The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1955-11-18
THE HIGHER
THE FEWER
There's Always Plenty of Room
At The Top
By
NANCY ]. MIDGETT

| OIner Qay,-duO WIldL we WOulO
like and how we would like our
own house built if we ever got
to that stage, state or condition
when we could hold on to enough
money to start doing something
about it. Not that it would be with
US long when we started, but you
know what l mean.
| One Of the things that came un-
der discussion was the Utility
Room, how we would like it fitted
and where we would like it in the
house. Of course a lot of that de-
ponds on where the lot is situated
that the house is to be built on,
the view, shelter and light, etc.
| After l had gone home, it struck
me that the now modern and much
sought after Utility room is the
child of the scullery of my youth;
something that 1 swore 1 would
not have the bother of when l grew
up and/if had my own home.
Our house in which lived thirty
years, was rented but we had been
so long in it that we looked upon
it as our own and really took great
care of it. We had a good land
lady who at least always met us
half way in the repairs; if we pro-
vided the material she would pro-
vide the labor or vice versa. That
is more or less how l came to first
paint and paper hang for when
money was short and Mrs. Smith,
our landlady, supplied the paper,
the cost of hanging was nil when
we did it ourselves.
Mrs. Smith was great charac-
ter. Her husband died when in his
late thirties and when she had col
lected herself and recovered from
her grief, she set out to manage
the business, a boat builders, most
ly small river craft like the pleas
ure boats hired out on the Thames,
skiffs, dingys and punts, not just
the plain but good old work boats
you see round the sound here, but
boats vanished every spring till
they shone, the gratings over the
floor boards were covered with
padded cushions and there were
more cushions to put at ones back
against the back rest. If you were
in punt, you could work and re-
lax by using the paddle instead of
the pole but if in the skiff or
dingy, the cushions were for the
passenger or passengers only,
while those who were efficient on
the water,-and a lot who were
not,-sat on the seat across the
thwart and used the oars, if in the
best river style, the elbows were
kept down and you turned the
blade as it left the water and
"feathered" the surface then turn
ed it again as you dipped for the
pull stroke. That gave you less
wind pressure on the blade when
it was out of the water and a
faster stroke than those that, as
we called it with our noses in the
air, "windmilled".
Not only did Mrs. Smith keep
her eye on this business but also
on the section that ran a small
fleet of tug boats up and down
the Thames and l suppose through
the canals. / believe she owned
four boats and was really the
Boss, not just in name but in
action. When the marine motors
or other goods she needed for hel
boats were not forthcoming accord
ing to schedule or there was any
thing wrong with the order wher
it arrived, she attended to it in
person and knew what she needed
should have and saw that she got
it. l heard this from an employee
in firm in Southampton, England
which has quite a name for itself
where marine motors and parts are
concerned. He said she could out
swear any longshoreman and took
no excuses from anyone. l had
never heard her swear though
can quite imagine that she coulC
for she was of the rough diamond
type but / give her credit that she
only used the cussing where il
was due, at least in her estimation
and not as the every other sen.
tence to any and all as so many
people do.
/ haven't heard in a long time
how she is or even whether she
still has the business. When my
mother died lin 1910 and my sis
ter found the house too large fol-
her to live in alone, we left anC
the house was sold. ] walked dewr
the road one time to look at i
when l was up on a vacation dur
ing the war and it was a mistak,
to do so. The new owners had al
tered quite a bit of the externa
looks,-the iron ratings that KEEP
the dogs out of the garden hat
gone to the war effort and i
wasn't home anymore, but tina
seems to end anyway with thu
family breaking up and going theil
own ways. Dad and Mother hac
their home in Scotland and al
their people before them so excep