Farewell to Lancashire

by Anna Jacobs

  ‘They’d not be let out of prison if they were, surely?’

  Three other ships were anchored nearby and as they continued to watch, a boat was rowed slowly out to theirs. It was carrying the health inspector, they found.

  A smaller boat came out next and took off two of the cabin passengers, while the emigrants were left to crowd on deck and gaze longingly at the shore.

  There was a lot of grumbling that night when they were locked down at their normal time of eight o’clock.

  Cassandra was summoned to the Barretts’ cabin the next morning, as usual, and almost refused to go, she was so angry at Mr Barrett. But she couldn’t afford to be proud because they still hadn’t paid her the wages they’d promised.

  Mrs Barrett was there alone and hurriedly slipped her a letter. ‘It’s a reference. Simon says we shouldn’t give you one, but I don’t agree. You’ve worked hard, done everything I’ve asked. Put it away quickly. Now, help me do my hair and finish my packing.’

  ‘Could I ask – about my wages, ma’am?’

  She began fiddling with her wedding ring. ‘I’m afraid Simon thinks paying for your passage was enough, given the circumstances.’

  ‘He agreed to pay me wages as well!’ She drew herself up. ‘I shall find a lawyer and sue you for those wages, if necessary. I need every penny I can get for my child. Mr Barrett has already taken my money from me – every penny of my savings! Is he going to refuse to pay my wages as well? How does he expect me to live once I’m ashore?’

  Mrs Barrett burst into tears, but Cassandra didn’t try to comfort her, nor did she start work.

  When the door opened, she turned to see Mr Barrett standing there, scowling at her.

  ‘What are you doing to upset my wife?’

  ‘Asking for my wages.’

  ‘The impudence of you! Stealing money and then asking for more.’

  A phrase Cassandra had read came into her mind. ‘In English law, there is a presumption of innocence until someone is proven guilty. When I’m proven innocent, what are you going to do about the wages? Will you still be in Perth even? I call that stealing.’

  ‘How dare you accuse me of such a thing! And you can stop using fancy words that you don’t understand and aren’t suitable for a maid.’

  ‘I understand exactly what I’m saying. I may not have as much money as you, but there’s nothing wrong with my brain.’ She watched as his wife tugged his arm.

  ‘Pay her the wages, Simon! She’s worked hard, deserves them. Indeed, I don’t know what I’m going to do without her.’

  He turned in shock to his wife. ‘But we agreed!’

  ‘No. You said that’s what you were going to do. You didn’t even listen to my answer. And if you don’t pay her, I shall.’

  There was a pregnant silence, then he fumbled in his pocket. ‘I’m only doing this to stop you upsetting my wife!’

  He tossed some coins at Cassandra and she had to bend to pick up the ones that fell on the floor. She counted them carefully. ‘This is a pound short. Are you intending to cheat me?’ She held out her hand with the money lying on it to show him.

  He glared as he fumbled in his pocket and drew out another coin, this time deliberately dropping it on the floor.

  She picked it up, because a pound was a lot of money, but it made her angry that he’d behave in such a petty and vindictive manner. She turned to Mrs Barrett. ‘Thank you for your help, ma’am. Now, what did you want me to do for you this morning?’

  He stalked out and Mrs Barrett closed her eyes and shuddered. ‘Men! Did your husband always think he knew best?’

  It took her a minute to think of an answer. She kept forgetting that she was supposed to have had a husband. ‘No, ma’am. Nor did my father.’

  ‘You were lucky, then.’

  They didn’t say much as Cassandra arranged her mistress’s hair and finished the packing. ‘There. And I want to thank you for teaching me so much, especially about embroidery. I love doing that.’

  ‘I enjoyed it.’ She laid one hand on her belly. ‘I wish you well with your baby.’

  ‘And you with yours, Mrs Barrett.’

  When Cassandra left the cabin she wasn’t sure what to do with herself and stood for a moment outside it, relieved to have some time alone.

  Then the steward’s voice made her open her eyes again. ‘Captain says you’re to wait with the other single women once you’ve finished here.’

  She’d have preferred a few moments of peace, but knew better than to argue.

  It was two days before the ordinary emigrants could disembark and when they did, the single women were taken up to Perth, Cassandra among them.

  She was sent with her sisters to the Poorhouse-Home, which had been newly renovated and here again the single women would be under the care of a matron. Why did they always treat single women like children, Cassandra wondered rebelliously. She wasn’t a single woman, officially, but a widow. She sighed but didn’t make a fuss, not wanting to gain a bad reputation.

  Xanthe grew anxious when she heard that they were being put in a poorhouse, especially when they saw that this one was surrounded by a high stone wall with broken glass set in the top. ‘Are emigrants so eager to escape that they have to be locked in?’ she muttered to her twin. ‘I don’t like this place, Maia.’

  But to everyone’s relief, they found that the pauper inmates were lodged on the upper floor, while the emigrants had decent, if crowded quarters on the ground floor.

  The long room they were shown into had been divided by wooden partitions into smaller spaces, and the sisters shared one with some other young women from Lancashire. To everyone’s relief, the bedsteads were new and the bedding was clean.

  Cassandra was sternly warned not to try to run away by the new matron.

  ‘I’m not likely to leave without my trunks,’ she replied. ‘They contain all I own in the world. And I want my money back before I go as well. Mr Barrett stole it from me.’

  ‘I’ve been told you could have stolen that money,’ Matron said bluntly.

  ‘Well, I didn’t. And I shall prove that when I find Mrs Southerham, who gave it to me in the first place. She came out on the Eena.’

  ‘No one of that name has ever been lodged here.’

  ‘She wouldn’t need to have lodgings provided. She was gentry. They were going to stay with Mr Southerham’s cousin till they could buy some land.’

  ‘Hmm. Well, we’ll see if you’re proved correct. And in the meantime you’ve clean lodgings and food, so what are you complaining about?’ She looked at Cassandra as if daring her to try. ‘Now, I must get on. Already there are employers coming to see if they can find suitable maids, though how I’m expected to know whether you girls are suitable when I’ve only just met you all, I don’t know. You’d better not line up with the others, Lawson, not till your case is decided.’

  Matron insisted on her sisters going out to talk to potential employers, however, and wouldn’t take no for an answer. ‘I’ll fetch you some sewing,’ she told Cassandra. ‘We expect people to earn their keep here. You can sew, can’t you?’

  She stifled a sigh. ‘Yes. I’ve had plenty of practice during the past year.’

  ‘Good. Come with me and I’ll give you a petticoat to piece together.’

  When she returned with the bundle of sewing, Cassandra sat on her bed, hearing others talking nearby in the garden, feeling very alone and apprehensive about the future. What if she was unable to prove the money was hers? What would she do without it once she was unable to work?

  And what sort of job would she be able to find anyway? There were no cotton mills here. Anyway, she couldn’t accept a job without telling employers about her condition and they might not want her for only a short time.

  After the baby was born it would be even more difficult to find work, but she didn’t intend to let anyone take her baby away from her. She’d seen what happened when young women from the mill sent their babies away to be cared for ‘in the country�
��. A lot of those babies had died from neglect, that’s what.

  Pride had kept her head up and her expression calm while she spoke to Matron, but now, with no one to see her, she couldn’t hold back the tears, which plopped on to the material as she threaded her needle and sorted out the pieces.

  Reece drove the cart up to Perth for the Southerhams and they rode their horses, since they couldn’t leave the poor animals to fend on their own without a stream and meadow. The grass was beige and tinder dry with the summer heat.

  By setting off very early, they managed to give the horses a good rest during the heat of the day and find a place to stay for the night.

  The following day they pressed on, leaving the horses and cart at a livery stable and taking a ferry across to the north side of the river. In Perth they went to the hotel where they’d stayed previously because at least it was clean.

  ‘It wasn’t too bad, was it, my dear?’ Francis said to his wife.

  Neither of them thought to ask Reece what his accommodation at the small hotel had been like and he didn’t say anything. He was getting hardened to sleeping in rough places. Same old shed for me, he thought with a wry smile as he stowed his bag of clothes under a lower bunk bed.

  In the morning, however, Francis was unwell, so Livia sent for Reece and asked him to postpone his own business and go with her to the Poorhouse-Home, where the new arrivals were lodged. ‘I’m afraid all the maids will be hired if I wait until tomorrow. There’s such a shortage of good servants here.’

  They walked through the streets as soon as Livia had had breakfast, leaving Francis in the bedroom nursing his upset stomach.

  ‘I think it was the crab,’ Livia said. ‘I didn’t eat any, but Francis had two helpings. I gather another of the guests is also unwell. Francis has stopped being sick now but he was bad during the night and he’s not fit to walk anywhere yet.’

  There was a crowd of people at the Home and Livia stopped for a minute in dismay at the sight of them. ‘I was right to come today. Oh dear, I hope there are still some maids left to hire.’

  ‘If you stay behind me, I’ll push my way through the crowd,’ he offered.

  They edged their way towards the area where the young women were standing, some talking to prospective employers, others to one another. Before Livia could talk to anyone, there was a shriek and one of the young women ran across to throw herself into Reece’s arms.

  He stared in blank astonishment at Pandora. ‘What the—’ Even as she stepped back, flushing as if embarrassed at what she’d done, two others ran up to join them and hugged him as well. ‘What are you doing here?’ He looked round. ‘Where’s Cassandra?’

  ‘It’s a long story. Not for public telling and—’ Pandora began, then stopped as she saw the lady behind him. ‘Mrs Southerham! Oh, I can’t believe our luck! You’re just the person we need to see.’

  Livia smiled at her and looked round, also asking, ‘Isn’t Cassandra with you?’

  ‘They won’t let her come outside. They think she stole some money. She says you gave it to her.’

  Matron came across to them. ‘Is this man a relative?’ she demanded frostily. ‘I’m not having you girls throwing yourselves at men who are not.’

  Livia stepped forward. ‘Mr Gregory works for me. We both know these young women. We all come from the same town in Lancashire.’

  As Matron relaxed a little at the sound of a lady’s cultured accent, another man came up to them, eyeing the sisters in a way that annoyed Reece.

  The stranger pushed into the group. ‘You can’t hog them all, my dear lady. I’m looking for a maid too. My wife and I live out at York and we’ll pay well.’

  The sisters stepped away from him instinctively.

  ‘You found a maid only a few months ago, Mr Searle,’ Matron said. ‘What happened to her?’

  ‘She’s gone and got herself married, the ungrateful bi— um, creature. You can’t keep female servants for more than a few months here.’ He stared at Pandora. ‘I’d not hire one as beautiful as you, though. The men would be round you like bees round a honey pot. You’d not last a week.’

  ‘I’d not work for you.’ She glared at him. ‘I don’t like the way you look at me.’

  Matron gasped and choked back what sounded like a laugh.

  Reece didn’t bother to hide a smile at the outrage on the man’s face. Pandora was right, though he’d never heard a young woman say it so bluntly. The way the fellow looked at women was an insult in itself. He despised men like that. He’d bet that the previous maid had left her job for more than one reason.

  ‘Nor would I work for you,’ Xanthe added, linking her arm in her twin’s.

  ‘I’d not hire uppity maids like you. In fact, these Lancashire females don’t know their place.’ The man walked off, muttering to himself.

  Matron turned to the sisters, her smile fading. ‘I can understand you not wanting to work for Mr Searle, but be very careful in future how you reply to people offering you jobs. Remember, you’re here to find yourselves employment, not to be a burden on the government.’

  ‘We need to find jobs near to one another,’ Xanthe said.

  ‘You’ll have to take what’s offered, young woman,’ Matron said. ‘It’s not likely anyone will want to hire two of you. Now, I must—’

  Livia stepped forward. ‘Excuse me, Matron, but Pandora said there was some problem about Cassandra and money.’

  ‘Yes. She claims that a certain lady gave her the money in question in England, but the employer who brought her out here thought she’d stolen it, so it was taken from her. The Captain was going to give the money to the Governor for safe keeping.’

  ‘I’m Mrs Southerham and I gave her the money. What must I do to prove that?’

  Matron gave her an assessing look.

  ‘Never mind the money, where is she?’ Reece asked. ‘I need to see her urgently.’

  ‘We don’t allow men into the single women’s quarters,’ Matron told him frostily.

  ‘Then bring her out. I need to see her.’

  ‘Who are you?’

  ‘Reece Gregory.’ He was looking anxiously beyond her, desperate for a sight of Cassandra.

  ‘What is your interest in Mrs Lawson?’

  ‘What? I’m not interested in Mrs Lawson. It’s Cassandra Blake I want to see. She’s the woman I want to marry. I thought she was still in England. I’ve just written to her.’ He beamed at them all. ‘I’ve never heard such wonderful news in my life.’

  Matron looked at him in puzzlement. ‘Is it a while since you saw her?’

  He nodded. ‘A very long time.’ It seemed an eternity. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Xanthe nudge Maia, but didn’t look at their faces, too anxious to persuade this woman to take him to Cassandra. If she was here, he’d ask her to marry him immediately. Surely she’d say yes? She could share his room at Kevin’s and— He realised Matron was speaking again and tried to concentrate on what she was saying.

  ‘You can come as far as the rear of the garden, Mr Gregory. I’m sure Cassandra will explain the – um, circumstances. But first I must write a quick note to the Governor’s office. One of his clerks will no doubt come to speak to you, Mrs Southerham, to verify that the money does belong to Miss Blake. May I ask where you’re staying? Right.’ She turned back to Reece. ‘You must be patient for a few more moments. After I’ve written the note I’ll send Mrs Lawson out to speak to you.’

  Pandora poked him in the side when he opened his mouth to protest again that it was Miss Blake he wanted to see.

  Matron turned to add sharply, ‘As for you three, remember it’d be most unusual for two of you to find jobs close to one another, let alone three. This is the Swan River Colony, where settlements outside the capital city of Perth are small and widely scattered. We don’t have crowded towns like those in England.’

  When Matron had left, taking Reece with her, Livia cleared her throat. ‘Actually, I’m looking for a maid to do general work, and would be hap
py to employ one of you, but I can’t afford to employ all three. Still, it’d mean one of you was living near your sister, who will no doubt accept Reece’s proposal of marriage.’

  Their faces fell as they questioned her and discovered how isolated the place where she lived was, how far out of Perth.

  Livia frowned. ‘What did Matron mean by calling your sister Mrs Lawson? Is Cassandra married?’

  Pandora hesitated then whispered, ‘We can’t explain here.’

  Before she could pursue the matter, others came up to make enquiries as to whether the sisters were seeking employment and it was impossible to talk about private matters.

  Livia couldn’t understand why the three kept looking anxiously in the direction Reece had gone, or exchanging worried glances. It was as if they were expecting something to go wrong. Surely Cassandra’s feelings towards Reece hadn’t changed? He was a kind and good-looking man, would be an excellent provider, and he clearly still loved her. What more could any girl ask?

  Cassandra sewed steadily, enjoying the warm air blowing through the window and the bright sunlight. She looked up as someone came in and saw Matron frowning at her again. ‘Is something wrong?’

  ‘Could you please describe the appearance of this Mrs Southerham who is supposed to have given you the money?’

  She did so and saw Matron’s stern expression relax.

  ‘Then I’m happy to tell you she’s outside and has confirmed that she gave it to you. Don’t drop that sewing on the floor! Put it on the bed.’

  Cassandra’s hands were shaking as she did this. She couldn’t believe it could be so easy to prove that the money was hers. Surely this was a sign that things would start to go better for her from now on?

  Matron waited for a moment then continued, ‘Of course the Governor will have to approve the purse being given back to you, but I can’t see any great difficulty in that. Mrs Southerham is clearly a lady.’

  Did that mean that only ladies could be trusted to tell the truth? Cassandra wondered. This was another world from the cotton mill and narrow streets where she’d grown up. She’d never had any close dealings with gentry like the Southerhams before, or been treated so openly as an inferior being – which wasn’t how she regarded herself. But she was in another world now in more senses than that, she reminded herself, and kept her mouth closed on the angry response that nearly escaped her.