CHAPTER VII

Life under Difficulties—drawbacks of a Public-school Training—Hints on Emigration—Pneumonia¹—Unemployment in Chicago, 1893.

Do not imagine from what I have just written that I stepped from one of these positions into another. Far from it; there are successive gaps between filled with fruitless searching after work. In one thing I was very lucky: two of my wife’s brothers came to Chicago at the same time she and I did, and we all helped one another. When in need, one could always get meals from the others, if they had work; and for this reason none of us starved, though we ate slim meals occasionally. I remember, one evening, one of the boys came up to our room to go out and sup with us (we ate at a restaurant), whereas my wife and I had been waiting for him to come home, so that we could get him to take us out! I had a little bank in which I had been putting pennies for a rainy day, and we decided² to break it open, as the rainy day had arrived. It had, if I remember right, 78 cents in it; and there came the rub—none of us wanted to hand 56the waiter 78 copper³ cents for the supper, so it had to be changed into silver, and none of us wanted to do the changing. At last we put the job on my wife, as we were two to one against her.

My wife was the life of the whole lot of us boys, for boys we all were. She it was who cheered us and kept heart in us during bad times, and during one very bad time she tided me over by getting a position as cashier at a soda-fountain, till I was on my feet again.

We had our amusements too, and occasionally went to the theatre, in the peanut gallery, and sometimes I got passes from an actor friend of mine. There was a piano in our boarding-house, where a mob of about a dozen of us would congregate⁴ in the evenings and have music, singing, and story-telling. It was quite a conglomeration⁵. There were two old-maid sisters, teachers in the Chicago High School, who could recite; a young fellow who was singing tenor⁶ in the “chorus” of Kiralfy’s America Company at the Auditorium⁷ (he could parody⁸ anything, had a very fine voice, and was a natural comedian); then there was an engraver⁹ in Lyon and Healy’s piano factory, who played well; also an elderly man, who taught music on the guitar and banjo, and played divinely on the latter; a stockbroker’s clerk, my wife, her two brothers, and myself, 57who were all strong on choruses; and others whom I forget. When times were good, and we could buy a jug¹¹ of beer and had plenty of tobacco, that house used to be a scene of much revelry.

Chicago, however, is not like London, where you can find so many places to see and amuse yourself without cost. Excepting the parks one has to pay to go anywhere, either to the museum or picture gallery, and even the parks cost car-fare. For, as I have said before, Chicago is a huge city. When I worked at the fair-grounds I lived on the west side, and went eight miles to my work and back every day.

I have said that an English public-school education was a poor training for a man who had to make a living in the United States—at least, at the start. I do not mean, of course, a man who has a finished education and could enter one of the professions, but I mean for a lad who comes of good family, who has failed for the army or navy, who is not studious, but who is not necessarily an idiot. Such a lad gets ideas in an English public school—at least, it was so in my school—both from the masters and from his comrades, that when he grows up there are only a few things a gentleman can do and not lose caste. He must not be a “counter-jumper” or take any menial position. A farmer or rancher is correct form, and 58even “help” on either is within the pale. But it is better to live as a gentleman supported by relatives than to “disgrace” them by earning one’s own support in any “low” position. Then, again, the education one receives is not practical for the necessities of life here. Here one needs book-keeping instead of Greek, shorthand and typewriting instead of Latin, and the study of modern business methods instead of ancient history. All these things, of course, are good in their place, but I am speaking solely¹² of the boy who finally has to come to the States to make his way in competition with men who are thoroughly¹³ up-to-date in all these things.

Once in Chicago I saw an advertisement for a coachman at $60 per month and cottage. It was a bonanza¹⁴. I was in great need of work at the time, and so applied¹⁵ for the position; but, unfortunately, all the letters of recommendation I could show were from the president of the Agricultural College at Guelph, the rector of my church there, and my certificate of the Simla Veterinary Course, all of which told the tale of my being gentle-born and not of the coachman class. The advertiser was an Englishman and a large broker¹⁰ on the Stock Exchange, and though he acknowledged that I could fill the place, and from my veterinary knowledge would be of more value to 59him than an ordinary coachman, he refused me the job solely on the ground that I was a gentleman, and he could not employ such in a menial position. I explained that I was married and badly needed work, and that I was not likely to presume, but would give him good and honest work. He said he was sorry, but it would make him uncomfortable to have a gentleman working for him in a “menial position”; and that was all I could get out of him.

In those days I was ashamed to write and tell my friends what I was doing for a living; but as I grew older and got a broader view of things, I got over that false pride, and now am not ashamed that I have been able to earn an honest living by any and all kinds of work. Phil May’s reproof¹⁶ of this false pride is amusing. He once, during his early struggles, secured a job in a small second-class restaurant as waiter. A friend one day recognised him, and said, “My heavens, Phil, have you fallen to this?” May replied, "Why, yes, my friend, I work here; but, thank God, I haven’t fallen so far as to have to eat here." Surely a man can remain a gentleman no matter what he has to do to earn a living.

If I had a friend in England who had sons he was forced to send to the United States to make their way, I would, by the light of my own experience, 60advise him to send the boy over here when he was fourteen or fifteen years of age, and—unless the father could also come here to live—put him under the care of some friend or some reputable lawyer. If the boy’s bent¹⁷ were agriculture, send him to the Ontario Agricultural College at Guelph, which is about the best institution of its kind on the continent. Pay his board, tuition, and clothing bills, but let him earn his own spending money, which he can easily do. If his bent is mechanical, get him in as apprentice¹⁸ with the Allis-Chalmers Company (mining machinery¹⁹ manufacturers in Chicago), and after he has passed out in four years of hard work, learning practically every branch of the building of machinery, send him to Columbia University to take the mechanical engineers’ course of three years. If the latter cannot be afforded, the former will be sufficient for a bright lad who is willing to study a little by himself. If his bent is mercantile, send him to a good business college in New York or Chicago, to learn shorthand, typewriting, book-keeping, and general business methods, and after he has passed through, either let him start out and earn his own living—not getting a penny from home except in the case of sickness, but not when out of work—or else get him in as clerk or office-boy into the particular business he is afterwards to follow. A little 61hard times hurts no one, though the boy should be carefully watched and not allowed to get into serious trouble. Of course, this kind of education does not put on a very fine polish, but it makes a capable man; and if the boy has been well trained till he is fourteen, there is little fear of his going wrong, much less fear than if he has too much money. After this course for a few years, he should be a practical business man, and well capable of handling his own capital, either to start for himself or to buy an interest in the business in which he has been working.

I worked as drug salesman for some time, when I had the misfortune to catch a very bad cold, which turned into pneumonia. It was about four weeks before I could walk again. My wife and the boys pulled me through in spite of the doctor, who said, “Wire for his people.” Some cousins of my wife, who farmed near Iowa City, invited us to come and stay with them till I was strong again, and so as soon as I could toddle²⁰ we went to them.

I had never written home what my life in Chicago was, as, having married so young contrary to my people’s wishes, I was determined²¹ to make my living, if possible, without aid. But when the doctor told my wife that my days were over, she wired Mr. Bole in New York to cable home, and he sent her 62funds to meet expenses and to take us both to Iowa City.

Chicago is, I believe, the coldest city in America in the winter, and the hottest in summer, but a splendid business town, with large opportunities for a young man. And when I hear men tell me that they can’t get a job and have to beg, it makes me hostile; for I know that a healthy single man need never go hungry if he is willing to work, though he may not always get the kind of job he fancies. This is, of course, during ordinary times. The fall and winter of 1893 were exceptional, for when I left Chicago in November of that year it was estimated that there were 200,000 men out of employment in a city which had a normal population of about one million and a quarter, though it was much inflated²² at the time. The churches were opened for them to sleep in, and soup kitchens established all over the city that winter, and the police and railroad men bothered no one who chose to leave town in a “side-door Pullman” (baggage wagon), as they were only too glad to see the last of them. There was some little rioting, but, on the whole, they were all honest labourers out of a job, and only seeking food. For this they were willing to work, and the city put enormous gangs to work cleaning snow off the streets, so that the feeding, &c., should not look like charity. 63Of course this attitude of the railway was exceptional. Stowaways²³, when discovered, are generally thrown out promptly²⁴. They are accustomed to it, so seldom come to harm. Out West, freight trainsmen are sometimes very civil in picking up persons who “flag” them on the prairie. They will not, however, always stop to “set-down,” but at ordinary “freight” pace on the prairie lines it is possible to jump without affording the trainsmen the fun of somersaults.

1 pneumonia   

n.肺炎

参考例句：

• Cage was struck with pneumonia in her youth.凯奇年轻时得过肺炎。
• Pneumonia carried him off last week.肺炎上星期夺去了他的生命。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

4 congregate   

v.(使)集合，聚集

参考例句：

• Now they can offer a digital place for their readers to congregate and talk.现在他们可以为读者提供一个数字化空间，让读者可以聚集和交谈。
• This is a place where swans congregate.这是个天鹅聚集地。

5 conglomeration   

n.团块，聚集，混合物

参考例句：

• a conglomeration of buildings of different sizes and styles 大小和风格各异的建筑楼群
• To her it was a wonderful conglomeration of everything great and mighty. 在她看来，那里奇妙地聚集着所有伟大和非凡的事业。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

6 tenor   

n.男高音（歌手），次中音（乐器），要旨，大意

参考例句：

• The tenor of his speech was that war would come.他讲话的大意是战争将要发生。
• The four parts in singing are soprano,alto,tenor and bass.唱歌的四个声部是女高音、女低音、男高音和男低音。

7 auditorium   

n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂

参考例句：

• The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
• The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。

8 parody   

n.打油诗文，诙谐的改编诗文，拙劣的模仿；v.拙劣模仿，作模仿诗文

参考例句：

• The parody was just a form of teasing.那个拙劣的模仿只是一种揶揄。
• North Korea looks like a grotesque parody of Mao's centrally controlled China,precisely the sort of system that Beijing has left behind.朝鲜看上去像是毛时代中央集权的中国的怪诞模仿，其体制恰恰是北京方面已经抛弃的。

9 engraver   

n.雕刻师，雕工

参考例句：

• He was a sketcher and a copper-plate engraver. 他也是杰出的素描家和铜版画家。 来自辞典例句
• He was once an engraver in a printing factory. 他以前是印刷厂的一名刻工。 来自互联网

10 broker   

n.中间人，经纪人；v.作为中间人来安排

参考例句：

• He baited the broker by promises of higher commissions.他答应给更高的佣金来引诱那位经纪人。
• I'm a real estate broker.我是不动产经纪人。

11 jug   

n.(有柄，小口，可盛水等的)大壶，罐，盂

参考例句：

• He walked along with a jug poised on his head.他头上顶着一个水罐，保持着平衡往前走。
• She filled the jug with fresh water.她将水壶注满了清水。

12 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

13 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

14 bonanza   

n.富矿带，幸运，带来好运的事

参考例句：

• Bargain hunters enjoyed a real bonanza today.到处买便宜货的人今天真是交了好运。
• What a bonanza for the winning ticket holders!对于手持胜券的人来说，这是多好的运气啊。

15 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

16 reproof   

n.斥责，责备

参考例句：

• A smart reproof is better than smooth deceit.严厉的责难胜过温和的欺骗。
• He is impatient of reproof.他不能忍受指责。

17 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

18 apprentice   

n.学徒，徒弟

参考例句：

• My son is an apprentice in a furniture maker's workshop.我的儿子在一家家具厂做学徒。
• The apprentice is not yet out of his time.这徒工还没有出徒。

19 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

20 toddle   

v.（如小孩）蹒跚学步

参考例句：

• The baby has just learned to toddle.小孩子刚会走道儿。
• We watched the little boy toddle up purposefully to the refrigerator.我们看著那小男孩特意晃到冰箱前。

21 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

22 inflated   

adj.（价格）飞涨的；（通货）膨胀的；言过其实的；充了气的v.使充气（于轮胎、气球等）( inflate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）膨胀；（使）通货膨胀；物价上涨

参考例句：

• He has an inflated sense of his own importance. 他自视过高。
• They all seem to take an inflated view of their collective identity. 他们对自己的集体身份似乎都持有一种夸大的看法。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 stowaways   

n.偷乘船[飞机]者( stowaway的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Smuggling guns, ammunition and drugs or assisting stowaways. 七私运枪械、弹药、品或协助偷渡人口者。 来自互联网
• Officious immigration and customs officers scrutinised documents and searched cabins for stowaways or illicit goods. 一本正经的边境和海关官员仔细检查文件，在车厢里搜索偷渡者和走私货物。 来自互联网

24 promptly   

adv.及时地，敏捷地

参考例句：

• He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。
• She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。