Acts of Courage Read online

  “But, Father, we’re so near the falls. Couldn’t we just go around the bend and take a look?”

  “No, Mira, first we need to get settled at the Landing—or Queenston, I guess it’s called now—then I’ll be going out to clear the land site on the La Tranche River.”

  “Queenston,” boomed out the schooner’s captain. He must have been as relieved to see the landing point as anyone on board. After a bad storm that had forced them to take refuge on shore, he and the crew had spent a week repairing the schooner before they had been able to continue their voyage, and the vessel was still in rough shape. They would have to take another look at her once they landed. The schooner turned in toward the riverbank. The bank came closer and closer and, finally, the gangplank was lowered.

  Father was among the first to go ashore. To find temporary accommodation for the whole family would not be easy, and he needed a head start.

  Queenston did not appear big enough to be even a small village. They could only see a few houses at the top of the hill above the shore. Along the shoreline stood a row of rundown huts that looked like part of a decayed military base. Laura wished for Sally’s sake that they could have stayed at Newark by the mouth of the Niagara River, where almost one hundred families were settled. This didn’t look like the kind of place where Sally would want to live.

  The ship’s captain approached them, his long bright scarf blowing in the wind. “We’ve unloaded your things now, Missus.” He spoke directly to Sally. “You’ll be just as comfortable on shore. It’s a balmy day.” He smiled as they left him. He did not usually take passengers on his cargo ships, and Laura guessed that he was happy to see them go. It had not been an easy voyage for any of them.

  With the help of the crew, the whole family and Sam and Bett were soon standing on the shore beside their belongings.

  “Look,” Mira shouted. “There’s a big shade tree over there. Let’s go sit on the grass.” The sun was shining down hotly now.

  “And leave our things here?” Sally sounded alarmed.

  “We can take almost everything except the biggest trunk. No one’s going to walk away with it without our noticing. But I could stay and guard it.”

  “That won’t be necessary, Laura. We can see it from there,” said Sally. “Now, everyone take a piece of luggage and let’s head up that hill.”

  Sally sounded relieved now that she was on land, and that made everyone happier to help. Even Charles proudly struggled along with a large canvas bag over his shoulder.

  Once all the luggage had been carried up the hill, everyone except Sam sat under the oak tree. He had insisted on going back to guard the large trunk. Laura leaned against one side of her own trunk and watched the sailors unloading barrels and taking cargo from the teamsters onto the ships. One wagoner had a huge pile of furs on his wagon. When he reached the ship, the skipper counted them and motioned to his men, who set out several barrels and a few crates. With firm, fast strides, the wagoner walked from the dock to his wagon and back, loading his produce. When he finished, he grabbed the horses’ reins and walked beside the creaking and groaning wagon as he urged his team up the steep path toward the oak tree.

  Now that he was coming closer to where the family was sitting, Laura guessed he wasn’t a farmer because his clothes were too neat and fresh. Yet he was not wearing the uniform of a soldier or the powdered wig of an English gentleman.

  To everyone’s surprise, he drew his horses to a halt right in front of the oak tree. As the horses rested, he looked over at them. His deep blue eyes were bright against his dark hair and thick sideburns, and his nod of welcome was accompanied by a kind smile that lit up his whole face. His eyes rested on Sally, who was struggling to get Appy to go to sleep.

  Quietly, he stepped toward them. “May I help, Madam?” he said with a friendly smile.

  “We’re expecting my husband shortly.” Sally eyed him cautiously. “We’ll manage, but—thank you.”

  He noticed her hesitation. “Are you folks planning to settle around here?” He pulled his horses’ reins more tightly, for they were ready to go now.

  Sally nervously shifted Appy to her other arm. “Yes—but not in this area—farther inland. We’ll be stopping at Queenston for a while, though.”

  “Well, in that case, we’ll be neighbours for a while. I’m James Secord, and I’ve just opened a general store in St. David’s, five miles away. Perhaps you’ll come by one day.”

  Sally nodded and smiled. “Yes, we’ll be needing supplies.”

  “Well, just ask anyone in Queenston the way to my store. I’d be honoured by your visit.”

  James lifted the horses’ reins to get ready to leave, and gave the nearest one a light slap on the rump.

  Then, before she knew what she was saying, Laura blurted out, “Excuse me, but you could help us with a trunk. It was too heavy for us to bring up with the rest.”

  He pulled the reins taut and turned to Laura. “I’d be glad to.” He drove the team ahead a few feet and looped the horses’ reins around the branch of a sturdy maple sapling.

  Laura stepped along beside him as he headed down the slope. She had to walk quickly to keep pace with him.

  “There it is.” Laura pointed to the only trunk in among barrels and crates. Sam was leaning on it.

  James took one look at the big trunk and the tired elderly man. Then he saw a wagoner coming down the hill with a teenaged boy sitting beside him, and James called out, “Hey, Josh, could you give me a hand?”

  The boy was thin, but had a big smile and was willing. So Laura didn’t tell James that she figured she could have helped him and Sam better than the boy. It was obvious they knew each other, and Josh liked being helpful.

  James took the heavy lower position of the trunk, and Sam and Josh took the other end and carried it up the hill to the oak tree, where they set it down beside the smaller trunks.

  “Thank you,” Laura said, as the men stood for a moment to catch their breath. As James turned to her and smiled, Laura realized he was about her own age.

  “I’m pleased to help,” he said, looking at her intently. “Are you folks from the States?”

  Laura hesitated and then said, “Yes. A friend of my father has picked out a land site for us near the La Tranche River.”

  “I guess you won’t be at Queenston very long, then?”

  Laura thought he looked disappointed but could not be sure. “I don’t know,” she said. “My stepmother would like to stay here or at Newark.”

  “Well, if you have any trouble finding accommodation, try Fairbank’s Tavern. Tell them James Secord sent you. It’s a good inn. You’ll be treated well there. Goodbye now.”

  His horses had become restless. He loosened their reins, slapped them lightly against their backs, and said in a low voice, “Get up…haw.”

  The rear of the wagon was not yet over the hill before Mira sat down with a sharp thud on Laura’s trunk and exclaimed, “My…Is he ever handsome! I sure hope he’s a sample of the young men around here.”

  Laura smiled at her sister. “His name is Josh.” She guessed he would only be a couple of years older than Mira.

  “I’m not talking about that boy. I mean James.”

  “He seemed pleasant enough,” admitted Sally, “but I don’t like to see you speaking so much to strangers.” She was looking straight at Mira with a slight frown.

  “That won’t leave us many people to speak to,” Mira muttered.

  The sound of another wagon coming along the pathway interrupted them. Another man had stopped, allowing his horses to get their second wind.

  “Just arrived from the American States, have you?” he said gruffly. He was about Father’s age and a farmer, for he was dressed in a homespun smock.

  Sally hesitated before she answered
—the question was so abrupt. Then she replied directly, “Yes. We’ve come to settle here.”

  “Loyalists? Driven off your lands?”

  “No, we’re settlers.”

  “Settlers, eh?” The man frowned, cracked the reins over his horses’s backs, and briskly pushed along up the hill.

  Somewhat surprised, Laura was still staring in the direction where the man had disappeared when she spotted her father. He strode over the crest of the hill and hurried down along the path toward them.

  When Father reached them, he mumbled somewhat apologetically to Sally, “The village isn’t as large as I thought. There are only two or three good stone houses in the whole place.”

  “Well, we can’t worry about that now, Thomas,” said Sally. “Just get us into the inn. Charles is getting so restless.”

  Father looked at the grass beneath his feet. He couldn’t face Sally’s anxious eyes. “There is only one inn, and it’s full. I figure we can stay in one of those empty soldier’s huts we passed along the way.”

  The silence hung heavy between them all for a few minutes. Then Laura remembered what James had said.

  “Father, a man helped us with our largest trunk, and he said to ask at Fairbank’s Tavern and to tell them James Secord sent us.”

  “That’s the place. They have no rooms left.”

  “Let’s ask again and give them the message.”

  “I don’t see what good that’ll do.”

  “Why don’t you try, Thomas,” Sally interrupted. “This man did seem sincere.”

  “I’ll go with you. I’d like to see the village.” Laura turned to walk up the hill.

  Father reluctantly started up the hill behind her. They had not walked more than a few hundred feet beyond the top of the slope when they saw the inn on the right side of the path. It was a grey clapboard building with a verandah all across the front. At once, Laura recognized the horses hitched up outside. “That’s James’s team and wagon,” she said excitedly. Father was only slightly moved by her enthusiasm, for he was very tired and not too hopeful about this second attempt to find rooms at the inn. He had come only to please Sally.

  Attached to the north side of the inn was a shed over fifty feet long, where horses were eating in their stalls. Behind them was a forest of unhitched wagons and buggies. The inn must really be full. Laura’s heart sank, but she and her father kept walking up to the main entrance of the inn. Father hesitated just inside the doorway. “It’s no use, Laura. The man at the desk is the same one who refused me before.” He turned and trudged back out the door.

  Laura stood alone in the entrance and looked around the room. Behind the man at the desk was an open doorway to a larger room, where several men were sitting around a table. Voices drifted out to her, but she could not hear any distinct words. A meeting of some sort must be in progress.

  “Laura,” her father was calling. She turned to go but, just then, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Startled, she turned and looked up directly into the eyes of James Secord.

  “Miss Ingersoll? Are you looking for rooms for your family?”

  “Yes, but Father tried here already, and they said there was nothing left.”

  “Oh, I see. Well, I’ll ask for you if you wish.”

  “Oh, yes, would you?” Laura said hopefully.

  James Secord walked over to the desk while Laura stayed back in the doorway. James spoke in a low voice to the man there, who put down his fine quill pen as he talked. Laura saw the man shake his head, but when James muttered something back, he nodded. Meanwhile, Father had come back inside to find out why Laura was lingering behind.

  James came toward them before Father had a chance to speak. “Mr. Ingersoll, I’m James Secord. Welcome to Queenston.” He extended his hand and smiled a welcome.

  Father shook the extended hand. “Thank you, James. Just call me Thomas, and I want to thank you for moving the trunk for my family.”

  “I was glad to help. Now, I understand you’re looking for accommodation. Two rooms are available with two large bedsteads, and they’ll set up cots for the rest of the children. Will that be enough accommodation for tonight?”

  “Why, yes,” Father replied in amazement. As long as there were beds ready for them all to collapse onto, he didn’t care how small the quarters. “We’re mighty obliged to you for getting us a dry roof over our heads.”

  “I’m afraid it’s just for tonight. The inn is full, but the owner is doubling up his own family to give you a couple of their rooms. Now, tomorrow, I can bring you a tent and set it up on some property I have on the edge of town. I’m sorry I can’t offer anything better.”

  “It’s the best offer we’ve had yet, and I thank you. Sally will be so relieved. She and our youngest are very tired from the trip.”

  “What part of the states are you from?”

  “Great Barrington, Massachusetts, and I’ve come to set up a farm in Upper Canada.”

  “Your daughter told me about the farm. I hope you like it here. We have good fertile land just waiting to be cleared.”

  “My good friend, Captain Brant, has already picked a site for us, but I haven’t seen it yet. I have to get the family settled at Queenston first. Now, we should be getting back. They’ve been waiting a long time.” Father stepped out onto the verandah with James and Laura following.

  “Let me help you bring your load up here to the inn,” said James.

  Father hesitated. “That would really help, but your team is already loaded down.” James’s horses were shifting restlessly and ready to be on their way home.

  “I have to take my supplies to St. David’s about five miles away, but then I’ll come back and help you. I’ll hurry. I’ll not be long.”

  “We would appreciate your help, and I’ll gladly pay for your services.” Father was reaching into his pocket.

  “No, that won’t be necessary, and I hope that the wait won’t be too hard for the women.” He looked at Laura again as he spoke. “Just a minute—wait here.” James turned and strode back into the inn before they had a chance to answer.

  Laura noticed the relief in her father’s face, but he looked very tired as he leaned against the railing on the verandah of the inn. His hair seemed more grey than brown now.

  James returned about five minutes later with a round basket covered with a bright cloth. “This will help pass the time until I return,” he said with a broad smile as he handed it to Laura.”

  Laura could smell fresh-baked bread and, peeping under the cover, she saw huge slices of cheese, a large, spicy apple pie, and some oatmeal cookies. “Thank you,” she called out. He was already off the verandah and busy unhitching his horses from the post where they were tied.

  Laura walked slowly behind her father down the pathway to where the family was waiting. Only once did she stop and turn to look back along the road to St. David’s, but James had already disappeared. All she could see was the hard, rutted road and miles of budding trees stretching on toward the horizon.

  ***

  “It’s surprisingly comfortable, Thomas,” Sally admitted.

  While still returning to the inn for meals, they had worked for three days putting everything in order in their two canvas houses. They were pitched side by side on a green stretch of land at the edge of town, just below the Heights.

  “Well, if a canvas house is good enough for the Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada, it should be good enough for us,” Father said with some satisfaction. James had told them about Governor Simcoe bringing Captain Cook’s canvas house from England. When the Simcoes found it too crowded in Navy Hall, the Government House at Newark, his wife had insisted he have it set up immediately for their private use.

  Laura sat on a stump beside the front door to the big tent and looked out with w
onder at the beauty of the steep, wide escarpment just to the south of them. The local people called it the Heights.

  Laura turned toward the roadway when she heard the sounds of an approaching team of horses. Charles rushed out past her, for he, too, had heard, and they both knew that James Secord was going to be delivering the fresh supplies that their father had ordered from his store in St. David’s.

  James drove his team right up beside the tent and, when he jumped down from the wagon, he grabbed the excited Charles and sat him on the back of one of the horses. “Giddy up,” shouted Charles, digging his feet into the mare’s side.

  The team lunged forward, but James had been watching, and he pulled the reins back tight. The now-petrified Charles grabbed the horse’s mane and clung to its neck to keep his balance. After he had settled his team, James lifted Charles down and smiled at Laura, who had walked over to take the squirming boy.

  “You’ll make a good rider some day,” said James as he put the boy on the ground beside his sister.

  “I’d like to ride him now!” Charles shouted back.

  “Charles, go in the house,” said Father who had come out just in time to see the boy being put down. “Thanks for delivering these supplies, James. I’m hoping to buy a team and wagon today, and then we can pick up our own supplies.”

  “I’m glad to have your business, Thomas. St. David’s is not on the main mercantile route, and it’s overlooked sometimes. Queenston stores have an advantage.”

  “Well, we’ll be going to St. David’s to buy our supplies,” Father promised. “It’s not that far away.”

  James started to hand down the bags of flour, salt, and other household items to Father and, when they had finished stacking them, Father pulled out his money to pay James.

  “Are you sure you want to pay in cash?”

  “How else?” Thomas asked.

  “Trading at the Landing is mostly in produce or labour.”

  “Well, I’ve nothing to exchange, and I’m not free to work yet,” Father explained.

  Laura sat down on the stump again as she watched her father and James shake hands at the front door of the tent. James saw her there and came over but stood in silence.