Part 2
The Boston Tunnel Affair: Beneath the City, the Tunnels are Alive
Bridgette's Diary
Monday, 12 January, 1925
We
survived the crossing with little trouble although it was terribly cold. I’d
completely forgotten just how cold it can get along the coast. It was already
terribly cold as we departed Liverpool on the 6th, but that was as
nothing compared to the frigid temperatures of actually being on the Atlantic. Promenading
on the deck seems to be a quick and stimulating affair, but I do like at least
a short walk once or twice daily to keep the brain awake and alert.
Miss.
O’Reilly – Keira – proved to be a stimulating travel companion, as well as a
decent bridge partner. She may have managed to make me a better player, if that
was possible. I’m a passable player under the best of times and yet we managed
to win several matches with fellow travelers during the crossing. There may be
hope for me yet, especially if she continues to partner me at some matches
during the conference.
Miss.
O’Reilly is a stimulating conversationalist as well. I enjoy listening to her
talk about life in her village. Some of it is indeed familiar, since I have
done much work in Ireland over the last few years. However it always proves
interesting to hear descriptions from the perspective of “one on the inside”.
Since she has served as midwife and unofficial healer to her village for a
number of years – and worked at her grandmother’s side before that – she has
some truly enlightening stories to tell. It is quite obvious that she loves her
work and would rather be at it than just about anything else. It is also quite
clear that she loved and respected her late grandmother dearly.
As
for the conference itself, I’m very much looking forward to attending some of
the lectures. Hopefully we will be able to fit in time for a few of them. The
nature of the conference is to bring together scientists from many different
fields in an exploration of the extremes and fringes of their fields.
Unfortunately, I do not have an official programme as yet. All that the London
Society’s offices were able to provide was a detailed advertisement for the
event. Still, it does note that Dr. Robert Oppenhiemer will be presenting the
research of a fellow German scientist, a Dr. Braumbauer. I’m not familiar with
the name, although that shouldn’t be too surprising. While I do come across the
odd article here and there which serves to catch my fancy, especially in the
field of forensics, I really have little to do in following research science,
even in my old field of medicine. Unless, of course, it is in my field of
archaeology. I do try to be good and keep caught up in my field. I just don’t
feel quite ready to read too far back into the realm of medicine. At least the
forensics might be usable in my current field if I come across any human
remains.
Gee,
I certainly went off on a bit of a tangent there. Perhaps that’s a sign that I
should just call it a night and get some much needed sleep – the ocean air is
both invigorating and soporific. Tomorrow we make landfall in Boston where we
will then need to figure out the travel rituals for America. I already know
that they drive on the wrong side of the road, which makes me wonder what other
differences exist. Fortunately, I also know that they do indeed have taxis,
which is how we will be getting from the docks to our hotel. It will be
exciting to finally have a full programme to look over. It will also be
exciting to meet our fellow investigators for this little adventure.
Oh
hell, it will just be plain exciting. I’ve never been to America before and I’m
very much looking forward to it.
