The Life and Times of Eva Baglin

(Florence Eveline Jenner 1901-1994)

Introduction (by Grace Russ - daughter, 1985©)

The Diary of Eva Baglin

Transcribed from taped interviews, 1985©

Childhood

When I was young I used to pinch the nuts from my Grand mother's red and grey talking Parrot, and then eat them. On another occasion I broke her umbrella, and hid it behind the ivy growing up the house because I was too frightened to tell her. She found it years later when she was cutting the ivy back.

We had a great time in Wales, and when we first moved down to what we called the `Branch' we had no water laid on. So, in order to get water for drinking, washing and that sort of thing, we had to go a little way into one of the caves in the mountain. The water was icy cold - but so beautiful for drinking. I remember how we used to have to get down to our school. We had to go across the countryside, over the `branch line' (railway line), over two stiles, then down a hill onto the main road. The last bit being twenty steps or so to get onto the road. One day at school I was looking up words in the dictionary and happened to pick on `confined' -the teacher thought I was daft or something because I didn't know the meaning of the word. So to punish me she shoved me between two boys - I had the time of my life!

Why kids can't enjoy themselves now like we used to, I don't know. We never had TVs and the like in our days. We had to make our own fun. I don't know what we would have been like if we had TVs to watch - with all the violent programmes they put on now. Mind you, we were a bit cheeky -there was one dear old soul, she was a lot bigger than our Grace, about 20 stones, and we'd say "Clear the way, clear the way, phantom tank coming". All the boys and girls would then make a clearing for her to walk through -she could have killed us. In fact, the only one real naughty thing we done was to get up on the bank and throw stones down at the teachers going home. I had the blessed cane for it the next morning - Wallop, wallop, wallop - right across the hand. We never minded though, because we deserved it, we deserved all we got - and I was always getting the cane.

In those days we went around in gangs. I was always the head of our gang, and Charlie Applebee was the leader of the boys' gang. We used to have hundreds of fun -but we were never destructive like the kids are now. You know, we'd dare one another to climb trees - except our Lil, the one who died, so different to me, so dainty. I used to call her "mum's creep". And sometimes we used to pretend to be all the old actors and actresses, like Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. We used to get up on the trucks (railway trucks) and pretend to be ladies, and the boys would chase us up and down the railway trucks -How we never broke our necks, I'll never know. Once or twice we were driven off the branch line, we didn't see a bobby often though. Or we'd tie our legs together, to simulate the tight skirts women used to wear, and pretend to be `Suffragettes', and the boys would pretend to be policemen and would chase us, and we would try to get over stiles, and that, and all sorts of other ridiculous things. Then we'd get to the top of Wimberry Mountain, in Abertillery, Wales, and pick wimberries (bilberries) coming down, then pick watercress from `Watercress Stream'. Afterwards, going into the fields and craw or run under cows, as the chance arose (a kind of chicken game). Mine you, Russell (her brother) used to get into arguments with the boys and then he'd say, "My sister will get you", and I did - I would fight the boys on his behalf, and then get into trouble at home for fighting.

Once I put a halfpenny on the railway line to see if it would turn into a penny! Well, that was the last time I saw that! That reminds me of the time I put Edie (Edith, her sister) in the pram and pushed her down the railway embankment - to see if she'd stay in. I got a right walloping for that, but I didn't mind, as I knew I deserved it. And another time I got a right walloping was when I got caught for putting squibs (a kind of firework) through the door of our neighbour - two doors away. We did that to people we didn't like.

When I was a kid we had to be in bed by 7pm. There was never any staying up late - and we had to earn our `penny' pocket money. Our mum was so prim and proper -she would say "A place for everything, and everything in its' place". We all had various jobs that had to be done during the week, and on Saturdays' we had to clean the steel fender, the hearth, tidy up and put all the papers away - even the potatoes had to be done Saturday night, as Sundays' were `sacrosanct'. We were never allowed to do anything on a Sunday. That's how we was when we got married - but it went all different after that.

1st World War

I can't remember much about the 1st World War. I was about 13, and we were living in Crumlin, Wales, at the time. I can remember this man that used to walk with a great big bear, used to treat it like a child. As it was so unusual to see a bear in those days, we'd wait for him to come across the big Viaduct Bridge - but were afraid of him because we didn't know whether he was Russian, a spy, or what. We were always thinking of spies because of the big Viaduct Bridge, Its been taken down since.

The only other thing I can remember is that our dad volunteered for the war - our mum was so mad then because he needn't have gone - he had a key job. A kid of 19 took his place - so he went to war, leaving six kids behind, and our mum never seen him for five years after that. He had more than he bargained for though - His job was to drive to the front lines with the ammunitions. When he came back it was "blinking" everything - Our mum would get so mad "Can't you stop blinking it" she would say. Like I used to say "blooming" and sometimes I would say, "blessed", and our Norman would say "Now why is it blooming", or "Why is it blesses". And I'd say "Cus that's me". I'd say "Oh that blessed thing", and old Norman would tick me off, like mum used to be always ticking our dad off about "blinking".

My Courting Days

I was always with the boys at school, and went out with three or four before I was 19. When I was 19, I was in the concertina band at the time; I had to choose between two chaps, Fred Wymark and Harold Jeans. Harold is now at Plymouth Congress Hall. I don't know why, but in the end I chose Fred. We courted for six years, and were engaged for two of those. I had an engagement ring with three stones set into it. It looked like a wedding ring, and people often thought we were married, especially when they saw us with Ken and Arthur (her two young brothers) mistaking them for our kids. I could have got married to him and gone and lived with his mother and father - they wanted us to. They owned an Ironmonger shop in Milk Street, near Newfoundland Road. It was good money but our mum and dad wouldn't have it. They were worried that after the income from the shop was shared out, I would have had what was left over after his mother had her share, I might not actually get much, especially if nothing was coming in one week - I felt a bit like that myself. He wouldn't or couldn't get another job. Our dad tried to get him a job, but he just didn't seem interested. So we split up - we didn't row or anything - I just said to him "The best thing we can do Fred, is to go to `Watch Night Service'", that's the 12 O'clock one, in the Salvation Army you know, "and then afterwards you can take me home, and then you go your way and I'll go mine" -And that's how it ended, we still stayed good friends after, because every birthday he'd send me a card.

However, after I'd finished with Fred I had a sort of a breakdown and went to stay with my Uncle Arthur (Arthur England) in Plymouth for six months - But he had twins - Phyllis and Evelyn, my millionaire cousins -so I was a sort of glorified servant. I remember years later, Ted and I met Fred in town, and he invited Fred to tea. I said "You're a bright spud Inviting him to tea" I said "He's an old, old flame, you're asking for trouble". He said, "A bird in the hand is worth more than two in the bush". It was while I was in Plymouth that I picked up with Les. He was 6ft something, and we had lovely outings around Dartmouth and places like that, and then we'd sell `War Cry's' in Looe - we had a smashing time. Then I moved to Bristol and he came down and stayed with his Aunty at Eastville. I went out with Les for a couple of years or so But one day we were walking along and, because of my keen hearing, I heard someone say, "There goes the long and short of it". That hit me flat - That put Eva off, and that was the end of our relationship. I did love him so I suppose that shouldn't have put me off - but it did. We wrote to each other for a long time, but eventually it filtered out. He's still in the Salvation Army, and if anyone goes down to Exeter, or Plymouth, I ask them to send my love to Les. However, I tell them to send my kind regards, if his wife is with him. I think last time someone went down, he was with his wife, so they gave my kind regards.

After I finished with Les I had two or three other boy friends, but nothing serious until I met Ted. I was 29 then, and the first time he walked me home he gave me a quick peck on the cheeks and ran all the way home. I met him in the August in 1931, and we were married by December. Just before our wedding I shaved all the hairs off my legs, and it was a couple of weeks before he saw my legs for the first time, by which time the hairs had grown back.
Home Life

When we were kids our mum was always involved with social work and the like, and used to take in waif and strays. Our mum would say "Well that saved them from going to prison". So we didn't take much notice, well except Arthur - He said all his family were years older than him, except Ken, there being about a 20 year gap between them and the rest of the family. So, when all these waifs and strays kept coming and going he felt, being so much younger than everyone else, that he couldn't be part of the family and thought that he must be one of the waifs and strays.

Carrie Parks was one that we brought up - She was with us from her mid-teens, until she got married, but she thinks the world of me, so I don't mind - She use to read all my love letters! (Carrie Parks died February 1993)

One time I remember was when Mr Skidmoor came over and said "Do you mind if a few of us come over to tea, Sunday", of course our mum reckoned on about four or five, six at the most. So she had the shock of her life when the whole Corps from Frampton Cotterall walked in, fortunately they bought their own food with them, but our mum had to put on the big boiler to boil the water for the tea -because there was so many of them. Mind you it was a big house we had there - right opposite the Citadel in Ashley Road. It was a double fronted house with eight rooms in the front and as many in the back. Then there was a double storey out-house, the upstairs for the washing, and a place to hang your washing during wet weather. It had a long garden with a tree in it, and at the bottom a lane that led to Picton Street. And that's where we used to do all our courting -behind the gate because of the long garden and the tree - nobody could see us. I think most of the big houses that are left, are now all bed-sitters!

We never had a lot of money in those days, but we always had plenty of fun, and we weren't dissatisfied like they are now-a-days: Although I've had to work hard all my life; I was the oldest of eight -and with my mother always being ill - in and out of hospitals - I've always had kids tugging at me - I bought up our mum's last two - Arthur and Ken - I smacked their backsides more than once. Our Arthur made Grace laugh last time he was here - He was telling her how I used to spit on my handkerchief and wash his face with it. I told him that's how we got such good complexion. Our Arthur says that I used to grind my teeth at them when I got annoyed, and he says that's how I got my false teeth. In fact, the dentist said there was nothing wrong with my teeth - they just went soft. I was all right when they were first taken out, but shortly afterwards I had a haemorrhage and was laid-up in bed for a week.

When our mum was at home, she had it like clockwork: -

And when I wasn't working, everything had to be done before dinnertime - It was like that until I got married.