A Malodorous Mystery

On Saturday Aunt Nell's people returned home and I was put on the train to return to Barry. My few belongings were wrapped in some brown paper which had been wrapped around a large gorgonzola cheese--that’s worse than limburger. The day was hot and humid and the train was crowded with people going to the beach at Barry to cool off. The English trains have small coaches holding about twelve people--six on each side facing each other.

A plump gentleman offered to squeeze me in so I sat on the very edge of the seat bracing my feet on the floor to keep from sliding off. I watched the landscape flying by, then I began to realize that I had room enough to sit back and the fat man next to me was almost hanging out of the window for air and the other passengers were crowding away from me towards the opposite window, giving me looks of absolute disgust. By this time we had arrived at the first Barry station. I left the carriage here and thanked the gentleman for making room for me. He didn't answer but looked very relieved.

I made my way to Aunt Annie's house which wasn't far from the station. They were just sitting down to their evening meal when I arrived. So I put my parcel on the machine behind Aunt Annie's chair and seated myself. There were some cousins visiting her from Cardiff by the name of Reakes. The girl, a little younger than I was, was named Doris. I think there were three boys.

You would have to know Aunt Annie to see the humor in this situation. She was very aristocratic in her bearing. She wore her hair piled high atop her head. She always wore high lace collars with bones in around her throat to keep them up. As dinner proceeded she laid down her knife and fork and looking at the nearest boy she said, "Henry, go outside!". He looked at her in astonishment and was about to protest but he saw the look on her face as she said, "immediately!". This happened to each one in turn until all four were outside looking hungrily in the window. By this time I had begun to put two-and-two together and realized it was the cheese paper that was causing all the disturbance.

Uncle Herbert married Aunt Nell and they were very happy. They adopted a baby boy just a few days old. His name was Bernard. His parent's name was Evans but he went by the name of Bernard Yard. The Doris Reakes mentioned above became the Great-Aunt of Janet Reakes of Australia I will write about later on.