Monday was wet again. Just as we were sitting down to one o'clock dinner
Mrs. Hagan came in with her baby, saying she thought it was two o'clock.
She stayed on till after three, having been joined by her daughter.
Finally we left them to themselves, as I had yeast to make and Graham's
hair to cut. When I came back she had departed.
It rained in torrents last night and all to-day. School was impossible. With a free day before us we felt like children, and were settling down when William appeared with his reading-book. "Would Mr. Barrow 'larn' him"; so Graham buckled to for over an hour. It is nice to see a young fellow so anxious to learn. Later on he came in with his hand bound up. He had cut it with a hatchet, happily not badly, and wanted me to dress it, his mother having already put a cobweb on.
When Bob Green (William's step-father) came in with the milk he told us he had seen a dead cow in the gulch. I fear it has died from wet and exposure. I cannot bear to think of the poor beasts suffering so. One winter more than a hundred were lost simply because there was not enough food for them. They climb up the mountains in search of grass, and often from weakness fall and are killed.
CHAPTER X
Tuesday, June 26 (continued).—At the request of the Custom House authorities at Cape Town we brought on from there some stores which had been sent by a French firm to the Tristanites in return for kindness shown by them to one of the firm's ships which had been on fire off Tristan. In the reply of the people to the kind inquiry what stores would be most useful to them the item "soap" was read as "soup," with the result that four cases of tins of soup were received and no soap, much to their disappointment, for soap is more prized than anything. We have lately made the acquaintance of some of these soups, which the people do not care for, as they have plenty of meat. Mrs. Bob Green sent us two tins of ox-tail, for which we gave her a brush and comb, although she said she didn't want anything. A few days later William appeared with a further supply, so to-day we gave him two tins of jams to take to his mother. He persistently said, "She don't want anything," but as we insisted, he finally went off with them.
To-day the room has been rather like an Irish cabin, rain dropping through the ceiling, puffs of smoke coming down the chimney, and wind blowing through every crevice. At the fire on this hearth all the day's cooking has had to be done. All the same we have been very cheerful and have enjoyed a quiet day with few interruptions. I have been able to get through some work, and have been busy making a cover for the Communion cloth out of the material E—— gave us; with bands of white sateen and a white cross in the centre it looks quite nice. Two little canaries I brought from the Cape have had to be put by the fireside to be kept warm.
Wednesday, June 27.—This morning to my dismay I found the rain had come down the chimney on to the bowl of yeast which Ellen and I had prepared with some labour, and had spoilt it.
Repetto came in this evening with the cover for the harmonium. It is a clever piece of work. He turns his hand to almost anything, and can even make his own suits. Tonight he was decidedly droll, and in his broken language gave us a description of a certain wedding. There was only one person, a woman, who was able to read the marriage service, and she would not, as she did not approve of the marriage. It ended in the bride's brother officiating, and, as he is no scholar, he had to spell out the words as he went along. How we laughed!
Thursday, June 28.—On Tuesday from half-past eight to midnight the rain gauge measured four inches of rain. We hear about twenty-four cattle have died. The cold wind and rain were fatal to them. The poor things could get no place of shelter. Graham wants the men to build some sort of shelter for the cattle, and those to whom he has spoken about it say it would be an excellent plan.
This morning we heard a cheerful clucking of fowls outside our bedroom window, and on looking out saw that the wind had blown the meat-safe over and emptied its contents on the path. The fowls were having a fine feast off the suet. Graham was just in time to save the half leg of mutton. We live on mutton week by week. Very occasionally a bullock is killed. Last week three families sent us beef.