JANUARY
January.
They have had a festival; it was made, I suppose, to
benefit some one here; I don't know whom. It certainly did not benefit
me any; no one invited me to go to the church where the festival was
held, but Dr. Crookshank, the Assistant Physician, looked at me very
kindly and said, "Do come, Mrs. Pengilly, you may as well come." I
looked at my dress (it is grey flannel, and I have had no other to
change since I came here), "I can't go looking like this; I must be a
little better dressed to go into a public meeting of any kind; I am not
accustomed to go looking like this, with nothing on my neck." He said,
"Very well, something shall come to you;" and Mrs. Hays, who is
Assistant Nurse in our Ward, brought me a plate of food and fruit, such
as is generally had at festivals.
I have not had my trunk yet; sure the boys did not leave me here without
my trunk. Perhaps they do not wish me to go in sight of people from the
city, for fear they will recognize me, and I should make my complaints
known to them. I have entreated them to give me my trunk so many times
in vain that I have given it up. I did ask Mrs. Mills, and she says,
"Ask Mrs. Murphy, she has charge of the trunk room." I asked her; she
says she will see, and she will bring me whatever I need that is in it.
She puts me off with a soft answer, until I begin to think there is
nothing done for any one here, only what they cannot avoid. It is a
self-running establishment, I guess, for no one seems to know how or
when to do anything I wish to have done, whatever they may do for
others.
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