and if I keep writing successful threatening letters, helping myself to the
odd few shillings from her purse and keeping the stamp money, Ill have
my escape money to America. If my whole family dropped from the
hunger I wouldnt touch this money in the post office.
Often I have to write threatening letters to neighbors and friends
of my mother and I worry they might discover me.They complain to
Mam,That oul bitch, Finucane, below in Irishtown, sent me a threat-
ening letter.What kind of a demon outa hell would torment her own
kind with a class of a letter that I cant make head nor tail of anyway
with words never heard on land or sea.The person that would write that
letter is worse than Judas or any informer for the English.
My mother says anyone that writes such letters should be boiled in
oil and have his fingernails pulled out by blind people.
Im sorry for their troubles but theres no other way for me to save
the money for America. I know that someday Ill be a rich Yank and
send home hundreds of dollars and my family will never have to worry
about threatening letters again.
Some of the temporary telegram boys are taking the permanent exam in
August.Mrs.OConnell says,You should take that exam,Frank McCourt.
You have a bit of a brain in your head and youd pass it no bother.Youd
be a postman in no time and a great help to your poor mother.
Mam says I should take it, too, become a postman, save up, go to
America and be a postman over there and wouldnt that be a lovely life.
Im delivering a telegram to Souths pub on a Saturday and Uncle
Pa Keating is sitting there, all black as usual. He says, Have a lemonade
there, Frankie, or is it a pint you want now that youre near sixteen?
Lemonade, Uncle Pa, thanks.
Youll want your first pint the day youre sixteen, wont you?
I will but my father wont be here to get it for me.
Dont worry about that. I know tis not the same without your
father but Ill get you the first pint. Tis what Id do if I had a son. Come
here the night before youre sixteen.
I will, Uncle Pa.
I hear youre taking that exam for the post office?
I am.
Why would you do a thing like that?
Tis a good job and Id be a postman in no time and it has the pension.
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