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Margaretta B. Wells interview, March 24, 1983.
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- speakerSo we get to the Fullers' place.
- speakerWere taken there. And, the first thing Mrs. Fuller said was Have you had any
- speakerbreakfast? And we said, "No, and we were hungry." and she said, "Well, you'll have breakfast right
- speakeraway then." And she called her servant girl. We had fruit, scrambled
- speakereggs and toast and
- speakercoffee and were well regaled. We arrived
- speakerin Bangkok on double ten. Double ten is a
- speakervery famous Chinese holiday. That means the 10th of
- speakerOctober. And so.
- speakerIt's always easy to remember the day that we arrived because it was double ten
- speakerfor the Chinese. And there at the.
- speakerAt the Fullers. doctor. That was Dr. Bulkley [Bulkley, Lucius Constant] who was the
- speakerdoctor, the mission doctor who. Was.
- speakerIn south Siam in a place called Trod. He happened to be up in
- speakerBangkok for a meeting. So he was our,
- speakerbeside the Fullers of those that were on the welcoming committee. He was the
- speakerfirst at the mission that we that we had met. And he was
- speakerbusy doing some typing that we were getting. He was getting.
- speakerVery interesting. A very interesting man. And in the course of our conversation
- speakerat lunch he said. He was talking
- speakerabout eating a monkey. How he had been. He'd
- speakerto eat he eat the monkey. So we were
- speakerfascinated at the idea of eating monkeys. We said, "Well, what does it taste like?" And
- speakerhe said, "Oh! About like cat." We were not
- speakerthe wiser. What monkeys tasted like. So we
- speakertook another look at him.
- speakerDoctor Bulkley turned out to be a person very interested in the
- speakerFlora and fauna of Siam. And, he even had a mosquito
- speakernamed after him. He did a lot of
- speakerpublic health work. That was a great help to them. So.
- speakerThat's the next morning we met our language teacher. She came to. She
- speakercame to the Fullers and.
- speakerSo we. We met. To talk. Our dear
- speakerfriend for 40 years. She was she was a
- speakerwonderful person and a very unusual: teacher,
- speakerlecturer, business woman, editor.
- speakerWell known all through the city. So.
- speakerShe was really a person that was
- speakervery very special and we deeply
- speakerappreciate having been able to have all these
- speakerwonderful years knowing her. She died after we returned
- speakerhere about nineteen seventy-
- speakerseven.
- speakerWe spent two weeks with the Fullers, living with the Fullers and going to language school.
- speakerWe started language school immediately. We. We went about eight
- speakero'clock in the morning and had language classes until noon.
- speakerAnd then we returned and spent the afternoon was to be spent in
- speakerstudy. After two weeks we
- speakerwere moved to a place
- speakercalled. The House on the property of the Jane Hayes
- speakerMemorial School. This was a school run by the mission.
- speakerAnd it had a house on the property.
- speakerThat. In which Dr. and Mrs. McClure had been living Dr.
- speakerMcClure [McClure, William Goodell] had died. And Mrs. McClure [Mary Jane Henderson McClure] had been transferred to the girls
- speakerschool. So the house was empty. But it also had McClure furniture
- speakerin it. So Mrs. McClure said she'd be happy to have us use that
- speakerplace because it's better to use furniture and use place
- speakerthan to have it stand empty. So we went. We were sent
- speakerto the house in Hualapaun it which was in
- speakerthe most.
- speakerDown the most ghastly alley in a
- speakerslum section of the city. But after you got inside the fence, the wall,
- speakerwhy there was this nice house and a
- speakerbig lawn and the school building and a little chapel.
- speakerAnd a little pavilion where they gave the programs like a stage
- speakerset at one end. So after you got out of the alley, why
- speakerit was really very pleasant. The house was
- speakerquite large and large living room large dining room.
- speakerAnd then a little verandah all the way around. And out.
- speakerA little.
- speakerPantry or storage place and then the kitchen. And our servants
- speakerwere Magda Long, the Cook. And
- speakerthat tap the house girl. And Massasoit the washwoman.
- speakerAnd, the Chinese, who was the kind of
- speakercaretaker for the school, was to be our coolie and do our verandahs once a
- speakerweek.
- speakerIt was. It was really a very comfortable house. There was electric light and there
- speakerwas a kind of old fashioned plumbing that at least
- speakerworked. But we found out that
- speakerwe were, we were in the afternoons.
- speakerWe were so tired we seemed to be so completely exhausted.
- speakerWe finally figured out that it was because. We were so
- speakertired that. Our blood was thick. It hadn't thinned out any.
- speakerLater on why we got so that we didn't we weren't so tired all afternoon. We just
- speakersort of collapse and sleep almost all afternoon maybe get up and be able to
- speakerget up about four o'clock or a
- speakerLittle after and try to get some study done. Or we would
- speakergo to visit the Landons [Kenneth Perry Landon, Margaret D. Mortenson Landon] who lived at
- speakeranother school building. And, Kenneth Landon and a friend
- speakerhad built a tennis court. And Margaret Landon
- speakerwas a
- speakergood tennis player. She'd been a college champion at her college. And, I had
- speakerbeen a college champion in my college and Ken was a good
- speakertennis player. So we used to go over. About five o'clock
- speakerand. Play several games of several sets of tennis. And then get
- speakerhome. Later out in the evening and have our supper. That time.
- speakerWe ate late. Always
- speakerafter 7:00 because it was so hot. And.
- speakerOur servants were very good. Magda Long was the cook.
- speakerAnd, while she didn't have very much imagination, she'd
- speakerdo whatever you'd like to have her do.
- speakerAnd our house girl we found out later on understood a lot of English. Well, that helps.
- speakerThat helped a lot because we found out that and the way we found out was rather
- speakerodd.
- speakerWe were sitting at dinner one evening. And the house girl was serving.
- speakerAnd just going back and forth from the kitchen to the dining room.
- speakerAnd Ken said, "My. Doesn't Magda have pretty feet." Not
- speakeryet.
- speakerHe turned around to look. Here she had collapsed on the floor covered her feet with her enung andow
- speakerAnd, we said. "Magda, You know English."And
- speakershe said yes that. Why was she
- speakercovering her feet? She was so embarassed.
- speakerWe didn't realize that she understood what we were saying at all.
- speakerAnd. She spoke excellent English really.
- speakerIt took me two.
- speakerTo mention a person's feet or say anything about their feet is really very bad manners.
- speakerThe feet being the lowest part of the body. They're always you always put your feet
- speakerunderneath you. You never cross your feet or.
- speakerSo that anyone can see the soles of your feet. That was
- speakerjust good manners. Or even point them at somebody. Or even point them at somebody? It's just good manners.
- speakerOr to push any thing with your foot. It's all very bad manners. Goodness! And,
- speakerwe hadn't learned that yet. We learn it real quick.
- speakerBut she did have. She was small, small-boned. And, she did have very attractive pretty feet.
- speakerAnd of course, the servants all went barefoot so.
- speakerThat. How were some of the meals there? Were they. Did you
- speakerask for specifically English meals or did you try a lot of Thai meals? Well, it was a
- speakercombination.
- speakerWe mostly ate foreign food. But, of course, there were wonderful
- speakerfruits of all kinds that we had never tasted before. And our breakfast used to
- speakerbe fruit and
- speakercereal. Toast.
- speakerCoffee or tea or coffee or tea.
- speakerWe had a hearty breakfast before we left because we walked. We walked down our
- speakerdirty old slum lane till we came to the tramline.
- speakerThen we got on the tram and rode up to a division
- speakerpoint where we transferred to another line that took us
- speakerdown and passed a very pretty ride down the canal where
- speakerwe got off at the Premalin road
- speakerand walked about a block and a half to where the school was. It was
- speakerreally a very pleasant ride. How long did it take? Oh it took us about
- speaker20 minutes maybe. 20. Not counting the walk.
- speakerSo in the in those early in the morning early morning we'd be going in was really very
- speakerpleasant. And it only got a little tiresome during the rains, muddy
- speakerwalking. But we managed very nicely and
- speakerenjoyed that. And we were going to.
- speakerAnd then we learned after we had dressed up in
- speakercostumes to go to a
- speakerparty given to the boys in Bangkok Christian college. A
- speakercostume but a costume party. So we had put on our
- speakercostumes which we had made Spanish. And.
- speakerPut on our costumes at our house house in Hualapone. Then we went
- speakerout, got the tram. Rode up and then down, then walked over
- speakerto.
- speakerThe.
- speakerLanguage schools right next to Bangkok Christian College. So it was we're used to that.
- speakerAnd then we learned.
- speakerAnd then we learned that it was against the law to ride on a tram in a
- speakercostume, a masked costume.
- speakerWe didn't learn that so often. So the next day after we got home. We weren't
- speakerhowever so disguised that we were a threat to the public.
- speakerIs that why the law was? Well, it was at that time against the law. Didn't know of course that
- speakerjust simply.
- speakerJust three weeks there.
- speakerWe had a very pleasant time in Bangkok and got to see many things.
- speakerWe did a lot of sightseeing and while we were there there were many interesting
- speakerpeople coming through and we would hear them speak at
- speakerthe University. Among them was the Indian mystic and philosopher Tagore [Rabindranath Tagore].
- speakerI had seen him years before in
- speaker1915. 14 And this was.
- speakerAgain he was.
- speakerHe was coming and making a visit to Bangkok and speaking at
- speakeruniversity. So we saw him again. Much older of course.
- speakerEvery Sunday we went to. In the afternoon we went to the
- speakerforeign church service which met at about five o'clock.
- speakerBut of course we'd have to leave earlier at least by 4:30 to get there. And
- speakerit was really quite effort to get dressed to. Go and we were
- speakerstill feeling so so very enervated and tired. But.
- speakerOf course you have to see the church see everyone. And, it was a good
- speakerchance to see who was going and coming in
- speakerBangkok. Right away
- speakerwe liked Thai people they were very friendly and seemed to just
- speakerlike your own family and friends and your own school mates
- speakerand the Thai teachers were so helpful. And,
- speakerso we enjoyed our stay there very much.
- speakerShortly after we got there they began the the king began a series of contins,
- speakerthat is giving gifts
- speakerof the new clothing to the monks said look at the conclusion of
- speakerthe rainy season. And he would go in
- speakervarious manners. So we've we visited.
- speakerWe watched three of these royal progresses. We watched
- speakerby King going by carriage to some temples followed
- speakerby many carriages carrying his gifts, which included the new
- speakerrobes for the coming season. The King's carriage was
- speakerreally an old fashioned kind of Victoria. And we were when we saw the
- speakerhorses well they just looked like ponies. They were so small
- speakerand edgy and really just miniature. But the king
- speakerwore a uniform with a cocked hat, covered
- speakerwith feathers and it was really quite impressive because there was a lot
- speakerof cavalry with him. And, they clattered along on their way. So,
- speakerwe were there to cheer him on. Then, we saw him again
- speakergoing to another temple by pallanquin that is he was
- speakercarried on this pallanquin on the shoulders of of his bearers.
- speakerAnd it really did look precarious,
- speakerbut he was more elaborately dressed. And, the pallanquin was of
- speakergold. It was a golden chair up on a platform up the shoulders
- speakerand accompanied by large groups of officials.
- speakerAnd family and friends and and others carrying gifts
- speakerfor the priests for the monks. And his most glamorous one
- speakerwas the progress royal progress by boat which went to
- speakerto the temples along the river. And this was
- speakerreally spectacular. The king's boats were long
- speakerabout and there were about 60
- speakeroarsmen and the. The.
- speakerThe the heads of the figureheads on the
- speakerboats were very interesting. That of the
- speakerKing's boat was a beautiful swan and
- speakerfrom the swan's neck there hung the garland of fresh flowers that trailed
- speakeroff into the water of jasmine. It was very very beautiful.
- speakerAnd the king's pavilion in the center of the boat has had gold.
- speakerGold cloth curtains and but you could see the King seated on his
- speakerthrone. And there was a man that
- speakerhad a big staff and as he dumped the staff on the boat, the p
- speakereople the oarsmen dipped their oars
- speakerand they would lift their oars high in the air and the droplets of water just like
- speakerdiamonds would fall down and everything was done with wonderful
- speakerrhythm. And there were drums all
- speakeralong. The. Other boats a lot of accompanying
- speakerboats. Then, there was another spectacular boat which
- speakercarried the gifts with the dragon's head on it and the
- speakerother boats all of different kinds with wonderful
- speakerfigureheads on them. They were all covered with gold leaf and the oars men
- speakerwere all in red uniforms,
- speakerold fashioned uniforms. Actually we learned that these people were from the
- speakerRoyal Navy so. So they were they weren't just
- speakeranyone that could lift an oar because they had practice to
- speakermake things go smoothly. So we saw these three royal progresses. It was
- speakervery interesting. And there were other festivals
- speakerlike plowing ploughing Festival which was set
- speakerto at the beginning of the time to planting rice and then
- speakerin March there was kite flying and kite fighting. That was interesting.
- speakerAnd we would go to the Royal cremation ground and watch that.
- speakerStill it was an absolute monarchy when we get there and the king was king
- speakerfor Chatipook or one of the seven. At that
- speakertime they were still beheading people for
- speakermisdemeanors. I mean crimes really. And then
- speakershortly after we arrived there was an execution at the regular execution grounds
- speakerand the wretched people to be
- speakerexecuted were brought out and tied to a stake in a sitting
- speakerposition. Hands tied behind them to a stake then usually
- speakerthey had been given some morphine or something. But
- speakersince the executioner had to perform a dance
- speakerin front of them. And to the sides
- speakerswinging his executioner's sword and making wild
- speakerpasses.
- speakerI'm sure it must've been most nerve wracking. And, the victims, the people that were
- speakergoing to be executed
- speakerhad wads of mud stuck in their ears so that
- speakerthey wouldn't hear that dumping of his feet and hands
- speakerand. They were blindfolded so they wouldn't see that. See
- speakerthe gesticulations which were really terrible.
- speakerSo. And then finally after all these
- speakerfalse starts and all these waving said slashing of the sword and everything.
- speakerThe executioners were really very expert. And, with one whack, why they
- speakertook off the head at the proper time. But all this ceremonial dancing
- speakeraround was part of the ceremony. So
- speakerit wasn't it was three executions in
- speakerBangkok while we were there just after we arrived. We hope fortunately
- speakerdidn't witness but we heard all about it. Pictures are all the papers
- speakernewspapers.
- speakerWhen did the execution stop? Did they ever stop? or.
- speakerOh well I think that and the execution by beheading
- speakerstopped possibly at the time of the coup d'etat
- speakerthat overthrew the absolute government monarchy and established a
- speakerconstitutional monarchy. I think that execution by beheading was.
- speakerFaded out of the picture.
- speakerWhat year was that though, the coup d'etat? Oh it was in 1932.
- speakerThe kite flying was quite a sport in Siam. And,
- speakerkites were very beautiful. And various
- speakergroups of people would go together
- speakerin a club that or a section of the village or and make their kite. Then
- speakerthe kite entering into a kite fight. They were
- speakermale and female kites. The male kite being larger; female kite being
- speakersmaller. And, the
- speakerway you manipulated the kite to get it caught
- speakerthe strings caught and bring down the kite that was there. The
- speakeridea there were very very clever at manipulating the clay kites.
- speakerSometimes they would dip the kite string in glue and then put glass, bits
- speakerof glass. Shreds of
- speakerglass along the kite string so that it would cut
- speakerthe string. Cut the string of the opposing kite. So that was all seemed to
- speakerbe cheating. Apparently not.
- speakerApparently everything was All's fair in love and war.
- speakerBut some of the cuts were really beautiful and there were cups
- speakergiven for the best for the outcome of the fights. And when they
- speakerreally came for the contest they were very well regulated. Then, there was
- speakeranother contest called de gras which was kicking a
- speakerball using only your feet your elbows
- speakeryour knees your head not touching it with your hands.
- speakerPeople would stand in the inner circle and stand in a circle
- speakerand oh they were really expert at it. It was
- speakerjust really fascinating. The wicker balls had
- speakerabout the size a little larger than a softball. And they
- speakerwere woven rattan and there were some
- speakerkind of holes through it. So remind him you never you
- speakersee you've seen them I think maybe Mommy has one of those. And they were
- speakervery very expert. They could kick it over their heads.
- speakerAnd I thought it was something like soccer or something. No no keep it
- speakeroff keep, keep it off the ground. Keep it going off the ground without touching it with their
- speakerhands. They are really fascinating to watch
- speakerand. Look.
- speakerAt. The end and. It's going to it's going.
- speakerThen we took trips on the canals in
- speakersampans and that was pleasant especially in the evening
- speakerand. And we could hear people. Sitting on
- speakertheir doorstep singing and playing.
- speakerAnd. Sometimes along the way
- speakeras. Certain times during the very full moon. Then during the loy katone or
- speakerthe floating of the baskets.
- speakerSay this was. These were little, little baskets
- speakermade out of banana leaves and inside
- speakerwas put a candle and maybe a coin and
- speakerset on the river to go out.
- speakerAnd, this carried your sins away from you. And
- speakerit was very beautiful to watch the lights of these little
- speakerboats all the way down. Then they got to be a contest about who would make the
- speakermost beautiful katone or basket as it's called.
- speakerAnd some of them were most elaborate. And even, you
- speakercould buy them the shape of lotus blossoms or make your
- speakerown. Mostly the schoolboys of the various classes would make their own.
- speakerAnd then they have a parade go down to the riverside and
- speakerlaunch their boats. It's really fun. Even my children used to
- speakerput out loy kadrone out on the river and float off. They.
- speakerGo off into the darkness. That was always in, at the
- speakerfull moon. The largest,
- speakerthe fullest moon of the year which is about October end of October. So that was it.
- speakerThat was very beautiful.
- speakerWe enjoyed that . Was that from the influence of Christian or or was that a Buddhist? Oh, no.
- speakerSo no that's a that's a animist really.
- speakerBecause it has to do with the spirits. You're appeasing the spirits.
- speakerBy floating and floating off. You're taking
- speakeryour sins away from you and sending them away
- speakerdown the river.
- speakerAnd a little bit of, penny put in the
- speakerbottom of the boat would be supposed
- speakerto be appeasing the spirits but very many naughty boys
- speakerget out in the river, grab these little boats and take
- speakerout the pennies. So much for superstition! Yeah.
- speakerAs.
- speakerAs opposed to common ordinary good healthy greed.
- speakerWe visited many of the Thai temples and monuments some of them
- speakervery very interesting. Especially the temple of the Emerald Buddha, which is
- speakerreally the most important place in it
- speakerin the religious life of the country, because
- speakerhere the Emerald Buddha which is a Buddha twenty-four
- speakerinches tall made out of jasper and beautiful green jasper
- speakeris enshrined here. And the chapel has
- speakermany interesting. things in the courtyard.
- speakerAnd there also was the Pantheon where the
- speakerstatues of the kings of the Chakri Dynasty were. That.
- speakerWere placed also the urns containing part of the
- speakerashes of these kings were in that pantheon. This
- speakerbuilding was open one. One day a year. April 6th which
- speakerwas called chokri day and people could come and pay there. The doors would be
- speakeropen and people would
- speakercome
