Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot
And days of auld lang syne?
Auld Lang Syne is synonymous with a New Year.
There’s a great scene in the movie When Harry Met Sally:
Harry: What does this song mean? My whole life, I don't know what this song means. I mean, 'Should old acquaintance be forgot'? Does that mean that we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we happened to forget them, we should remember them, which is not possible because we already forgot?
Sally: Well, maybe it just means that we should remember that we forgot them or something. Anyway, it's about old friends.
Of course, the question about the song’s meaning is rhetorical, and the answer is that we shouldn’t forget old acquaintances. In that respect, as we start a new year, I wanted to share Karl’s continued correspondence with his family, whom he did not forget about while he travelled around the world.
You’ll recall Dear Reader that I have transcribed the correspondence of over 40 letters from Karl to younger sister Mattie. Mattie, who was 15 in 1899, obviously kept and cherished these letters from her travelling brother as they eventually found their way to the Colchester Museum archives. I think the posterity of these letters reflects the relationship between the older brother and younger sister. The correspondence is very endearing.
On August 4, 1899, after arriving in North McGregor, Iowa, Karl checked into the Depot Hotel and then used the hotel stationery to write letters to his family, first to sister Mattie and then to his Father.
In Karl’s letter to Mattie, he responds to some speculation in the local Truro newspaper about his love life and that perhaps there was a special girl on his adventure with him. The letter Karl sends to Mattie reflects a typical dynamic between siblings where Mattie must have been teasing her older brother, and it depicts, in my view, an innocence about Karl.
Dear Mattie;
Just turn up on the map and see where I am now if you can find it. I am on the western bank of the Mississippi River in the northeast corner of Iowa. I have got through Wisconsin at last. The country is very hilly and sandy. At first, I thought it would be good travelling, but it soon got bad.
This is a lively little town. I arrived here about 5 o'clock in the afternoon not knowing whether or not the people around here would suit me or not. I had been here only 20 minutes when I was met on the street by the Chief of Police who wanted to know if I was Creelman, he belonged to Halifax at one time, to see my name he thought I must be from Nova Scotia. Rudolph is his name, he wants me to stay over tomorrow and go down the country and see the sights but I do not expect to stay. I must push along. There are rattlers around here six and seven feet in length. I would like to see one if it were in an iron cage.
I have no use for girls just yet for a while, and I certainly have never seen one yet that I thought a great deal of and never expect to see one in Truro, NS. I think I told you one time a description of my ideal girl who I have never seen. She must be of medium size and height, dark hair, good looking, a musician and above all a good conversationalist, one who knows how to use good grammar. I will know her in about one minute if I ever see her. If I don’t, then all the other girls will cut no ice with yours truly.
How foolish I am: what do you think? I have not much news tonight as I have not much time. As I have no companion, the paper must have had it all wrong. Well I must close this now, will write some more in the morning.
Yours Truly Karl M. Creelman
In that same stationary, from that same town, Karl also wrote a letter to his Father, Eben Creelman. It’s the first and only letter that I have to Karl’s Father. The tone and content is different again to the letters to the newspaper and to Mattie. Karl writes about those subjects that would be of interest to his Dad, and more practical matters as to where he’s headed next.
Dear Father
I have not much time to write anything this morning as I start very soon for LaCrosse. This is quite a country, but it cannot be compared with Nova Scotia. Plenty of corn and wheat is ground here, I never saw so many hills in my life as I did coming through Wisconsin, the shape of them just the shape of beehives, the sides of them all corrugated and on the summits were a few large trees.
This town is on the Mississippi River. I do not like the looks of this River, too low and swampy. I may go to San Francisco after reaching Vancouver. I think I could get a better chance for a passage from there. I expect to be in Winnipeg for a great while. So please address the next letter there. I can think of nothing new at present so I guess I must close. Yours, Karl M. Creelman
Karl spent a few days in North MacGregor and next week, I’ll be sure to tell you all about it. But today I wanted to share with you the personal side of Karl, his character. This journey for me is as much about the people involved in this adventure around the world, as the travel itself. And my affection for Karl is as much about who he is, as what he accomplished.
And so, Dear Reader, on this day, of not forgetting old acquaintances, please support the Karl Chronicles and forward this post to three or thirty of your acquaintances, encouraging them to subscribe to the weekly blog.
For auld lang syne, my dear
For auld lang syne
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet
For auld lang syne
Robert Burns, 1788