‘
And that’s the Palm Court,’ Harry continued, enjoying his role of tour guide while keeping a good look out for Officers or other senior stewards who would not be at all pleased to see the group of them lurking in their hiding place. ‘See, there are proper palm trees and plants climbing the trellises. I bet you didn’t reckon on there being proper plants growing on a ship?!’
The girls were not at all interested in the flora, gazing wide-eyed at the elegant ladies who sat at the wicker chairs and poured tea from dazzling, silver pots into elegant china cups, the stunning cobalt blue and gold of the exclusive Titanic china glinting in the sunlight. Small, white vases of elegant pink roses and white daisies were placed on each table, silver sugar tongs rested on dainty saucers next to succulent slices of fruit cake, the sight of which almost made the girls drool.
They watched in silent awe as three young ladies, about the same age as themselves, chatted and laughed at one of the tables nearest to them, their oriental-style, silk dresses draped elegantly over their slim, hourglass figures, ending just above the ankle to show their exquisite boots. At another table, a group of older ladies - possibly their mothers, Maggie thought - were equally elegant in their more reserved lace blouses with stylish, narrow sleeves and full length skirts. All the ladies, young and old, wore huge hats decorated with all manner of accessories; lace, feathers, satin, ribbons and stuffed birds. Maggie noticed a small boy behind them playing with a spinning top.
The three friends were stunned into silence by the splendour, grace and elegance of it all. It was as if they were watching their own, private silent movie, unable to hear the conversations, but able to admire the rich plums and teals, the soft pastel peach and pinks, the virginal white, every conceivable manner of fabric, colour and style which seemed to be sitting in that room.
‘
See that girl there with the cigarette holder and the long white gloves?’ Harry whispered, pointing out a particularly elegant lady sitting nearest to them. ‘She’s a famous actress in the silent movies, Vivienne Walker-Brown.’ The girls had never heard of the woman, but she oozed such style and sophistication that all three of them wanted to trade their life for hers immediately. ‘And that’s her stupid little dog, Edmund, sitting under her chair,’ he continued. ‘It goes everywhere with her. I took it for a walk the other day I’ll have you know.’
At that, Peggy snorted a laugh so loud that it almost gave away their hiding place. If it hadn’t been for the violinists entertaining the ladies, Maggie was sure they would have been heard.
‘
Jesus Christ Peggy, shush would you,’ Maggie scolded as they clambered quickly back down the ladder before anyone could arrest them or throw them overboard.
By the time they were all safely down, all four were laughing, partly with nerves and partly at Harry knowing the name of some society lady’s dog.
‘
Well, that’s all very nice an’ all,’ Peggy announced as she finally composed herself, wiping tears of laughter from her cheeks, ‘but I bet they can barely breathe trussed up into their corsets like stuffed turkeys. You wouldn’t catch me sitting up there for all the fancy teacups in china.’ At the foot of the ladder she turned to face Harry. ‘Well, young man, that was a very interesting excursion,’ she announced in a mock, upper-class accent which had them all in a fit of the giggles again. ‘Thank you very much,’ she continued. ‘I….
we
look forward to seeing you at dinner, don’t we girls?’
The flush in her cheeks was visible to them all as she turned to walk down the passageway back to the cabin.
Maggie hung back, grabbing for the note from her pocket. ‘I wrote my note,’ she said, passing the folded page to Harry, feeling awkward at handing over her private words to a relative stranger, few words though they were. ‘You promise not to read it now will ye, just give it to your friend, so?’
‘
Of course I won’t read it. Them’s your words written down and it’s none of my business what you’re saying or who you’re sayin’ it to. The Marconi boys will have to read it though y’know, in order to send it. You did know that?’
He looked at Maggie, feeling for her embarrassment.
‘
Jesus, you daft eejit, of course I know that,’ she replied, cuffing him on the shoulder. ‘And thanks for it. For helping me, like. Are you sure they won’t be needin’ the money, ‘cos I don’t have that many shillings with me.’
‘
They’ll do it as a favour to a friend,’ Harry replied. ‘Now don’t be worrying about it. I said I’d help you and I will. I’ll take it up to them straightaway. Now, get lost all of you, I’ve your lunch to get ready!’
The girls walked back to their cabin, chattering and commenting about what they had just seen.
‘
Imagine girls,’ Peggy whispered. ‘If we work hard and marry well, we might sail back to Ireland on Titanic one day and sit among those ladies on that veranda. What about it eh? Wouldn’t that be a fine thing?’
‘
It would Peggy,’ Katie replied wistfully. ‘It certainly would for sure. But for now, a full belly, clean hands and a game of rummy on the deck of one of the finest ships ever to sail the Atlantic ain’t too bad for three colleens from Ballysheen now is it?!’
Laughing, they dashed past the Uilleann piper who was walking back to his cabin. ‘Mornin’ ladies,’ he announced, raising his cap to them. ‘And fine form ye all seem to be in today.’
‘
It’s my birthday,’ Katie shouted as they ran past him, ‘and what better place to be celebrating it eh Mister Daly?’
He smiled; their good humour infectious. ‘No better place indeed Miss,’ he replied. ‘No better place at all.
CHAPTER
18
For a few rare moments, Maggie found herself alone in the cabin. She was enjoying life on board the ship more than she thought she would, but sometimes it overwhelmed her. There was so much noise all the time, from the baby bawling where it lay in its suitcase in the cabin next door, to the constant drone of the engines and the endless fall of footsteps rushing along the corridor outside their cabin; crew and passengers coming and going at all hours of the day and night. They were noises Maggie wasn’t used to and she found it exhausting at times, yearning for the pitch blackness and total quiet of her familiar cottage bedroom.
When her aunt, Peggy and Katie were occupied elsewhere on the ship, as they were now, Maggie often took the chance to return to the cabin for some peace and quiet. She used the time to write in her journal or to read one of the letters from the packet Séamus had given to her. She had read three of the letters so far, one for each day she’d been on the boat. In the letters, he had written about the times they had spent together; the first three letters covering the months of January last year, when they had first danced together and on then to February and March. She’d been surprised by the tenderness of his writing and at how vividly he recalled the details of their time together during those months.
She took the packet from her coat pocket now, carefully untying the piece of string which held the bundle of letters together. She took out the piece of paper at the front, marked ‘April’ and unfolded it. The noises outside her cabin walls faded into the background and a silence enveloped her as she began to read.
April 1911
Dear Maggie,
It is April now and the spring is here. I know this is your favourite month what with the cherry blossoms in full bloom. They are a mighty spectacle alright – I’d barely noticed them before, but now I can see them for all their loveliness, as you do.
I stood and watched you for a while today. You didn’t know I was there, but I hid myself behind the barrels which were being loaded off the wagon outside D’Arcy’s. I watched you under the blossom tree as the drayman hoisted the barrels onto the ground and rolled them past me into the hatch of the cellar. I’m sure he thought I was in trouble and hiding from someone, not watching my lovely cailín.
You looked mighty pretty so you did with your curls all blowing in the wind and the petals falling about you. You were sitting on the grass with your back leant against the tree and you closed your eyes. I wondered if you were thinking of me.
Then Peggy Madden came up and she gave you a fright and you were after almost leaping off the ground. She said something to make you laugh before she went on her way, swinging her basket from her arm, the fellas all gawping at her as they do.
I thought to myself ‘they can gawp away, I’ve a girl lovelier and prettier than any other in the whole of Ballysheen – in the whole of Ireland’ and I was so pleased that you were waiting for
me
under that tree and not just taking a rest or waiting for some other fella.
When you saw me walking over to you, you smiled, like you always do, getting those dimples in your cheeks. We went strolling then, down to the lake and threw stones and you picked some flowers for me to take back to Da. When we walked back, you put your arm in mine and leant your head on my shoulder and told me that this had been your favourite day and that you wished all days could be like this; warm and happy and the blossom blowing in the breeze. I thought I would burst I was so happy at that moment and if I could make that day happen for you again and again Maggie Murphy, I truly would.
Yours,
Séamus
As with the previous three letters, he had ended with the words
I will wait for you under the sixth blossom tree until you come back.
Maggie held the letter in hands for a few moments longer, letting the tears roll down her cheeks before carefully folding it and placing it back into the packet along with the others and returning it to her coat pocket. She would read another letter tomorrow.
She turned to write in her journal then.
Private journal of Maggie Murphy
14
th
April, 1912
Day 4 at sea
I can hardly believe that this is already our fourth day at sea. I sometimes feel like we will never be off this ship or away from the grey ocean - the lush fields of home seem far distant now. I’ve been wondering what my legs will feel like when they’re back on dry land. They say that sailors sway in their sleep for a while after returning from sea, what a strange feeling that will be!
There was to be a lifeboat drill at eleven o’clock today but it was cancelled. Jack Brennan says it must be because of the cold – ‘probably too cold for the rich folk to be up on deck’ he said. Aunt Kathleen has asked a steward for extra blankets for the beds tonight after we were waking up cold last night. Harry told me that most of the spare blankets are being used by the First Class ladies to keep their knees warm while they sit on the decks in the sunshine. I suppose us steerage will just have to freeze to death then.
After the service this morning Harry took us up a special crew ladder to the upper deck. He’s so bold – he could have got himself into a right bother of trouble if anyone had caught us, but what a sight we saw from our hiding place behind a life raft; the ladies taking tea and the gentlemen smoking their cigars. I think it took Peggy every bit of control in her body not to run straight up to one of them and ask them to marry her then and there. They really do live among such luxury up there I wouldn’t wonder if some of them never want to leave the ship at all.
I watched a little boy for a while who was playing with a spinning top. He was dressed all nicely in a cap and jacket and short trousers with long black stockings to keep his legs warm. A white teddy bear was on a deck chair near to him – I think it must have belonged to him. A few men stood about the deck and watched him – he made quite a sight being so engrossed in his little game, but I didn’t see his parents anywhere nearby. I should think they were too busy taking their tea and talking with their rich friends to pay much notice of his little games. I felt sorry for him and would have liked to play with him myself for a while. He had a nice little face.
I have given my message for Séamus to Harry. He says he’ll make sure it gets sent today. He reckons on it reaching Séamus within a week – imagine what he’ll think – a message from a ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean! It’ll be the talk of Ballysheen without a doubt.
Hearing the unmistakable voices of Peggy and Katie chatting enthusiastically as they came towards the cabin, she put her pen down and closed the book. Her few moments of solitude were over.
CHAPTER
19 - New York, 14
th
April, 1912
It had been a hard day’s work for Catherine Kenny and her plans to head to Macy’s to buy a birthday gift for her sister Katie now seemed thoroughly unappealing.
Her employer, Emily Walker-Brown, was in full flow preparing for the home-coming of her daughter Vivienne and her fiancé Robert after their vacation in southern Italy for the past two months. Robert was a film financier Vivienne had met through the studio and after filming on her latest movie wrapped at the end of January, Robert had proposed and they’d taken themselves off to enjoy a little winter sunshine on the continent, the Italian Riviera seeming to be the perfect spot for a young, well-connected American couple.