THOMAS SHAKESPEAR'S DIARY
Huaipe
There are frequent references to huaipe in the diary. In modern Chilean this is a wiping cloth, or a rag. Huaipe is textile waste which resembles a wad of heavy thread, and is used in place of rags for much automotive and industrial wiping and cleaning. I suspect that the origin may in fact be English, since wipe and huaipe sound very similar,and there are many Chilean technical borrowings from German and English.
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Correspondence
From Mauricio Rodríguez Campos
I was put in touch with Mauricio Rodríguez Campos in Chile. His website on Chilean railways is interesting. He undertook to search local burial records for Thomas Shakespear.
After corresponding with the registration authorities (below) a reference was traced to a Tomas Saghpear, whose registration date exactly coincides with the abrupt end of the diary. This is quite obviously my Thomas. According to the document he died of wounds (fallecido a causa de heridas) on 12 July 1902.
With this to go on, Mauricio searched the local papers, hoping to find a report of an incident, but there was nothing recorded. He also checked the cemetery for Grave No.35 mentioned in the letter, but it was listed as 'temporary' and no longer exists.
So,we now know that Thomas did die, and that it was sudden and probably unpleasant. Here is the text of the letter from the registrar:
Recoleta, Abril 05 del 2002.
Señor Mauricio Rodriguez Campos
Presente
De mi consideración:
Por instrucciones del Director del Cementerio General, me permito dar respuesta a su mail de fecha 31 de Marzo del 2002, para comunicarle lo siguiente.
Revisados los archivos que obran en poder de este Establecimiento se pudo constatar que los restos de don Thomas Shakespeare no se encuentran inhumados en este Cementerio.
La revisión se efectuó desde el 01 de Enero de 1901 al 31 de Diciembre de 1903.
Sin embargo, se registra el nombre de Tomas Saghpear con fecha 12 de Julio de 1902, fallecido a causa de heridas, inhumado en sepultura adulto Nº 35. No existen más antecedentes.
No tenemos comunicación con otros Cementerios.
Saluda atentamente a Ud.
JUAN ELZO MARTINEZ
JEFE DEPTO. OPERACIONES
and
Recoleta, Abril 09 del 2002.
SeñorMauricio Rodriguez Campos
Presente
De mi consideración:
Por instrucciones del Director del Cementerio General, me permito dar respuesta a su mail de fecha 05 de Abril del 2002, para comunicarle lo siguiente.
Revisados los archivos que obran en poder de este Establecimiento se pudo constatar que en la inhumación de don Tomas Saghpear, existe la siguiente anotación: ocupó carro de segunda clase, Circunscripción Nº 1 Registro Civil de Recoleta, sepultado en Disidente Nº 1 sepultura adulto Nº 35 temporal, no hay antecedentes si fue renovado o trasladado.
Con estos datos se complementa lo informado anteriormente.
Saluda atentamente a Ud.
JUAN ELZO MARTINEZ
EFE DEPTO. OPERACIONES
Mauricio will continue to look as he says in his latest e-mail:-
Mrs. Anna Scott
I tell you, on Saturday, May 04. I visited the Santiago Cemetery, lamentably I did not meet the Tomas's tomb. In this place there is the tomb of another person. I think is because the original Tomas's tomb was temporary - such as read in the cemetery documents I sent to you. Now, I would like to investigate for the Tomas's wife side. Have you some information about her? For other side, I went to the national library for reading the newspapers of this era. I did not see anything about Tomas, neither a mention about him in the obituary.
Please, tell me something about Tomas's wife.....maybe Tomas's corpse was move another tomb, but in the information of the cemetery have not more data about him.
You said Tomas had a brother in USA.....Do you know something about him?
Well, I'm going to continue reading newspapers in the library, maybe I meet something.
I'm going to informate anything.
Mauricio Rodríguez Campos
From Robert Runyard
Bronce
The diary context reveals that bronces were something that had to be replaced quite often. Bronce, in Spanish, means bronze. Bronze is, or at least was, used frequently in large bearings in railway car wheels. From that we can conclude that the bronces are probably bearings. This theory was given some credence when I found the following mention in the UK terms for railway components on a UK webpage on terminology: Brasses: a general term describing locomotive bearings which are made from brass or bronze.
It is therefore quite possible that the journal writer was recalling the British term 'brasses' while confusing it with the Spanish 'bronzes/bronces' -- since the materials can look quite similar. To a railway man they serve the same function in rail wheels.
Empacadura
Probably empaquedura, meaning gasket. Traditional British English for the US term gasket was "packing", and Spanish usage is similar to British. Some of the old packing materials were similar to waxed fabric rope which were placed between surfaces to be mated.
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Locomotive Number 181, the driver of which threw a lump of coal at Thomas Shakespear's leg, was a Glasgow built 4-4-0
TECHNICAL TERMS used in the diary
Abrazadoras - clamps or a device that can perform this function such as a clamping bracket
From Colin Churcher
Aceite - oil
Aceite para lampara - oil or spirit for a lamp (that provides illumination)
Aceitadores - oil cans
Barella dispusito - could be a small trowel, like one used for cement, but the Spanish word should be 'baretta'. The word 'barreta' also has a similar meaning. This could also apply to a piece of leather inserted into the inside of a shoe to make it stronger. The word 'dispusito' does not exist, can you confirm the spelling is correct?
Bronce - bronze (possibly used in a mechanical bearing)
Bronce Angolina - Here the word 'Angolina' means someone born in the town of Angol in the south of Chile. So this term probably means bronze made in Angol.
Bronce carro 4830 - possibly a technical specification for Bronze. The word 'carro' could mean a truck or a carriage. It may also refer to the connecting rods on the railway engine used to transmit the horizontal motion to the wheels.
Bronce Francesa - bronze from France
Bronce Inglese - bronze from England
Chabelas Ingles/ Americana - this may be 'chabeta' which means a split pin. Origin of the pin is either English or American
Embrazaduras - this is the action to cover something completely. It may refer to a cover of a piece of machinery.
Empacadura - this word does not exist, but it could be 'empaquetadura' which means something unconventional used to stop fluid escaping from machinery such as a rag.
Empaquedura - same as above
Gaucho de largo - the word 'gaucho' has two meanings. The first is a native of either Argentina or Uruguay. The second is good horse rider. The phrase could mean somebody from a place called Largo. This word also means tall.
Grasa- grease
Huaipe - cloth made of bundles of fibres (rustic). Strictly, this word is not Spanish but is more likely derived from the English word 'wipe'. When spoken, the pronunciation of the word 'huaipe' is almost the same.
Huaipe limpia - cleaning cloth
Maestranza - somewhere where pieces of machinery are manufactured
Pernos - either a bolt or a nut and bolt together
Pernos 3 inch 7 8 - bolts three & seven eighths of an inch in length
Pernos y tuercas 3/4 y 5 linea - the word 'tuerca' specifically means the nut. The other parts of the phrase could refer to the thread dimensions.
Perno de real - the word 'real' means either real or royal. The phrase could mean a specific or a large bolt or nut and bolt
Perno real angolina - this could be similar to above but from the town of Angol
Tapas - this word means either a lid or a blanket. It may also refer to the soul of a shoe or the collar of a shirt or coat. Another meaning is the cover of a book.
Tapas surdido - the word 'surdido' means to repair, so this phrase probably means a repaired blanket.
Tapas resnos - could this actually be 'restos' which means remaining.
Tornillos - screws
Tuercas - nuts
Tuercas medrabulgea(?) 5 linea - could this be two separate words ? 'medra' means to make progress with or to make better or bigger. 'bujia' has two meanings, either a spark plug as used in the engine of a car or the power of an artificial light. This phrase could be to do with the ignition of a machine.
Some of these words we have made a guess at. If you believe we have the context wrong then please let us know._
I have been thinking about the job that was done by Mr. Shakespear. He seems to have been completely responsible for maintenance on the railway at that location. He was doing track repairs and maintenance as well as repairs to structures such as water tanks for the steam locomotives but he also was carrying out work on the rolling stock as well. In Canada this work would be carried out by at least three specialists now, and even then, so he would have required a high degree of knowledge of a broad range of skills.
He seemed very preoccupied with his livestock and his garden so it is evident that he was pretty much on his own and had to feed himself. I have taken a look at the diary and add a few comments below. The Rancagua line is part of the main line which runs south to Temuco and on to Puerto Montt. It was, and still is, an important part of the spine railway network. It was electrified a little while later and was still electrified when I rode over it about four years ago. This is a wide gauge line and this part is in warm country which now has vineyards
Specific comments
1899 Oct 28 - Maestranza is a workshop. In this case it probably means the depot where he obtains his supplies. His telegram would presumably to obtain some materials he might have needed in a hurry
Nov 6 - A boleto is a ticket, in this case likely a requisition.
Nov 13 - he used "huaipe" a great deal and I can't find this word in the dictionary. I presume this is oil that is used for general maintenance, particularly to oil track bolts, splice bars (fishplates) and the moving parts of switches (points).
1900 Jan 5 - bolts and nuts would be for the track - securing the splice bars > >(fishplates). The arm that was broken would presumably be the pipe that would be lowered over locomotive tenders to fill them from the water tank.
June 9 - tapas would be a plate that covered something
Jun 18 - bronce - I presume this refers to bronze which could be a casting usedi in railway cars and locomotives as bearings. It looks as if he was changing a brass journal bearing on a car in the train. If so he was doing not only track and structure maintenance and repair but also was responsible for equipment maintenance. I have no idea what a bronce automatico might be.
Aug 4 - abrazadora de graneros - a mill stone for milling grain?
Dec 3 - only a few pieces left - this presumably refers to the old bearing which has disintegrated from the heat
1901Apr 1 - I don't know what a "perno de real" might be. This may be a piece of track equipment. A perno is a spike or bolt but spikes would normally be ordered by the sack. (see Jun 25)
Aug 14 - tuerca is a nut (presumably for track), aceite para lampara - lamp oil for signals. Barella - presumably a barrel.
Aug 22 - empaqueladura - a packet
1902 Mar 25 - tuerca de union. He refers to a special nut that was required for a railway car no. 4922 which I assume is a freight car or (wagon). It could be the nut used in truss rod freight cars although I am guessing.
Jun 9 - I love this - my Grandfather would throw lumps of coal from his engine when he was an engine driver. I have done this myself although I used to have more fun turning the water hose on!