving myself a good hiding, but that’s rather debatable because I’m not as brave as Lizzie.’

  So when Ann walked out of eighteen Hanford Avenue for the last time, her daughters linking her either side, there were smiles on the three faces. The sadness was to come later.

  ‘There’s Lizzie talking to Mrs Caldwell, and there’s no sign of the removal van.’ Ann began to quicken her pace. ‘Let’s run.’

  Peggy Caldwell was in the act of handing the keys over to Lizzie when she saw Ann and the girls hurrying up the street. ‘I’m glad you caught me, girl, I was hoping to see yer to wish you all the best.’ She handed over the keys and beamed. ‘Let me guess. You’re Madelaine, and you are Tess. Your mam and Mrs Ferguson have told me all about you. And I hope yer’ll be very happy in yer new home.’ Pulling on a pair of navy woollen gloves she said, ‘I’ve mopped right through, Ann, so all yer have to do is put the furniture down. And there’s still some life in the fire so yer won’t be cold.’ With one last look up at the house that had been her home for many years, she straightened her shoulders and sniffed up. ‘I’ll come down and see you, Lizzie, once I’ve settled in.’

  She was walking away when Ann touched her arm. ‘You couldn’t have been kinder, Peggy, and I’m grateful for all you’ve done. I hope you settle in all right and find happiness in your new home. Where are your family, by the way?’

  ‘Oh, they left ages ago to be there for the van arriving. And if I don’t put a move on they’ll stick the furniture any old how. You know what men are, they’ve no idea. My feller would put the wardrobe in the living room if it was left to him.’ With a wave of her hand she was off, and she never looked back even though the group stood watching until she’d turned the corner.

  ‘She’s upset,’ Lizzie said. ‘And it’s a crying shame. I could throttle a certain person with me bare hands.’

  ‘Why is it a crying shame, Mrs Lizzie?’ Tess asked. ‘The lady wouldn’t be moving if she didn’t want to.’

  ‘She didn’t get on with a neighbour, queen, that’s why she’s left.’

  Ann thought it time to intervene. ‘And how are you, Lizzie?’

  ‘Fair to middling, queen, fair to middling. But d’yer think we can go inside now, ’cos I’m bleedin’ freezing and I can feel me chilblains starting up.’

  ‘Then let me invite you into our new home. You’ll be our first visitor and we couldn’t wish for anyone better.’ Ann climbed the step, unlocked the door and stepped inside. ‘Welcome, Mrs Ferguson.’

  The girls were shy for all of two minutes. Then they both started talking at the same time without stopping for breath. ‘This is a nice room, Mam, nice and bright,’ Tess said. ‘It’s just like Auntie Milly’s house. Is it the same as yours, Mrs Lizzie?’

  ‘The curtains look better in here than they did in our other house,’ Maddy said, her eyes everywhere. ‘And the lino is a nice light colour. Can we go upstairs, Mam, and see where we’ll be sleeping tonight?’

  Ann rubbed her forehead. ‘Yes, but don’t go running around or you’ll have the neighbours complaining. And if your hands are dirty don’t touch the wallpaper.’ She closed her eyes at the clattering on the bare stairs. ‘I hope that doesn’t start Nellie Bingham off, I couldn’t stand an upset today.’

  ‘She won’t hear that, queen, ’cos the stairs are on the wall next to yer other neighbour, Mrs Flannery. And yer won’t get any trouble from her, she’s a smashing woman and all her family are the same.’ Lizzie pointed to the wall where the fireplace was. ‘That’s the wall that separates yer from the Binghams, and yer can bet yer sweet life she’ll be raking the grate out at six tomorrow morning, just for spite. She’ll make such a racket yer’ll think all hell has broke loose, but it’ll only be her having her little joke.’ Lizzie leaned back against the door and folded her arms. ‘My advice would be not to get mad and do the same back to her, ’cos if yer do yer’ll just be asking for trouble. Anything you can do she can do twice as bad. And she can keep it up longer too! All day if the mood takes her.’

  ‘She must be a bad . . . bad . . .’ Ann floundered as she sought the right word. But help was close at hand.

  ‘The word ye’re looking for, queen, is “bugger”. There’s other words I can think of, but you stick to “bugger”, ’cos it’s mild compared to some of the names she’s been called.’

  ‘We’ll all be dead beat after working so hard today, so if she wakes us up at six o’clock in the morning I might ask you to write some of those names down for me.’ Ann cast an eye on the dying fire. ‘I haven’t a poker or shovel, so I hope the van comes before that breathes its last breath. And while I think on, I’ll pay you for the bag of coal you so kindly had delivered for me. And you must have given those boys something for bringing the chests, so I’ll settle up now. Out of debt, out of danger.’

  ‘George paid me for the coal this morning, when he got his wages. And as for the lads, they wouldn’t take nothing,’ Lizzie lied. She’d given them thruppence each, and they’d gone to first house at the Carlton on Thursday night. They couldn’t get in without an adult, so they’d asked a stranger to take them in and were over the moon. ‘So yer don’t owe me nothing, queen, only civility.’

  ‘I can’t even offer you a seat! Would you like to sit on the stairs while we’re waiting?’

  ‘No, I’m going to nip down and make a pot of tea for us. I’ve got a big basket so I’ll fetch some cups and milk and sugar. It’ll warm us up and help pass the time.’

  Tess was down the stairs first, followed closely by Maddy. ‘Can I come with you, Mrs Lizzie? Say yes, please, ’cos I’m dying to see your wallpaper with the roses on.’

  Her sister gave her a dig. ‘And me! You’re not going without me!’

  ‘Girls, behave yourselves,’ Ann said. ‘Mrs Lizzie has enough on her plate without you two hanging on to her.’

  ‘Not at all! They can help me carry the basket back. Many hands make light work.’

  Ann had her hand on the front door, ready to open it, when there was a rap on the knocker and she nearly jumped out of her skin. ‘Who on earth can this be?’

  ‘There’s a good way of finding out, queen, just open the bleedin’ door!’

  Ann slowly opened the
door, half expecting the dreaded Nellie Bingham. But the woman standing outside was wearing a friendly smile and so the door was opened wide. ‘If it’s Mrs Caldwell you want, I’m afraid she doesn’t live here any more.’

  ‘Yes, I know, love. I live next door.’ The woman was pointing to a door which was so close to her own Ann could have reached out and touched it. ‘Me name’s Dolly Flannery and I’m not being nosy, I just knocked to see if yer’d like a pot of tea while ye’re waiting.’

  Lizzie elbowed her way to the front. ‘That’s nice of yer, Dolly, but I’m on me way down to make a brew.’ She waved a hand as she made the introductions. ‘Dolly, this is Ann Richardson. And these two sweethearts are her children, Maddy and Tess.’

  They were squashed like sardines in the tiny hall. The houses weren’t built with hallways, you stepped straight from the street into the living room. But Mr Caldwell had built a makeshift hall to give them some privacy when the front door was opened, and to keep out the draught.

  Ann stepped down on to the pavement and beckoned the girls to follow. ‘It’s rather a tight squeeze in there. You’re welcome to come in, Mrs Flannery, but there’s nowhere to sit, I’m afraid.’

  ‘No, I won’t come in ’cos I know ye’re expecting the furniture van. But if yer want anything just knock on the wall for me. And by the way, everyone calls me Dolly.’

  Ann smiled. ‘That’s very kind of you, Dolly. I hope we can be friends.’

  The girls were too shy to speak, but when Lizzie stepped down to join them, they were drawn to her like a magnet and linked an arm each. ‘We’ll be back in fifteen minutes, queen, and I’ll bring a shovel so yer can keep the fire going.’

  ‘Right, I’ll have a little scout around to get to know where everything is. I’ll see you later.’ Ann was closing the door when she heard Lizzie’s voice. ‘How’s your feller, Dolly, keeping all right, is he?’

  ‘Yeah, he’s fine, Lizzie, touch wood.’

  Ann was feeling happy as she made her way through to the tiny kitchen. ‘Well, I’ve met one neighbour who seems nice and friendly, that’s a good sign. And I’ve got Lizzie, the woman who anyone could get along with. Good company and as straight as a die.’ She spoke aloud as her eyes took in the scrubbed shelves, draining board, woodwork and floor. You could eat your dinner off any of the surfaces. And the window was clean inside and out. Peggy Caldwell was obviously a good housewife and Lizzie was right, it was a crying shame she’d been forced to leave. She’d make sure the same thing didn’t happen to her. If she had to toughen up, then toughen up she would. No bully was going to get the better of her!

  Maddy and Tess had been standing by the window keeping watch, and when the van pulled up outside they became very excited and were clapping their hands and jumping up and down. ‘It’s here, Mam!’

  ‘All right, just keep calm. I think it would be best if you girls stood outside to give the men more room to manoeuvre, otherwise we’ll all be under their feet. So hurry up and put your coats on and stand outside by the window.’ Ann hurried to open the front door to find George standing with one man, whom he introduced as Jim, and the man she could see letting the back of the van down was Harry. ‘Come in and have a look around, so you’ll know the lay-out. The girls are going to wait outside to give you more room.’

  Lizzie was standing in front of the fire, and when Jim clapped eyes on her he started to laugh. ‘Blimey, Lizzie, is there no getting away from yer?’

  ‘That’s nice, coming from someone who’s supposed to love the bones of me. Even promised me undying love if I left my feller for yer,’ Lizzie huffed. ‘Ye’re fickle, Jim, that’s what yer are. Just like all bleedin’ men who’ll promise yer the earth when they’re on the cadge.’

  ‘Now that’s not fair, Lizzie, tell the truth. I swore I’d leave me wife if yer’d come away with me, but yer turned me down flat.’

  Lizzie was in her element. Having a bit of a laugh and warming her backside at the same time, you couldn’t beat it. ‘Yeah, I can’t tell a lie, yer did ask me to run off with yer. But yer see, Jim, I’ve got a weak constitution and I couldn’t face the thought of living in a tent. If yer’d been Rudolph Valentino now, I would have given the offer some serious consideration, ’cos his tents are like palaces. They have slaves to wave fans at yer when it’s hot, and gas fires to keep yer warm in the winter.’

  Harry was standing outside waiting for his mate when he heard gales of laughter. He poked his head around the door and called, ‘Ay, I’ve promised to take the wife to the pictures tonight, so come on, let’s be having yer.’

  At that moment, Jim moved to reveal Lizzie in all her glory. ‘Oh my God,’ Harry groaned. ‘I might have known it was talk a bit. If we miss the pictures tonight, Lizzie Ferguson, then you can come and tell the missus why.’ He turned his head to look back into the street. ‘Ay, come on, there’s gangs of kids hanging around the back of the van.’

  And so work started in earnest. George wasn’t allowed to help with the heavy stuff in case he did himself an injury, but he made himself useful and kept on the go, while his wife and Lizzie were in the kitchen unpacking the chests. The number of children gathered around had grown to about twenty, and although there was a lot of shouting and pushing and pulling, on the whole they were well behaved. Amongst them were James and Billy, who had helped Lizzie push the pram with the crates on, and they were soon recognised by Tess, who waved a hand in greeting. This made the boys feel very important as they edged their way to where the girls were standing in front of their window. And although there wasn’t a word passed between them, they each made for the sister they had their eye on. It was fortunate that both boys didn’t fancy the same one.

  Next door, Nellie Bingham was standing at her bedroom window watching what was going on. She couldn’t see very well, unless she pressed her nose against the window, because she had to squint sideways. And there were so many kids there they were blocking out her view of the furniture being carried in. She wasn’t very happy about this because she wanted to see everything that went in so she would know the kind of people she’d have to deal with. Her two sons were out there, Jack and Willy, but the silly buggers wouldn’t be able to tell her anything, they were leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the street. A fat lot of good it had done sending them out with instructions to note everything that went in next door. And another thing getting her goat was that Lizzie Ferguson was in there helping! She’d soon wormed her way in, the cheeky cow.

  So, feeling frustrated at seeing so little, Nellie decided to make her way downstairs to stand on her front step. But, being so short in stature, even standing on the top step didn’t give her the advantage of a better view because she couldn’t see over the heads of the kids. She started to get worked up, and signs that she was almost ready to explode were beginning to appear. If her sons had been able to see her flared nostrils and quivering chin, they would have legged it out of the street altogether before the ructions started.

  Jim and Harry had lifted the sideboard out of the van when they heard a commotion. They heard a young boy’s voice cry, ‘Take yer hand off me, missus, I was here first.’

  ‘Don’t give me no lip, lad, or yer’ll wonder what hit yer,’ Nellie said, her fingers digging into the boy’s arm. ‘Now get over to the other side ’cos ye’re blocking me view and I can’t see a bleedin’ thing.’

  ‘Ay, leave him alone, he was here before you,’ James Cobden said, seeing the young boy’s face creased in pain. And of course, he was being brave in front of Maddy. After all, he was fourteen now and leaving school at Christmas. ‘Take yer hand off him or I’ll go and get his mam.’

  There were murmurs from the other children too, but that didn’t stop Nellie. ‘Sod off, you, and go and get his bleedin’ mam. Bring his dad as well, see if I care.’ She dug her fingers deeper into the young boy’s arm, causing him to yelp. ‘I want to see what’s going on and ye’re in the way, so scram before I belt yer one.’

  Jim and Harry were still
holding on to the sideboard, but at a nod from Jim it was lowered to the ground. He rubbed his hands together as though dusting them, then asked, ‘Did yer buy a ticket for the front stalls, missus?’

  ‘Don’t you be so bleedin’ funny or yer’ll be laughing the other side of yer face. These buggers live down the street so they can sod off to where they belong. I live next door and I’m titled to stand by me own house.’

  By this time, George, Ann and Lizzie had come to the front door, and several neighbours from opposite who’d been watching behind their net curtains came out to stand in the street. Their children were amongst those around the van, and although no one would like to lock horns with Nellie Bingham, they wouldn’t stand by and see their children harmed.

  ‘Oh, ye’re titled, are yer? I’m sorry, I didn’t know that. What is yer title? Is it Lady, or is it Your Royal Highness?’ Jim was grinning, as were the onlookers, and this really stoked the fire. But Jim wasn’t to know of the little woman’s reputation. ‘Do we kneel before you, or would a bow be sufficient?’

  Jack Bingham gave his younger brother, Willy, a dig, and the two of them legged it hell for leather down the street. If they’d stayed just a few more seconds they would have seen their mother take a flying leap at Jim. Her arms and legs flailing, she landed several blows and kicks before he came out of shock and tried to restrain her. But she was like a mad woman and Harry rushed to his mate’s aid. He’d thought it was funny at first, but this little woman obviously didn’t see the funny side. George made an attempt to help, but Ann and Lizzie held him back. ‘Keep out of it,’ Lizzie warned, ‘or yer’ll never hear the end of it. She’s a bleedin’ maniac that one, and best left alone.’