Payroll by William James Johnson Chapter 2

Mary Pifko's wedding reception was held in Banner Hall, not far from the United Grain Grower's elevator. After twelve years of on and off courting, Mary had finally landed Elwood Harbottle, the local school teacher. She was now in her mid-thirties, and Elwood, a confirmed bachelor, was almost fifty. He had spent most of his life teaching in a country school, and keeping a few head of cattle on the side to supplement his meagre income. Those were the days when a teacher taught all grades in a one room school house for under $1500.00 a year, and even that was considered too much by many of the struggling farmers.
Elwood liked to tell the story of the time he applied for his first teaching job. After graduating from Normal School in Winnipeg, he hitched a ride on a freight train and dropped off in the small settlement of Othon. He walked the nine miles to the clapboard structure to meet the three members of the local school board.
"How much?" asked the chairman of the board.
"Four hundred," replied Elwood.
"Too much...Next."
He took that first job for three hundred and fifty dollars a year, and the use of a small cabin on the school property. With such an unpretentious beginning, you could understand his procrastination over the many years which finally led to his wedding day.
Adolph Zylkowski and his wife Elfie had brought their only child Stanislaus, age four and precocious, the 320 miles from Winnipeg, to attend the long awaited marriage of their niece. The roads were treacherous in this part of the west in late November, but nothing was going to keep Adolph from this happy event. Relatives from as far away as Vancouver and Toronto made the effort to share in Mary's big day.
She was a very attractive girl, with deep set eyes in a chiselled Ukranian face. Today she wore her long hair braided with flowers and lace, and cheered everyone with her marvellous smile.
"Well Mary, you finally landed him," said Adolph.
"It was worth waiting Uncle Adolph. Ellie is a fine man."
Tiny Stanley looked up at his beautiful cousin, who looked every inch a fairy princess. The little boy was eager to get into the conversation. He loved talking with big people.
"Mom says you're getting married because you want to have a baby before it's too late."
Elfie was embarrassed by her young son and pulled him away.
"That's okay Aunt Elfie. I understand. It's just that it's difficult when you hear Stanley speak, to realize he's only four years old."
"I think it's because he's an only child...you know. Always with adults," explained Elfie.
Mary bent down and hugged her tiny cousin.
"Well I want to thank you for coming to my wedding Stanley. Thank you all for coming. It's too bad the weather is so miserable."
"Wouldn't have missed it for anything," replied Adolph.
"If it gets worse, you can stay over at dad's place. I wouldn't want anything to happen to you."
"Henry has already asked us," said Elfie.
"Don't you worry. My old Buick's never let me down. There's not a drift we can't plow through. It's built like a tank."
"Daddy's even pulled other people out of the ditch with our car. It's really strong."
"Well you know how bad it can get. You used to live here before moving to Winnipeg."
"We'll be alright Mary. You better go and say hello to your other guests. The hall is starting to fill up," said Elfie.
"That's what I like about prairie weddings. Today everyone is a relative," said Mary.
Weddings are splendid occasions to fill in all those years of being apart. Adolph's brother Ernest came from Kelowna with his wife Annie, and Edmund came alone from Toronto. His wife Myrtle had died of cancer that summer. It was nice to see Ed having fun with his family again. That's what he needed. It was amazing how much older everyone looked. Kids were having kids now and Uncles and Aunts were meeting new relations for the first time.
Stan enjoyed his many cousins. Most of them were much older, but they all enjoyed the way this small child could express himself. He liked being the centre of attraction.
"And you still don't go to school?" asked cousin Marjorie.
"I don't have time. I have chores to do, and Mom teaches me reading and math."
"But why? You're only a child Stanley. You should do the things of a child. Have fun."
"I don't know what children are supposed to do. I don't have anyone to play with, so I read books."
"But you're only four."
"I can't help that. And besides soon I'll be five."
They all laughed when he said this. Stan was fun to be around because his remarks were so unexpected. Even though many of them had been going to school for many years, they still could not read as well as this young child. Stanley Zylkowski was no ordinary youngster. Great things were going to happen to him. Everyone knew that for sure.
The celebrations went on and on. Stanley provided entertainment for the others with his attempts at doing the polka with his young cousin Martha from B.C. She was almost seven, and obviously was attracted to this bright young child. They were swinging so fast in one song, she got Stan off the floor and everyone roared.
It was after two in the morning when the fiddle player ended his toe stomping music with the favourite tune, "Good Night Ladies". The sparkling home brew he had been drinking all night finally settled in his joints, and he couldn't make his fingers move anymore. The table with the midnight buffet looked like a war zone by now . It had been a terrific wedding reception. Mary and Elwood had collected over three thousand dollars in cash as farmers loosened their purse strings and placed money into Mary's apron as they swung her onto the floor for a polka. Elwood had collapsed in a corner, surrounded by many of his old pupils who made sure his glass was never empty.
The Buick was buried in snow when Adolph staggered out with his small family into the freezing air.
"Goddamn winter. Not fit for man or beast."
"Are we going to Uncle Henry's house?" asked Stan.
"We're going home, that's where we're going."
Elfie was upset when she heard this.
"It's almost three in the morning Adolph. Let's go to Henry's house and get a good rest before heading back." She touched her husband's arm.
"Get in the car woman. I said we're going home."
"But daddy! You've been drinking so much. Let's stay at Uncle Henry's"
With this remark, Adolph became furious, and slapped the child so hard, he flew into the snow. As soon as he had unloaded the blow, he felt remorse.
"Jesus! Now look what you made me do."
Elfie picked up her son and dusted off the snow, holding him closely. Adolph bent down and caressed him, the strong odour of alcohol on his breath drifted into the pitch black air.
"I'm sorry son. You're right. We better go to Uncle Henry's farm. What's another day."
They all got into the Buick, and were pleasantly surprised it started right away. Adolph had a self-satisfied smirk on his weary face when the engine responded to a few pumps on the gas.
"It'll be awhile before it warms up son. You better lay down on the back seat and get some sleep. Wrap yourself in that blanket. With the roads like they are it's gonna take some time getting to your uncle's farm."
Elfie leaned over the seat and covered him. She was relieved to see that Adolph was gradually coming around. Slowly the dark Buick left the parking lot of Banner Hall heading for the back roads to Henry's farm.
There was no such thing as a snowplow on these country roads. In the west, everyone tried to make it the best they could. If they got into trouble, you were never too far from a farm where you could get a neighbour to help you with a tractor.
"I prefer snow to ice," said Adolph, fighting to keep awake, the cold air wafting across his face through the opened side window in an attempt to keep the frost from building up on the windshield. The stream of snow looked like long white ribbons thrusting outward into the blackness of the night. The constancy of the effect was mesmerizing.
"Don't drive so fast," said Elfie.
"Has this car ever let us down...has it?"
"No."
"Then sit there and shut up. We're almost there. Those lights behind those bushes. That's Henry's farm."
Elfie knew it was better not to antagonize him. He had slowed down to almost a crawl as he searched in the blackness for the posts which marked the laneway. His head still fuzzy from the hours of drinking, Adolph missed the opening and skidded the car around the outside of the laneway post, and continued sliding down towards the dugout which Henry had made to store water for his animals. The thin coating of ice cracked loudly as the heavy Buick broke through the surface and began to sink, nose down in the twelve foot deep slough.
The freezing water of the pond surged into the open window. Adolph tried to force open the door, but it was jammed. Neither he nor Elfie knew how to swim. In their panic, the two soon filled up their lungs with water, and it was all over.
In the back seat, the child had floated to the air space which had formed when the car nosed downwards. He cranked the window handle and made an opening big enough to squeeze through. The ice on the pond supported his light weight, and he managed to move slowly on his belly to the laneway. Freezing, and in shock, Stanley forged a path through the deep snow to his uncle's house.
It was too late for his parents.
The relatives and friends who had come from far and near for the wedding, stayed on for the double funeral. Uncle Henry tried to keep Stanley, but it never worked out. Most of his young years were spent in an orphanage in Winnipeg. Foster parents tried to give him a home, but most found him too difficult to live with. Stanley Zylkowski always seemed to be fighting the system. When he joined the Army to get away from all the pressures that had hounded him growing up, he discovered a new set of pressures.

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