Two months later, and a week after Henry moved back to his own lodgings, much to the dismay of Ada, Henry had the plaster bandage removed from his leg. He had enjoyed Ada’s tending to him and she had doted on him unwaveringly. They enjoyed long conversations on various topics both relating to their own talents and on various other items appearing in the newspapers. Henry also greatly enjoyed listening to Ada practice the piano every day. It was problematic getting to any performances with his leg and wrist in a plaster and he felt disinclined to being seen out in public in one of those wheelchair contraptions that Tom had arranged for him over his convalescence.
The wrist plaster had been removed two weeks before and Henry had spent time increasing the strength of the atrophied muscles. Through a series of gentle exercises the strength had quickly returned, however, the speed of recovery for his leg was less certain.
The skin was dry and flaked and the leg had an under-fed appearance. This could be fixed through creams and exercise but the aspect that worried Henry the most was his right foot was still at an unusual angle to the rest of his leg, pointing out slightly. The lump at the site of the break in his thigh, from where the misalignment started also caused him ongoing concern.
Henry worked at strengthening his leg over the following weeks. First he performed straight leg lifts, and then lifting small bags filled with sand that had been prepared by Ada. However it was the walking exercise that first alerted Henry that rope walking might be more of a challenge than he expected.
He had Tom rig a low rope just two feet off the ground and fifty feet long, but it did not take long to confirm his fears. The poor setting of his broken bones meant that in order to align his right foot properly on the rope, he needed to twist his hip, which caused the left foot to turn. The process put him off balance every step. The final decider was his right leg was now also slightly shorter than his left. It could only mean one thing…
*
Henry and Tom meet for lunch at the pub and over their meal Henry broached the subject of his invalided leg.
‘As you know Tom, I have been having very little luck during my practice sessions on the low rope. No matter how much I try I cannot get a system that will allow me to walk the rope effectively. I fear this injury marks the end of my rope walking career.’
‘I had dreaded as much,’ replied Tom. ‘What plans then for the future?’
‘I am unsure, but I think it best if you look for something for yourself as I suspect I may not hold much value as a business partner without anything tangible to offer the partnership.’
Tom was silent for a short time before he responded. ‘You are an ideas man Henry. Yes you had skills for the rope walking, but you also have the knack to recognise opportunity and I the ability to assist to make those ideas a reality. We have plenty of money from the harbour walk, so we will not be paupers for quite some time. Therefore I am prepared to wait to see how things unfold.’
Henry smiled. ‘You are a good friend Tom, but if you see another opportunity, please to not feel obliged to me for any reason.’
*
Towards the end of June, Henry and Tom received invitations to attend another dinner. The type of dinner however was a complete surprise. Henry’s invitation read:
You are cordially invited to attend a Testimonial Benefit Dinner
Hosted by Mr John Willett
In Honour of Mr H. Giles
To commemorate his outstanding achievements.
To be held in the main dining room
Norfolk Hotel
Wynyard & George Street, Sydney
Saturday July 21, 1877 - Drinks from 6pm
Henry turned to Tom. ‘Did you know anything about this?’
‘I was aware John was organising some sort of dinner. He mentioned before your Middle Harbour walk, that if it was successful, the walk should be signified somehow.’
‘Well this is unexpected and I must admit I feel rather embarrassed Tom, that this is about me, as you do as much if not more than me, just not in the public eye,’ said Henry in self-depreciation.
‘We are business partners and friends. You do the public face and therefore are exposed to any criticism, public scrutiny, plaudits and on this occasion, a dinner,’ explained Tom.
‘I am the behind the scenes man. I always have been, even with the circus. I had opportunities then to be a performer, but chose to remain behind the curtain so to speak, so please, do not feel that your limelight shadows me. It is in fact my preferred position.’
Henry limped gently over to the writing bureau in his room to write an acceptance. ‘Do you want me to include you on the RSVP?’
‘'Oh’ chuckled Tom, ‘I received my own invitation and John already knows I am coming.’
*
The night of the testimonial dinner was cold and wet, ‘a far cry from the weather at my last public outing’, thought Henry, remembering back to the sweltering heat on the rope. Once inside the now very familiar Norfolk Hotel he was enthusiastically greeted by Ada who rushed in front of her father and grabbed Henry by the arm, standing at his side and looked up at him with a smile and eager twinkling eyes and said how pleased she was to see him.
‘Steady on girl,’ chuckled John as he came up and shook Henry’s hand. ‘It is good you could come.’
‘Thank you for going to the trouble.’
‘Well I can tell you in confidence that this evening serves a dual purpose. While it is about you and your achievement, it is also an opportunity for me to get into some of the influential ears of Sydney. You see, I am going to run for the Legislative Council. The State of New South Wales needs some good direction and I feel I can be in a position to contribute to that.’
Having gotten to know John over the past five months, including his participation in the joint business venture of the Middle Harbour walk, Henry knew that he was an honest and upstanding man, not prone to loose exaggerations or needless demands.
‘I am confident you will have no difficulty in gaining support,’ said Henry reassuringly.
John attracted the attention of a passing waiter carrying a tray laden with drinks.
‘Champagne?’ asked John.
‘'This was very good,’ complimented Henry, who had never tasted champagne before. ‘French I believe?’
John smiled. ‘As you know one of my businesses is importing and this includes beverages such as this. Also I have not made the tickets too cheap so it is an affordable luxury. Besides, if I am to be seen as part of that society,’ he said, gesturing slightly at the gathering, ‘then offering such things are not unlike a peacock displaying its feathers. All show you know, but that was what seems to impress people.’
*
Prior to being seated and while the guests were still enjoying pre-dinner drinks, Ada slipped away only to be noticed a few minutes later as she started playing at a piano. She played parts of several of Beethoven's Sonatas with great accomplishment and to the great enjoyment of the assembled diners, not least of which Henry, whose chest swelled with pride and at the same time experienced the same off tightness he felt every time he saw her. As she finished John announced that dinner was about to be served.
The seating arrangements saw two long tables with chairs either side, totalling 60 settings and a top table that seated John Willett in the centre, Tom to his left, Henry to his right and Ada beside Henry.
As the diners made their way to their seats Henry could only marvel at the scene. Gleaming silverware, starched napkins and tablecloths, silver candelabras and fine crystal glasses were arranged down the tables. There were even bowls of fruit adding colour to the table. It must have cost a fortune just to set up the tables.
The meal was also astounding, starting with soup and fish, followed by roast fowl and roast lamb. After the first ‘remove’ the tables were reset, this time with green beans, crab, baked pears, prawns on toast, tartlets and raspberry cream. Henry had never experienced anything like it before and John, noting his amazement leaned over. ‘This is the same meal that was once set at function held by Governor Macarthur in 1821,’ he said with a grin.
During the meal Henry studied the diners. There are distinguished looking men, many with impressive beards, others with walrus style mustaches and even some with those rather odd looking bushy sideburns. Ah, there was Mayor William Merriman, no doubt feeling a bit nonplussed at being upstaged in the dining event stakes, but this certainly was not preventing him drowning his sorrows in some of the excellent liquid refreshments. Several military men were scattered around and to his surprise there was Captain Mannering. Several ladies dressed in their finery, wives of some of the men, made up the numbers.
There was movement beside Henry as John’s chair scraped back and he stood, before reaching for a small silver bell that he rang for almost ten seconds before the final diners realised it was ringing and stopped their conversations.
‘Distinguished guests, gentlemen, ladies, I wish to thank you all for attending this evening in what marks another milestone for our young colony. Tonight we are celebrating and commemorating the achievements of what for many, may be an unusual feat, perhaps even to be dismissed as folly, in light of some of the significant political, industrial and economic achievements of many of you here this evening.
‘But let me tell you, greatness comes in many guises. I first met my friend, Henry Giles, five months ago at a dinner hosted by the Mayor. This was just following his successful walk between two ships moored in the main harbour. During my conversation with Henry I was impressed by his drive and determination. I know he also impressed someone else that evening and it was through her bidding, yes my daughter Ada, [chuckles] that it was suggested to Henry that a world class rope walk might be possible starting from my Middle Harbour property, extending over water to the opposite shore of the bay.
‘It was not long till I was being impressed with Henry’s ‘can do’ attitude and with the accomplished assistance of his business partner, Mr Tom Jackson, here on my left, as they went about the processes that culminated in his successful walk of 1,420 feet on April 15 of this year. That, my friends was an achievement of no small matter. [ Polite applause.]
‘So it is another accomplishment in the growing list of achievements that our colony can lay claim. These include: our pre-paid postage system that makes communication in this modern era simple, the grain thresher that is allowing our farmers to more efficiently harvest grain than anywhere else in the world and on the subject of agriculture, the stump jump plough. Also mechanical and freeing Australia from the need to import costly ice from the other side of the world, is the vapour compression refrigerator that chills and even freezes.
‘We can also thank the Premier of South Australia, Mr Robert Torrens, for his introduction of a simplified process of land title transfer, that will no doubt honour it’s instigator and be called the Torrens Title and prove popular around the civilised world.
‘But back to our guest of honour.
So the saying goes, ‘pride before the fall’ and this was the case for our poor
Henry. As we know on his second walk he suffered misfortune with a fall but
fortunately this occurred at a spot where it was not fatal. But even so was
enough to cause a significant injury from which he was in the final stages of
recovery.’
John turned to Henry. ‘Henry, please stand.’
With some stiffness in his leg Henry stood and faced John. A waiter made a momentary appearance as he deposited a small wooden box and a small leather pouch on the table on John’s left.
‘As a recognition of your achievements, I and the assembled persons here, plus a range of other admirers and contributors, have commissioned this commemorative gold medallion in your honour.’
John opened the box and withdrew a gold star the size of his palm, resplendent with etchings of Henry’s achievements and engraved with the date of his harbour walk. Holding it by the medallion's blue silk ribbon, John placed the ribbon over Henry’s head and let the star hang to Henry’s chest. Taking Henry’s hand he shook it vigorously before joining the loud applause of the assembled diners of whom all the men are standing to applaud.
Henry gazed at the sea of influential people before him. Never in his life had he thought he would stand before such an audience for a reason such as this. While he knew there was a significant political motivation behind John’s organisation of this event, he was also very grateful. The applause died down and the men sat.
Henry cleared his throat. ‘Thank you for your attendance tonight and your support and recognition of my harbour crossing. Indeed it was one of the great walks and one I must admit I am unlikely to better. I am still greatly humbled by this form of recognition,’ he said has he touched the medallion.
‘I would like to take this opportunity to thank a man without whose friendship and support I could not do the things I do. Tom Jackson, here on my left is one of the main driving forces. I may have ideas, but it is he who knows how to tie a knot. This is not meant without any form of demeaning, because what Tom does requires it own set of skills without which mine would amount to naught and believe me, a poorly tied knot is something that all tight rope walkers dread!’
Henry paused for breath while a ripple of laughter and applause went through the diners.
‘I would also like to thank another person who has been a great help and inspiration to me, Miss Ada Willett. It has been noted that it was her idea for the location of the harbour walk, but I would also like to add that in the weeks after my accident it was Miss Willett who tended to me and for that I am very grateful. In addition I would like to thank Mr John Willett for his unwavering support from the day we met, through to offering accommodations during my convalescence and organising this evening. Thank you.’
Henry sat down and took a gulp of wine as the diners set off in another round of polite applause and placed his hand on Ada’s. ‘That went OK?’ Ada’s response was a beaming smile and a look that both excited and scared Henry.
*
After the dinner, the tables were cleared and the tables moved out of the room and replaced with smaller tables and comfortable lounge chairs. The ladies, including Ada, excused themselves to another room and with lighting of cigars and pouring of port, the social and ‘business’ part of the evening got underway. A steady stream of men came past Henry to shake his hand and slap his back in individual congratulation. The last to approach him was Captain Mannering.
‘Well done Henry,’' said Mannering in his quite voice. ‘I was glad I was able to attend, as I have only just returned from Europe on official business. But let me tell you, while I was there I stumbled on something into which I seek your input.’
He went on to tell Henry that his trip to Europe was to arrange collection and transport of some donated equipment left over from the Franco-Prussian War on behalf of the military force in Sydney. During his time investigating and identifying equipment, he chanced upon one of the balloons used for carrying messages out of Paris during the Siege of Paris.
Stored in the loft of a barn in a rural area, it remained unclaimed, no doubt due to the specialised nature of any future use and a lack of anyone with knowledge of how to operate it. The interesting part was, he had brought the balloon back with him and sought Henry’s input on what sort of use it could be put to.
The gears in Henry’s brain went into overdrive and Mannering waited patiently while the cogs turned. Eventually Henry appeared to make up his mind and taking Mannering by the arm manoeuvred him away from the rest of the men.
‘Let me tell you something only my friend, Tom, knows,’ said Henry quietly. ‘That fall has left me with an invalided leg. I have been doing some training but it has become obvious that my rope-walking career is at an end. While I have not given serious thought to my future, perhaps your foresight in securing that balloon might present an opportunity.’
They agree that Henry and Tom will meet Mannering at Parramatta where the balloon was stored, in a week’s time.