From Alice Waters Cairns to her cousin May Waters (January, 1920)

[Undated. Assumed to be early 1920s.]

[The letter is written after Christmas. It refers to Ian and Owen Cairns but not their sister Alice. Owen was born in March 1919. Alice was born in June 1921. That appears to situate this letter between those two dates. Geoff Hewson arrived early in December 1919. The reference to him wanting to fix the sleigh as it was last year argues for this being written after Christmas 1920.]

Langbank, Sask. 

Dear May & Edith, 

If May can’t leave Edith, and Edith hates travelling, it is of no use for me to ever expect to see May or Edith on this side of the pond. I am saving up money to cross sometime, that is easier to do, though money is scarce, than it is to leave Bob and the household cares. A farm house without a keeper of the feminine kind is an awful and expensive place, would haunt my footsteps where’er I’d roam. 

On Christmas day we rose late. I hunted up what treats I could for their breakfast; it amounted to some marmalade and better toasted bread than usual. The boys tidied themselves a little, but half the comfort of the day was that as we were only going to Janet’s we need not dress in our Sunday-go-to-meetings. They do not look quite so dreadful as those snaps they sent you. Mr. Wrangham did put on nice clothes and leather boots, and suffered with cold feet all the way up. 

Mr. W. got the big sleigh ready just as he used to before he went home. Last winter I had a different way of going, had a big easy chair in the sleigh instead of a board on two boxes, Geoffrey kept telling Mr. W. how to fix the sleigh as it was last winter. [Geoffrey Hewson came to Canada to work for the Cairns when he was not quite 17. His mother, Amaret Waters Hewson, was Alice Cairns’ first cousin and May Waters’ sister.]  Mr. W. waxed indignant, told Geof he had fixed that sleigh more times than Geof, however, the chair was put in, the Rev. Uncle, Bob, Geof, and Mr. W. sat on the boards, I on the chair. Bert went on his wheel, Mr. Dunne walked and we arrived at Janets about 2 o’clock. Janet had cooked two ducks, I gave the children duck’s eggs in the spring, and they consented to have their pets killed for Christmas dinner. She had string beans, canned by herself, parsnips, beets, cran berries, potatoes and pie and pudding, all good, so we stuffed. The rest ate a supper of cake and candy and nuts about 8 o’clock. Mr. W. was quite sick for a week after, he took no exercise, and he is a large eater. Mr. W. calls Mr. Cairns the Rev., and Geof calls him Uncle, So I call him the Rev. Uncle. We came home at midnight, in perfect comfort; found the house not very cold, made good fires went to bed and Xmas was over! 

Sunday evenings the boys make ice-cream, they take the trouble of milking COWS, something the men don’t care to do on these Western farms, so I am willing to give them cream and eggs, as I like plenty of milk to make butter. But, oh, I wish Mr. Cairns and I had a small house or home to ourselves. The work for so many and the house to care for is too much. If I could only get a woman in every now and then to iron, wash floors and paint, it would be alright. There are seven of us all the time this winter. Mr. W. will be off my hands soon, I hope. He has his well dug, a good lot of good water in it, and he is about getting lumber for his house and barn, buying machinery etc. Perhaps, though, I’ll have to board his carpenters till he gets a roof over his head. 

Last week I had two telephone men for meals, they are putting up some new lines. One day I felt quite happy, I perhaps could get some work done ahead, there (being) only five for dinner, Bert at school and Mr. W. cutting wood five miles away. First Susan and Sadie Dickey came joyfully in, while their Daddy went to Kennedy. Next, just as the dinner table was set, a telephone man poked his head in the door asking if I could give two of them their dinner. I made a grimace, but said “yes”, he was a few steps away when Annie Dean came stepping in, so there I was with a crowded table, there was enough for all, a stew, and it was comfortably all eaten up. I don’t like a left over in the stew line. But, no extra work done that day. I could only do the ordinary tasks that day. 

Bob is just now evoking some hideous noises out of the organ, I don’t mind, but I think the others are nervous. 

Janet’s children are well just now, but they do have colds when ever the fancy takes them. John’s two boys seem to thrive, Ian importantly takes care of Owen. 

I am glad the days are growing longer, more time in daylight; perhaps I can keep the house cleaner. Mending is my greatest bugbear, I cannot and will not mend in the evenings, I take the evening for just my own recreation, doing fancywork. 

Everything you write is always interesting to me. Funny, you think everything must be so different here, and I think every thing must be so different in England, and yet after all we would find so little difference if we were in the other place. 

With best love to both dear cousins, I remain your loving cousin 

Alice Cairns