A. Hewins, ed. The Dillen: Memories of a Man of Stratford (1982)

     A. Hewins, ed. The Dillen: Memories of a Man of Stratford (1982) Angela Hewins edited and arranged the stories told by her husband’s grandfather, George Hewins (1878-1977), in the last three years of his life. They constitute a wonderful portrait of the town and of the man himself. Born to a very poor girl, probably out of wedlock (but this and his true paternity are never established), he was raised by his maternal aunt, a tough and shrewd business woman, who took pity on the small baby, the runt or ‘dillen’, and looked after him until he was able to fend for himself.
     That fending for himself was not easy in a country and at a time when there was no unemployment insurance, when what welfare there was handed out grudgingly, carefully and meanly matched to the recipient’s degree of respectability. George ran into the edges of the law, but never was a thief. He married young; his Emma was the love of his life, and they made the best of their hard circumstances, managing to raise eight children to young adulthood, and six of them beyond. George took what work he could get (he was a bricklayer by trade), and was called up in WW1 because he had enlisted in the reserve some years earlier. He came back injured, incapable of steady work, and surviving on an army pension. The story ends shortly after that return, and we hear nothing about the second half of his life. But it’s clear that his resourcefulness, good humour and resilience were inherited by his children and grandchildren. The fact that his oral autobiography was recorded, edited and published bespeaks solid middle class success by his grandson Brian.
     The book was given to Mother by Aunt Rosemary (n.d.), and Mother made marginal notes about some of the people. These show a connection with the Morgans via the Theatre, as both George and Emma had work there, and George did some maintenance and garden work for the librarian, who was Uncle Peter’s first boss and mentor. A thoroughly enjoyable book, but one that breaks your heart. ****  (2004)