Chapter One #2
Anna felt a lump form in her throat watching the new couple meet for the first time.
The woman blushed, and the man looked at his feet while holding his hat over his chest. The first time they looked at one another brought tears to her eyes.
But before the moment could be truly appreciated, Mrs. Gerber was telling them to move aside and announcing the next couple.
After thirty matches were made, Ellie started to grumble. “I’ve had about as much of this nonsense as I can take.” A few other ladies left to stare at the walls joined in to complain. It was understandable—they were anxious about the future, and their friends and family were far away.
Anna stepped over to Mrs. Gerber. “Excuse me, ma’am, but the other ladies are tired and hungry. Do you know how long the meeting and greeting couples will be, please?”
The harbormaster’s wife shook her head, clearly preoccupied. “You all have to stay at the boarding house until your men arrive. It’s so you’ll have somewhere to live if the beau doesn’t like his bargain and refuses the selection.”
“And the name of this boarding house?”
Mrs. Gerber was busy calling another couple to step forward. “Huh? It’s Yerba Buena Hostel for Ladies. If you wait—”
But Anna was already taking action. “Come on, ladies. Pick up your bags and follow me. I know where our accommodation is!”
Ellie and a few other women followed Anna out of the building.
They were greeted by a crush of activity as bustling pedestrians, riders, and carriage drivers all fought for space on the cobbled road.
Traces of Gold Rush chaos could be seen in the hodge-podge architecture, but Market Street stretched inland like a major artery.
“Look!” One of the women pointed at the sloping road in the distance. “They have cable cars to help folks go up the hills.”
The loud ringing of the car bell echoed over the noise of traffic.
Anna stopped a passerby. There was no way she would jump onto the mechanical contraption without a clear idea of where she was heading. “Pardon me, ma’am, but can you point us in the direction of the Yerba Buena Hostel, please?”
The woman took in the small group of travel-weary ladies and nodded. “You’re the latest Calico Cargo, aren’t you? Best you take the cable car up Market Street and ask the conductor to stop at Polk. You can walk to O’Farrell Street from there. You can’t miss the boarding house—it has a large sign.”
The trolley driver gaped when he saw the crowd of women waiting to get on, but once again, the lady Anna had stopped to ask for directions came to her rescue. “They’re heading up to Yerba Buena Hostel, sir. Would I be right in saying the trolley stops at Polk?”
The driver touched his cap. “I can pull over for them there, no problem.” He hollered over his shoulder. “Would any young and able-bodied gentlemen please help these ladies with their trunks?”
About half a dozen men hopped down to assist the women with their luggage while Anna thanked the lady who had helped them.
She wished them well and gave Anna a piece of advice.
“You don’t want to walk anywhere unaccompanied, my dear.
Gentlemen get to acting like tomcats without the softening effect of female companionship. ”
It was the same thing the ship’s captain had said. California men sure sounded like a wild bunch.
Anna settled down to enjoy the ride, watching the rows of newly built houses pass by. After reaching Polk Road, the women groaned. The terrain of San Francisco was the opposite of flat---and they had to carry their luggage up and down every last yard of it until they finally reached the hostel.
The prim matron seated in the bay window gaped when she saw the motley group tramping up the path. She opened the door before Anna could knock. “Oh my, where is Mrs. Gerber?”
Anna replied as Ellie pushed past her and dumped her bag. “We came on ahead, ma’am. Please, can we rest?”
“And beautify ourselves before the auction!” another lady piped up. “I’ll never find a nice husband to bid for me looking the way I do right now.”
The matronly housekeeper smiled as she escorted them upstairs. “How you managed to get here without hordes of men desperate for a wife following you, I have no idea.”
Anna showed her the umbrella strapped to her wrist. “I’ve got a good aim, and this handle is hard. But don’t worry, ma’am, we used the cable car.” She waited until the other women were settled before taking the housekeeper aside. “What did that lady mean by an auction?”
Before she answered, the matron took her downstairs and offered her a glass of cordial.
“The men must travel long distances to get here, so not every gent can make it to the harbormaster’s office in time.
The stragglers come by soon enough, but all the best girls are usually taken by then.
Just like any potluck dinner, the tastiest dishes get served up first. The leftover girls are put on auction, but not for money.
It gives the gents a chance to inspect the ones left behind and see if they want to bid for them. ”
Anna was aghast. “That sure sounds like a money auction to me!”
The matron chuckled. “No, it’s only so the company is reimbursed for the cost of the girl’s berth and board.”
“What happens to the passengers that no one wants?”
“That hardly ever happens, dear. If the gentleman’s a ‘no-show,’ then his holding fee is used to pay for the girl’s accommodation or voyage back home.”
Anna set her glass carefully on the coaster. “It sounds like a big gamble when you put it like that.”
The matron nodded. “But that’s what the whole voyage was—a giant gamble. Which is only fair when you come to think about it, dear, because the man’s taking a big gamble, too.”
Anna wasn’t sure she wanted to be seen by her future husband as a calculated risk.
All she could do was pray for a good hand, one that ended up with her holding all the aces.
She wondered if her fortune could ever be that lucky.
It had taken all her courage to board the ship and come here.
What did they say about courage again? Oh, yes. Fortune favored the brave.
Fingers crossed it would come true.