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Medical Forum / Diseases and Disorders / Alzheimer's / November 2005Good story
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10016670/site/newsweek/ The writer has a pleasant style easy to read and well put together. In the small understanding that she gained by her contact with Mort and his books she obviously put together what she perceived him to be, part fact, part her imagination. I have a story of a similar type which shows that one should be cautious of over romanticizing ones relatives. My wife had a great Uncle who was born in Bristol England, came to America during or just at the start of the Civil War, and enrolled in the US Navy. He was an Assistant Masters Mate, and as such was a commissioned officer. Family folklore had it that he left the navy after the war and became a ferry boat captain in NewYork. Having been in the Royal Navy myself I thought I would try to find more about Charles Henley, so I wrote to the department of the Navy and gave the scant information I had to see if they could fill in some of the blanks. They replied that they did have a record of him including the ships that he had been on. Almost as an aside they mentioned that he had been Court Martialled. Knowing that there would be a record of the Court Martial proceedings I sent off for a copy the microfilm. He had been charged with being drunk ashore, attacking two Marines that had been sent to apprehend him with a knife, assaulting the wife of one of the towns residents, threatening the interrogating officer, and several other charges. He finally was carted off to the barracks lock-up where he spent the night on the floor securely bound. he was found guilty on all charges and was sentenced to be demoted to Landsman (how much lower can you get in the Navy) and to be confined in jail for three years, the first six months in double irons, legs and hands. After that he was to forfeit all pay and to be discharged with dishonor. As the only person who testified on his behalf said "He was a good officer when he was sober." None of this was known to the family back in Bristol who thought he had succeeded well in the US. Further research dug up a Coroners report in the Bristol local paper relating how his father had died. He had fallen into the River Avon while in an acute state of inebriation and drowned. After digging all this up I suggested to my wife that we should use smaller wine glasses for our evening meal. <G> Things are never quite what they appear to be at first sight.! > http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10016670/site/newsweek/ Interesting story, Frederick! Gwen > The writer has a pleasant style easy to read and well put together. In > the small understanding that she gained by her contact with Mort and his [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > America during or just at the start of the Civil War, and enrolled in the > US Navy. He was an Assistant Masters Mate, and as such was a commissioned > officer. Family folklore had it that he left the navy after the war and > became a ferry boat captain in NewYork. [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > charges and was sentenced to be demoted to Landsman (how much lower can > you get in the Navy) and to be confined in jail for three years, the first > six months in double irons, legs and hands. After that he was to forfeit > all pay and to be discharged with dishonor. As the only person who > testified on his behalf said "He was a good officer when he was sober." > None of this was known to the family back in Bristol who thought he had > succeeded well in the US. Further research dug up a Coroners report in the > Bristol local paper relating how his father had died. He had fallen into > the River Avon while in an acute state of inebriation and drowned. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > >> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10016670/site/newsweek/ I do genealogy as a hobby, and I've certainly fallen over some stories/skeletons in my own tree that were either totally unknown to family members, or had been artfully concealed. I find it really fascinating - and I'm never been upset or offended by the discoveries. The past is what it is. Prior generations weren't any better or wiser human beings just by virtue of having been born at some prior point in history. I do have some relatives, who want to put great grandma or grandpa on some exalted pedestal like they are too pure to have walked the earth - which to me, leaches away their humanity and personality - and the lessons you can learn from their experiences (its kinda like the sanitized and idealized versions of major historical figures, vs. the much more interesting, warty, gritty reality of the person who really was). I'm always interested in understanding the events and choices that shaped their lives, why certain things happened, how things and people turned out the way they did. Some of my relatives seem to want to hide things that there can be no shame in for the individual (things a person can't help, like being abandoned by a spouse, or being born out of wedlock, having a mental illness etc). I'd rather see the truth than a facade for both the dead and the living. M. >I do genealogy as a hobby, and I've certainly fallen over some > stories/skeletons in my own tree that were either totally unknown to [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > > M. I agree completely. Knowing that ones forbears suffered in their own way, makes them so much more real and human. I have been looking into past generations also, and so far it has been very interesting and fun besides. I think it gives one a wonderful sense of history, of culture and of belonging, to know where and from whom, we came.  SignatureBest Regards, Evelyn (to reply to me personally, remove 'sox') > I do genealogy as a hobby, and I've certainly fallen over some > stories/skeletons in my own tree that were either totally > unknown to family members, or had been artfully concealed. <snipped> I'd rather > see the truth than a facade for both the dead and the living. > > M. Years ago, I saw something similar to the following quote. It was better than this, but the gist was the same. "The Smiths were proud of their family tradition. Their ancestors had come to America on the Mayflower. They had included Senators and Wall Street wizards. They decided to compile a family history, a legacy for their children and grandchildren. They hired a fine author. Only one problem arose—how to handle that great-uncle George, who was executed in the electric chair. The author said he could handle the story tactfully. The book appeared. It said "Great-uncle George occupied a chair of applied electronics at an important government institution, was attached to his position by the strongest of ties, and his death came as a great shock." Here's another version, Rule 1 of Murphy's Laws of Genealogy: "The public ceremony in which your distinguished ancestor participated and at which the platform collapsed under him turned out to be a hanging." Deborah My favorite family tale is of my immigrant multi-great granddad that ordered 2 meals before he figured out how to order beer in America. :-) SignatureKaren kk5151@hotmail.com > I do genealogy as a hobby, and I've certainly fallen over some > stories/skeletons in my own tree that were either totally unknown to [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > > M. Karen wrote - > My favorite family tale is of my immigrant multi-great granddad that ordered > 2 meals before he figured out how to order beer in America. :-) In the early 1960's I met an immigrant from Cuba who had been a judge in his native country. Living in a Spanish speaking enclave in Florida, the only work he could find was janitorial until such time as he mastered enough English to work as a law clerk. His job was not in the Spanish speaking community - someone taught him "apple pie and coffee" and for weeks that was his lunch at a diner where no Spanish was spoken. Finally he screwed up the courage to ask for a translation of "roast beef sandwich" However when the waiter responded " White or wheat?" my Cuban friend was dumbfounded. He went back to "apple pie and coffee" At his wife's urging, only then did he agree to sign up for English lessons. Probably would never happen in today's Florida - lots of Spanish spoken everywhere. SignatureA R Pickett aka Woodstock "Sometimes the facts threaten the truth" Amos Oz, prize winning Israeli author Read my book reviews at: http://www.booksnbytes.com/reviews/_idx_ws_all_byauth.html Remove lower case "e" to respond Good one, Frederick! SignatureBest Regards, Evelyn (to reply to me personally, remove 'sox') > The writer has a pleasant style easy to read and well put together. In > the small understanding that she gained by her contact with Mort and his [quoted text clipped - 32 lines] > >> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10016670/site/newsweek/ Good story Group: alt.support.alzheimers Date: Thu, Nov 17, 2005, 10:50am (CST+1) From: alwest@us-it.net (Ken) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10016670/site/newsweek/ Ronny: I like that. :-) I couldn't resist the chance to quote Winston Churchill. "History belongs to the Victors, because they write it." > Good story > Group: alt.support.alzheimers Date: Thu, Nov 17, 2005, 10:50am (CST+1) [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > Ronny: > I like that. :-) |
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