Lady's Life on a Farm in Manitoba — 10 - Letter 10

* * * * * May 25th.

We over-slept ourselves this morning, it being a dull day and no sun to wake us up, so that it was past 6 before any of us made our appearance.

The way we work here would rejoice Uncle F----'s heart and amaze some of our farmers' wives and daughters.

My advice to all emigrants is to leave their pride to the care of their families at home before they start, and, like ourselves, put their hand to everything.

We have had some funny experiences; but for all our hard work we get no kudos or praise, it is all taken as a matter of course.

I would not live in such a place for worlds, but while it lasts it is great fun; and I think we have done good by coming out, if only to mend up all the old rags belonging to these four men.

We were much in want of dusters, etc. , the first days, and were told that when the three months' wash which was in Winnipeg returned we should find everything we wanted, instead of which there was a fine display of torn under-linen, and stockings by the dozens, which we have been doing our best to patch up and darn, but no house linen.

We shall do as much washing as we possibly can manage at home, I expect, as the prices are so fearful, to say nothing of the inconvenience of being ages without one's linen.

I will just quote a few of the prices from our bill of the Winnipeg Steam Laundry.

Shirts 15 cents, night ditto 10 cents, vests and pants 25 to 50 cents, blankets 50 cents, counterpanes 35 cents, table-cloths 15 to 35 cents, sheets 10 cents, pillow-slips 5 to 15 cents, night-dresses 15 cents to 1 dollar, petticoats 30 cents to 1 dollar, etc. , everything in proportion.

We thought one dollar per dozen all round was exorbitant, but when hardly anything is less than eightpence (as a cent, according to the exchange, is more than a halfpenny) it seems ruinous.

We get 4 dollars 80 cents only for the sovereign here, being tenpence short of the five dollars.