Journey With the Comet

by Dana Wayne Haley

  In addition to the many small businesses and dwellings that were lost that day, some of Bangor’s most important buildings were also destroyed: Bangor High School, the Post Office, the Custom House, the Bangor Public Library, the luxurious Windsor Hotel, the University of Maine School of Law library, and, ironically, even the Central Fire Station. Fortunately, of the hundreds who fought the fire, only two men died, both from the competing city of Brewer. Still, someone was overheard saying that, “the hearts and souls of many fine men were destroyed by that fire.” Among them were many of the cordial shop owners that the Haleys knew so well.

  With all the devastation wreaked that day, the only consolation for the stunned Haleys was that their home and its surrounding neighborhood was left untouched by the destructive fire. Still, many of the city’s most cherished buildings were either destroyed or sullied, and that damage would take a long time to repair. Until then, the resulting rubble stood as a sad reminder to everyone who frequented the city of the ferocity of the devastating fire and of the unimaginable damage that it caused. But as they say, life goes on, and it was no exception this time, at least, not in the Haley household. Fire or no fire, Margaret and Murdock had three small children to raise and they had no time to worry about external matters.

  Chapter 11

  Edie Visits

  With the exception of his older brother, who had visited eight years earlier, Murdock hadn’t seen his family since leaving Basswood Ridge in 1899, and the only way he had to keep in contact with them was by mail, which he always complained was “slower than death.” And, as the years went by, the frequency of letters to and from his family decreased. Now he felt himself lucky if he received three or four letters a year, so, in April of 1912, Murdock was pleasantly surprised when he returned home from work to find a letter waiting for him. It was from his sister Edith.

  “What does she have to say?” Margaret asked her husband after he finished reading the letter.

  “She wants to come for a visit, the first of May if that’s okay.”

  “That’s wonderful. You write and tell your sister that we’d love to see her. And don’t forget to tell her that anytime is convenient for us. And Murdy….”

  “Yeah?”

  “Tell Edith I’m especially looking forward to meeting her.”

  “I’ll do that, Maggie. Right away.”

  Murdock wasted no time looking for a pencil and paper to write a letter back to his favorite sister. Within two weeks he received a long letter back from her.

  “Maggie, Edie says she’ll be arriving in Bangor on the 2nd.”

  “That’s great! How is she planning on getting here?”

  “She’s leaving on the 1st. Gonna take a boat down the St. Croix to Eastport, where she’ll catch the City of Belfast to Bar Harbor. She’s gonna spend the night there and then catch the City of Bangor the next morning. Should arrive in Bangor around two in the afternoon, she says.”

  “How come she doesn’t take the Belfast all the way to Bangor, so she can arrive on the 1st?”

  “‘Cause it’s headed for Boston after the Bar Harbor stop.”

  “Oh. Even so, I can’t wait to see your sister.”

  —1—

  On Saturday, May 4th, Murdock walked to Front Street to greet his older sister. Edith’s ship arrived right on schedule.

  “Edie! Over here,” he yelled when he saw his sister walking down the ship’s ramp.

  When Edith saw Murdock, the petite woman ran toward her brother. They embraced and said their hellos for nearly a half-minute. Murdock didn’t want to let loose of his sister until he could discretely wipe the tears from his eyes. Like most men, he dreaded revealing his emotions, no matter how much he cared for Edith. And like most women, Edith knew how he felt, but didn’t let on.

  “Time’s a wastin’, Edie. We’d bes’ be going. Maggie is really anxious to meet you,” he was finally able to say without fearing that his voice would crack and betray his feelings.

  “I’m looking forward to meeting her too; and your three girls.”

  “Well then, lets be on our way. Here, I’ll carry your bag.”

  On the walk to Palm Street, he and his sister got caught up on each other’s doings since they last parted ways in early 1899.

  “I can’t believe it’s been thirteen years, Edie. You haven’t aged a bit.”

  “Thanks, Murdock. But I think you might be exaggerating just a mite.”

  “Really! I mean it, sis. You look so young.”

  Edith smiled and said nothing.

  “Well, this is it. What do you think?” Murdock asked when they approached the Haley home.

  “I like your house, little brother. It’s small, but so cute. And your flowers are really gorgeous.”

  “You can thank my wife for that. She’s the one with a green thumb around here. Well, lets go in so you can meet her—and the rest of my family, of course.”

  Edith smiled again when she heard the pride evident in her brother’s voice.

  —2—

  “Hello, you must be Edith,” Margaret said as Murdock’s sister walked through the door. “I’m Maggie; welcome to our home.”

  “Nice to meet you, Maggie. But please call me Edie.”

  “Okay, Edie it is,” Margaret said. “I want you to meet our oldest daughter Lillian.”

  “Hello there, Lillian!”

  “Hello,” the shy 8-year-old responded.

  “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Edie,” Margaret said.

  “The feeling is mutual, Maggie. Murdock’s been saying some really nice things about you on the way here. ‘Course, he’s been saying some nice things about you in his letters too.”

  “Thanks. Murdy’s told me all about you too.”

  “Is that a fact? I hope it was all good.”

  “Are you kidding? Didn’t you know you’re his favorite sister?”

  “No, as a matter of fact I didn’t,” Edith replied. “Is that right, Murdock?”

  “Well, I guess the cat’s outta the bag. I hope your head doesn’t get too big now, Edie,” he answered while giving his sister another big hug.

  Edith laughed and a tear came to both their eyes. This time Murdock couldn’t hide the tear running down his cheek.

  “I missed you so much, little brother.”

  “And I missed you, sis,” he was barely able to say. “More than you know.”

  Edith turned to Lillian to change the subject: “I understand you children behave exceptionally well, Lillian.”

  “Yup,” she answered. To that, the adults broke into spontaneous laughter.

  “Well, I don’t know about the behavin’ part, but at least we now know that one of ‘em could use a tad more modesty,” Murdock said. “Lillian seems to be lacking her fair share.”

  “Yeah, I wonder who she takes after, Murdy?” Margaret interjected. “I suspect a few lessons in modesty wouldn’t hurt either of you.”

  Edith couldn’t help but laugh.

  “Oh, I take by your laughter that your brother has always been a little short on humility. Am I right, Edie?”

  “You might say that, Maggie. You might say that. Indeed, humility was never his strong suit.”

  “Oh, Murdy,” Margaret said when something popped into her head, “before I forget: Mae told me today that our brother Bill and his new wife Jennie have decided to adopt a baby boy.”

  “Good for them,” he replied. “I’m glad they didn’t let infertility keep them from having a family.”

  “Yeah, that would’ah been a terrible shame,” Margaret agreed. “Well, Edie, why don’t you freshen yourself up. I’m fixin’ supper now and it should be ready in about an hour or so.”

  “Whatever you’re having, it sure smells good,” Edith said.

  “Why, thank you, Edie. Lillian, why don’t you show your aunt
where she’ll be sleepin’. And where the wash room is.”

  “Okay, Mama. Right this way, Aunt Edie.”

  “Thank you, dear. My, aren’t you the big one. How old are you now, Lillian.”

  “I’m eight.”

  “Oh, that’s right. I should remember my namesake’s age, shouldn’t I?”

  Lillian grinned and so did her aunt.

  “Where’s your sister Arlene? And little Leona?”

  “Arlene’s playing marbles in the living room. And Leona’s asleep in her crib.”

  After washing up and saying hello to Arlene, and sneaking a peek at little Leona, Edith joined Margaret in the kitchen.

  “Need any help, Maggie?”

  “No, I’m all set, Edie. You just sit yourself down and relax for a while.”

  “Whatever you say, Maggie. Your children are so well mannered. How do they get along?”

  “Good. They’re no trouble at all when it comes to that. Although, Arlene is beginning to show some stubbornness; at least, towards Lillian. Hopefully that’s just a temporary thing. But, as far as their attitude towards Leona: They worship her, and she them.”

  “That’s wonderful. I was nine when Murdock was born, and that’s exactly the way I felt about him. And, thanks to you, now I know he felt that way about me.”

  “Still does,” Margaret offered.

  —3—

  Edith spent much of her vacation playing games with her nieces. The children took to their aunt right away, and since she always wanted children of her own she adored them just as much, especially 2-year-old Leona. On Wednesday night Edith was enjoying a game of Old Maid with Lillian and Arlene, while holding Leona on her lap. Margaret and Murdock were sitting in their rocking chairs taking in all the action and the good-natured banter between the children and their aunt.

  “Well, you’ve beaten us again, Lillian,” Edith said. “I think we need to find another game to play; you’re too good at Old Maid. Do you know how to play Cribbage?”

  “Oh, yes. Papa taught it to me. We play it all the time. I like playing against Papa best, ‘cause I can beat him.”

  “Is that right, Murdock?”

  “I’m afraid so,” he laughed. “I’m too good a teacher, I guess.”

  “Oh, stop blowing your own horn, little brother. Your daddy and I used to play Cribbage when we were your age, Lillian, and I used to beat him all the time too.”

  “Now, wait a minute, Edie. You may not have lost your looks, but I can’t say the same for your memory.”

  “Don’t you believe a single word your Papa says, kids. My memory’s as good as ever.”

  “There’s only one way to settle this, Edie,” Murdock responded. “Would you like to try your hand at beating me in a game of Cribbage tonight?”

  “Why not. I’d love to give you another good spanking,” his sister teased.

  “Is that so? Well, we’ll see about that. I’ll get the board and you get ready to be SKUNKED.”

  “I dare say the only one who is going to stink tonight is your father; don’t you agree, Lillian?”

  “Yup,” she answered, with a smile on her face.

  Murdock smiled too, and everyone else laughed at the bickering between Murdock and his sister, especially the children, who enjoyed hearing that same kind of friendly, usually hilarious bickering when their mother and father played Cribbage. Now, after hearing their father and aunt teasing each other, they couldn’t wait for the cribbage game to start, or in reality for the wholly predictable good natured, yet likely abrasive banter to begin.

  Chapter 12

  The Cribbage Game

  The Cribbage game started at 6:30, right after supper was over and the dishes had been washed and put away. Edith hadn’t played for quite some time, so she asked Murdock to “freshen” her memory.

  “I’m sure you remember that an Ace counts as 1, and that 10s and face-cards are each 10. And that you get 2 points for each combination that adds up to 15, and for each pair. And each card in a run counts as 1 point, so a double run—say a 2, 3, 4, 4—is 8 points. And if the turned-up card is a 5, then you’d have 10 points for the double-run, and another 2 for the 15. And don’t forget that if a Jack is cut, that’s 2 points. And when we lay down, we get 2 points for reaching 15 or 31, and 1 for last card. Oh yes, the Right Jack counts only as 1. Now, let’s play.”

  The game began and both were getting good hands, but Murdock’s were slightly better, so after twenty minutes he was leading Edith by 21, with only 9 more pegs needed to reach 121 and a win. However, it was Edith’s turn to deal and she had two Cribbage hands to his one.

  “Well, I can’t SKUNK you, but I sure as heck can bring you to your knees. You want to concede now, Edie, to save yourself the shame?”

  “Not on your life,” she answered.

  “But, sis, you do know that the average hand in Cribbage is 8 don’t you? And if I happen to get that—which there’s no way I won’t—it’s all over. I’ll just hav’ta peg 1 to go out.”

  “Dream on, little brother! You’re not gonna get 8 in your hand, so you better pray that you peg a whole lot more than 1. A whole lot more. Because, if you don’t, I’m gonna take you down a peg or two. Have your children seen you eating humble pie, yet? If not, they’re in for quite a treat today,” she said confidently, while winking at the giggling children.

  “Okay, Edie, but don’t say I didn’t give you a chance to bow out gracefully. You know how I hate beating women, but if that’s your choice.”

  —1—

  After the hands were dealt, Edith was holding two 5s, a 9, a Jack, and two Kings. Murdock on the other hand had a 5, two 6s, a 9, a 10, and a Queen. He decided right away to keep his four lowest cards. It wasn’t that hard a decision since from his way of thinking he had no choice but to keep the 9 and 6s, and besides, he would never put a 5 in his opponents Crib—most especially not Edith’s—unless the other cards he held were too good to part with. Even so, he wasn’t that thrilled about throwing Edith a 10 and a Queen either. That could be double trouble if a Jack were turned over, because she would automatically get 2 points, and would have at least a three-card run in her Crib, for 3 more points.

  “But what’s the chance a Jack will be turned over,” he thought; besides, the cards he held had a lot of potential: a 5-of-Diamonds, 6-of-Spade, 6-of-Hearts and 9-of-Diamonds. That was 6 points, with a lot of possibilities for much more, certainly enough to go out and humiliate his sister if the right card was turned over. And even if it wasn’t, he only needed to peg 3 to go out.

  “Please, God,” he thought, “just give me a 4, 6, 7 or 9, and it’s all over. I’d even settle for a 3, 5, 10 or face card. That’d be 8 points in my hand, and I’d only need to peg 1.”

  While Murdock was pondering his cards, Edith was busy studying hers: a 5-of-Clubs, 5-of-Spades, 9-of-Hearts, Jack-of-Diamonds, King-of-Hearts, and King-of-Spades. She had no choice but to hold the two 5s and two Kings; that was 12 points.

  After Murdock and Edith each threw two cards facedown into her crib, he cut the deck. Edith turned over the card and laughed when she heard her brother’s reaction.

  “On no! A Jack. You lucky so-and-so.”

  “Why did I give her the 10 and Queen?” he asked himself. “Should’ah kept the 5, 6, 9 and 10. That’ah been 9 points and lights out. Oh well, as they say: hindsight is twenty-twenty. No sweat though, I’m still in good shape with these cards.”

  “Gee, kids,” Edith said, “from the look on your father’s face I think he might have given me something good in the crib. Hopefully, a 5 and a face card; better yet, a couple of 5s would be even better. Getting worried, Murrr-deee?”

  “Just take your measly 2 points, Edie. You still need 28 more to win, and there’s no way that’s gonna happen. In fact, I’ll be OUT before you can even count your hands; and a 28-point win is almost as good as a SKUNK,” he s
aid, knowing that a 31-point win is needed for a SKUNK in Cribbage.

  With the Jack turned up, Murdock was now holding an 8-point hand and he knew he could easily peg 1 point. With the cards he had to peg with, it would be a miracle—or maybe a disaster is more appropriate—if he didn’t. Edith noticed that her brother didn’t have on his usual smug face, the one that was so familiar to her when he knew he was going to win. Seeing that, she suspected he didn’t have enough points in his hand to go out, and that he would have to peg at least 1 point to win. The problem was, she didn’t know just how many pegs he would have to get. If it was only 1 or 2, or even 3, Edith knew she could be in deep trouble. All it took was a pair or a 15, and a GO to give him 3; and that was certainly not unthinkable.

  “Please, God, let him have a bad hand,” she prayed. “Four points would be okay, but no more than that.”

  Even though she was concerned, Edith decided to rattle her brother’s cage, and asked sarcastically: “Did someone stoke the stove, Lillian?”

  “Nope. Why, Aunt Edie? Are you hot?”

  “No, but it sure looks like your father is starting to sweat a little.”

  Everyone laughed again at her sarcasm and, just when the laughter was dying down, she decided to give her brother another verbal jab.

  “Go ahead, Murdy, it’s your turn. Or are you just too afraid to lay down?”

  “Just a minute, I’m thinking,” he answered.

  “What’s the matter? What are you waiting for?”

  “I don’t want to give you anything to peg on, just by chance you lucked out and have good hands.”

  When he said that, Edith was sure that her brother couldn’t go out without pegging, so she decided to try to divert his attention from the game.

  “Hey, Murdy, Maggie tells me you’re a big Red Sox fan. What do you think of their chances this year?”