Chapter nine. A rainy day, but what rain!
When I awoke from high up in my eagles nest, aka my bedroom it was dark outside, a sort of dismal grey, a sign of heavy rain to come and then it started. At first a squall then a steady downpour and the children rushing from the stable into the safety of the house. Like the birds around they seemed to be able to divine the coming thunder claps. Young Fig was the last up those blasted steps with Robroy leading clutching his hands just as the first lightning lit the castle walls but both safely through the door and most likely into Dulcie's safe embrace. The thunderclap shortly followed behind so I imagined all the children had their faces close by the windows, so I hope the electricity did not penetrate and they were shielding their eyes, so in an instant I decided to rush as quickly as I could down to the lounge room to check on their safety, alas I found no one, but Maise pointed upstairs so I followed her finger to my fathers old room with the bell window and indeed there they all were, some collapsed on the floor some in the chairs but all looking skyward at the gathering storm clouds awaiting the next eruption. The rain got heavier as I too sat in an armchair and looked upwards. Robroy came and sat next to me.
"Grand papa will the gutters hold up do you think?"
'Hopefully.' Said I not moving my eyes upwards. Then Fig joined us and soon the others gathered around my feet.
'Well you lot why choose this room then if you are scared?'
"Better than fireworks." said one.
'Indeed and twice as dangerous.' Said I.
"A story please Grand papa" Robroy in a slightly hesitant manner.
Before I could reply the storm intensified and the rain thudded down so hard I was afraid of the glass in the bell windows. But it held thank goodness but I knew the panes were from the fifties and not very thick, post war stuff , all we could get or afford at the time.
We sat still through thunder and lightning, or as Fig said, fireworks in the sky until frankly I got bored and retreated down to the kitchen where Cook was roasting our luncheon. I was soon followed by my troop of children and Cook treated us all to freshly baked scones with coca and coffee to wash them down. Then she turned to me and said in a very quite voice, better to listen to the wireless. So she turned it on and shortly we were all listening to the forecast and predictions that the storm would increase in intensity. My sons came down the back entrance steps into the basement and the kitchen and gave a warning of floods now appearing near the farm house. They had cut a channel to divert the water into the lake using the tractor and came to tell us to move the horses from the stables, they being at our lower levels. Well immediately all the children ran upstairs for their raincoats.
"So where should we put them Father?"
'Where its safe I suppose, can we get them into the Orangery?'
"I suppose that's the best as the doors open high on the far side. Right you older children, with me and your Uncle, we are taking the Shires over to the Orangery for safety. Some of you bring the bales of straw and the others lead the horses. Now come quickly and don't argue who does what." This from Robin.
"And put the bran and oats into the Land Rover to keep dry, I will help you whilst Uncle Robin moves the horses." This from Nicholas who then led them out up through the back stairs. I finished my cup of coffee and joined the queue with my plastic mac about me, the blasted hood kept slipping off my head so eventually I got dripping wet! Still we all made it to the stables and I could hear my Robroy shrill voice ordering every about but to my amazement he chose the hay brigade and let others lead the horses out. I was rammed into the back seat of the vehicle and was soon covered with bags of Lucerne oats and bran. Then we drove around to the Orangery and there we spread out the hay on the clay part for the Shires to have comfort lying down. I must say they took all this emergency moving in their normal gentle way. Lord had to bow his great head to get through and even the little foal strode in without a care but then it had young Fig sitting high on its rump. The girls dried the shires off with cast off towels and soon we left them to their new accommodation with a large pail of Oates and a bucket of water drained from the water tank outside. I remember the gardeners putting that tank in to water the oranges and lemons we grew inside when I was a child. Alas those old fruit trees we lost in the war, they were purloined and placed elsewhere in the county to help the war effort. I never understood quite why, they grew happily here but I suppose we had little help, I myself was located at the time on the Norfolk coast amongst those huge radar towers. Gideon was up in the air flying those Spits and to my mind has yet to come to earth. Eustace was all at sea and still is, its only his little step son Fig that keeps that family together. But there I go again knocking my poor brothers down whereas in fact they both helped Nick and Robin with the heavy lifting, those bags really where heavy and trapped me in the back for an hour whilst they got the Shires settled. Me and my damp plastic but at least my head was drying out. My boys then moved me out of my dry seat in order to go and feed the cattle that no doubt the Anderton lads had driven into the sheds for safety and I was collected by Robroy and gently steered back down into the kitchen and sat before a blazing wood fire, which coincidently still had one of those medieval spits still attached. Suddenly I had an idea.
'Why don't we open the kitchens to the public to view?' But I was met with sharp glances from both Cook and Maise!
My boys soon returned from exploring the pasture, the lake and the Home Farm buildings, Tom had been sent to check the village where the river was raising steadily, he came back to report his findings and had left the police sergeant to watch over the river. I suggested if the heavy rain persisted that the population be moved up here as the castle was originally built on the higher ground and only the water tower behind sat at the highest level.
We all listened intently to the radio broadcast as the storm progressed to greater volumes of rain and wind so Cook suggested she might bake more in case food might be needed for the villagers, at least those who had homes close to the river banks. So my Dulcie, Maise and Cook together with the female family members shoved we males out into the play area whilst they prepared the breads and buns plus a huge bowl of soup.
Gideon went out to drive the old bus we had bought, cheaply I might add, to take the children all together to school and back. I had bought it a few months back from the town council, it was a twelve seater and they used to use it to ferry people from the villages into town. No sooner had Gideon bought it around to the Castle steps than we got the call most of us were expecting. The river was now encroaching onto the gardens around Hartford and River View streets and could we rescue the tenants.
'Gideon pick up those who wish to leave and take them up to stay at our Cafe and advise the Evans that food will shortly be delivered by Nick in the Land Rover.'
"Well Father I better drive down to the village behind Uncle Gideon just in case we have more than the twelve to pick up. I will return to collect the food afterwards but meantime I will drive up to the Cafe and warn my in laws of the expected arrivals." Nick then vanished out the back stairs to the vehicle whilst Gideon went to the front to collect his. All the children yelled to join them but I shouted an absolute No as we were collecting people in need not organising a trip.
In all we recovered twenty and the rest stayed to sand bag the houses, then they agreed to walk up and join their families. And still the rain came down.
By the evening we were laying out cotton palletisers filled with straw from the farm down in under the castle deep, ready to host the villagers, at least it was warm down there as Cooks cooking per-mutated every crook and corner down below. The children were given this task and happily set too with surprising vigour and lots of laughter. The chore certainly took their mind off the heavy rain.
So later in the evening we had another load of villagers arrive and this time we directed them to the deep in the castle which the children had finished laying out. Nick and Robin went over the the Cafe and picked the others up and drove them down to the kitchen steps and they also were directed into the deep. Tom arrived back soon after and reported the river had peaked so the upper slopes were unaffected and no further families were expected. Alas Tom was not aware of the steady drift of people coming up from the Mill river side, there being a few lonely cottages along that stream which I presume had turned into a boiling raging torrent. Nick and Robroy took the twelve seater down to see if they could at least give the young ones a lift, and soon returned with another half dozen soaked children so our various parents scoured their wardrobes for spare warm clothes and dozens of towels. The whole downstairs was getting full so Robroy in his inveterate way decided to ask Tom to light the big fire upstairs to heat all the rooms. Cook meanwhile commenced cooking again and this time a huge roast of beef was prepared with a cauldron of potatoes and carrots. I heard one youngster comment on how well the Duke and his kin ate, so he got a well deserved glare out of me. That roast we were keeping for harvest festival at the village roast!
By the late evening all were dry and refreshed, the publican had delivered a barrel of beer to quench the village thirst and Toms fire roared its heat so we decided to put all the young ones into the fire room including our own. We arranged blankets and pillows for them to lie on and Tom agreed to keep the fire burning throughout the night. At about eleven at night the castle became quite, the rain eased and I kept my precious fathers special room locked for obvious reasons, then Dulcie and I retired to my bed only find three children, and not our own snuggled up in my covers. So we left them there and retired to Dulcie's room which she had had the foresight to lock! What an eventful day and as I dozed off wrapped in my wife's arms, I wondered what the morrow might bring.