Intro.
On the side of Shannon Hill, in a small and modest home overlooking the village of Sandy Ground there once lived an old sailor. He was part of a generation of Anguillian men who knew no other life than that of ships and sea. He was a master seaman and sail-maker. He was also eccentric with a mischievous sense of humor and walked with a peculiar gait; legs slightly bowed, elbows, akimbo, and in his stride he rolled from side to side like a schooner in a gentle sea. His name was Richard Gumbs, but everyone called him Captain Dickie.
By a remarkable but not uncommon tweak of genetics, his great nephew Emile Rudolph Gumbs inherited this unique way of walking and sense of humor and in a community prone to nicknames was quickly dubbed with the sobriquet after the original had passed on.
Of all the names used to address him ever since he was in his mother’s arms, Emile, Meelo, Daddy, Father, Mr. Gumbs, Gumbs, Chief Minister, Sir Emile, it is the nickname ‘Captain Dickie’ which to my mind was special, for it summed up not only his lifelong passion for sailing and the sea but captured in the title ‘Captain’ his leadership and command of every facet of his life.
He was raised in North Hill by his mother Inez Beatrice Gumbs nee Carty and his maternal grandparents Captain Arthur Romney Carty and his wife Juliet commonly known as Miss Jule. Strong in their faith and devout Methodists Capn Dickie was immersed from a tender age in a values driven home where faith, devotion, duty and integrity were commonplace expectations. This training would serve him well throughout his life. He was also immersed in the world of sailing vessels, influenced in this by both grandfathers Capn Carty and Capn Johnny Gumbs who had sailed on clipper ships in the 19th century between India and the UK. He was also influenced in a powerful way by his uncle Elliot Carty, who, like the older generation was a mariner through and through and a natural leader.
In his late teens he struck out on his own to sail the dreary world of oil tankers ferrying cargoes between the oil fields of lake Maracaibo in Venezuela and the refineries in Aruba and beyond. There in the grimy soul destroying work of tanker traffic he won his first election at the age of 20 to be crew representative which in effect was that of a union representative. He eventually and to his family’s relief returned home in 1955 and began sailing his own trading sloop the Venus.
WARSPITE
Every Island in the Eastern Caribbean Currency union is honored by having some image of its history and culture printed on a bank note. On the ten dollar note Admiralty Bay in St. Lucia is on the left and the Warspite Anguilla on the right. The depiction honors Anguilla’s unique heritage in the boat building arts and uses an image of the Warspite as a representation of that history. This schooner, built by his Grandfather in 1917 became a legend in its lifetime as a schooner built for speed. Her career was in part memorialized in a classic study of sailing vessels of the Eastern Caribbean done in 1981 by a US Naval Architect who recorded and analysed a remarkable feat of speed by the Warspite on a voyage from the Dominican Republic to Anguilla in 1929. The Warspite like so many other schooners and sloops built in Anguilla of the 19th and 20th centuries, played a central role in keeping Anguilla and its people fed, supplied and connected to the outside world . But like Captain Joe Romney, a master seaman from Blowing Point who captained the Warspite into legend in his time, Captain Dickie did the same when he got the chance to be her Captain. He became synonymous with this schooner and loved every minute of his career as her captain. Even in the twilight of his years, as recently as last year, when he often complained of losing his once prodigious memory, I would test him by asking various things to which he would answer vaguely. But if I asked him to give me the dimensions of the Warspite, ,without the slightest hesitation he would fire right back “76 feet stem to transom, 20 feet wide on the mid-ship beam.” The old sailor was still there.
SALT CO.
After the untimely death of his Uncle, Elliot Carty in 1963, C.D. assumed the management of the Road Salt Co. It was in this role that his relationships with individuals and families across the island but particularly in what later became the Road North district deepened considerably and his community spirit expanded. He became a confidant and an arbiter of disputes to many and unwittingly laid the foundations for his undefeated political career.
REVOLUTION
When the revolution started in 1967 he was the natural representative for his area and worked with the peace keeping committee to manage the islands affairs. He felt that his most important contribution in that tumultuous year was his mission to Barbados on August Monday and Tuesday 1967 to try and persuade Caribbean peace keeping forces backed by British armed forces from invading Anguilla. Arriving first in Antigua where he spent hours ensuring that he would be received by the Govt of Barbados, he then flew on to Barbados and met with Sir Cameron Tudor the Deputy PM in the VIP lounge at the airport . There some tense and nerve racking hours were spent, with Tudor breaking off from time to time to brief PM Errol Barrow. The back and forth went on into the early hours of morning and to quote directly from his notes ; “at 2am Mr. Tudor came in and said. I have good news. The Prime Minister has asked me to assure you that no uniformed officers of the Government of Barbados will be going to Anguilla. With tears streaming from my face I sprang forward put my arms around him and exclaimed . “we have won. Thank God we have won.”
Bloodshed had been averted.
As public as his life had become, there were still the family secrets. Some know, but most don’t, that Laurie and Catherine had an elder sister. Sadly she is no longer with us. Her name was “Saga Boy”. Captain Dickie was a boat race fanatic and “Saga Boy” was his pride and joy. He loved to relate the story of how he saw her first as a seized rum running smuggler in St. Kitts that was being put on auction by the Customs Department and knew she had great potential as a racer. How he persuaded our late mother who was living in St. Kitts at the time and who knew or cared little about boats, to haggle at the auction house with rough and tumble fishermen and bid until she won the auction. Which she did, buying the Saga Boy for the grand sum of $400 EC. She was brought back to AXA on the Warspite where he set about reballasting, cutting new sails and fine tuning all the aspects of what it takes to make a racing boat a champion. And he did it. The “Saga Boy” rose like comet to be a champion and remained one for years and years. I should know, I was a Winsall fan and was ticked off and envious every time the Saga Boy gave us a licking. In this Captain Dickie developed a close relationship with the late Lennie Richardson of North Hill, who arguably was one of Anguilla’s finest boat race captains and who captained the Saga Boy brilliantly for years. Strangely enough, Captain Dickie hardly ever raced himself but was the proverbial super manager, taking care of every detail especially sail making in which he was a true pro. If you had the inkling to engage a conversation with him on the triumphs of the Saga Boy or the art of sail making, you were well advised to carry a pack of biscuits, a lucozade and a stool for you were in for a long exposition. His passion for this sport has done much for keeping it alive and well and for showcasing our islands cultural legacy.
His tenure in the office of Chief Minister was pivotal to the post revolutionary period of our history. Much has been said about his role as the premier architect of our tourism industry which I will not belabor here except to make a few points that may be less known. Firstly, he would share the credit of whatever wise decisions were made at that time with his two ministerial colleagues in his first government, the late Albena Lake Hodge and the late Idalia Gumbs. Few can remember the pressure the then small fragile and ill equipped government of that time was under not only to restore stability to a body politic still thrashing around in a confused and discordant manner with no clear sense of direction, but also, how were they to make the revolution actually yield a better life for the people. Few also remember the pressure that large players in the tourism industry were exerting on our fragility and who saw political confusion and beautiful beaches not as a liability but as an opportunity to move in and take over what they saw as a potential windfall for mass tourism. There was real pressure to introduce standard thirteen by twenty five high rise holiday inn rooms and club med type development with hundreds of rooms and even the relocation of some villages. This was at a time when our population was barely over six thousand. All that stood between us and that world was the decision of a retired teacher, a retired seamstress and a retired sailor. Grounded in a sense of place and supported by two women who shared his values C.D. said yes and no. Yes we had to have a new economy based on tourism, but no it could not in any way be a mass tourism because he knew it would spell the doom of everything Anguillian and obliterate the very essence of who we were as a people. Few realize today the pivotal decision to move towards low volume, high value, up market tourism was first and foremost a cultural decision and secondly an economic one. For that, I for one will bless their memory forever.
CD was often perceived and labeled as being weak. That is by those who did not know him or who just wanted to play politics. This perception in a way, understandly arose from his easy going style, his affability, his lack of bombast, his refusal to be uncivil to anybody even his most vocal critics, his avoidance of any sort of demagoguery and rhetoric that would sow division. Some felt, even in his own family that he never lost his temper. These character traits made it easy for some to think he was weak, but for those who knew him they knew that nothing was further from the truth. Firstly, you could not become a crew’s rep in a fleet of oily tankers, or captain a vessel with Anguillian seamen, or face the fire of a no confidence vote and the ire of an angry crowd and get on with a job that was nothing but stress, if you were weak. The truth is he was very strong although he allowed himself to be the victim of much abuse, which, was strength in itself. But there were boundaries he would not allow you to cross and yes he could loose his temper. One afternoon on the beach in Sandy ground while he was talking to fishermen who had just hauled their boats, one mistaken individual proceeded to call him every name in the book and use every offensive epithet he could think of for no other purpose but to insult. Without answering to anything CD ignored him until the abuser crossed the line and struck him. One swift right hook later and his assailant was down house flat on his back. Little did he know that C.D. was a fan of Muhamed Ali.
He weathered all criticisms with equanimity and poise even the low blows which assailed him simply because of his colour. He knew from his upbringing what Martin Luther King Jr. expressed so eloquently, that a person must be judged not by the color of his skin but by the content of his character.
In the formative years of establishing the new tourist industry, he was also roundly accused of wasting tax money on overseas travel promoting Anguilla to the world of the travel industry. His response to this, first uttered in a House of Assembly debate became a development mantra for the ANA governments of 1984-1994 .It was “You cannot set fish traps in the Valley Bottom”. This simple and easily understood analogy embraced a cluster of truths and tenets. There are no fish in the valley bottom; Fishermen everyday have to leave the comfort of their homes and face the dangers of the sea to set a fish trap with no guarantee of a catch; Likewise a society that made a revolution because it wanted to achieve a better standard of living had to reach out to a wider world and seek investment, seek new educational opportunities for a new generation, engage in new business and financial vehicles that never existed before; engage with governments on an equal footing especially within the region to discuss and collaborate on developmental programs. The slogan was a call to reach out, to broaden our horizons, to learn more, be more; “you cannot set fish traps in the valley bottom”. From this philosophy sprang real investment in good tourism projects, Malliouhana and Cap Juliuca in particular, the NBA, the Development Board, joining regional organizations and a more structured relationship with HMG based on targeted objectives and mutual obligations.
The strategy worked. A real economy began to form. As one stalwart supporter explained,” he showed us that we could make a decent living on Anguilla.”
Though neither an intellectual or an orator, CD had a way of communicating with remarkable effect. He could talk to anyone about anything, he listened intently, he could find some story from somewhere to illustrate his point, he was persistent in his arguments but not in an argumentative way. Instead, it was in a geewiz kind of way that brought any discussion that had drifted, back to his point and he was incredibly patient in making a point. As one character in Sandy Ground put it, “Gumbs never tell you what to do you know, he just keep talking to you until you thought it was a good idea”
IREDALE:
His style of leadership was totally collaborative and he talked and walked the principle of collective responsibility true to the spirit of the constitution. Indeed he was so particular in this that Ministers were frequently pulled away without notice from their duties, much to their annoyance, to consult with him on issues that had arisen. He also had a disarming way of dealing with visiting officials and investors which surprisingly yield significant results. I can recall quite vividly a meeting between himself and the Chief Educational Adviser to the O.D.A. at that time a large department in the British Government which managed overseas development aid. The Government was at that time head down in trying to replace an asbestos built one room public library with the far more ambitious library and resource centre that stands there today. I was privileged to have been the Government’s tip of the spear in this development and had worked for many frustrating months to get the notice of Senior British Officials who could help make this happen. Finally and quite by happenstance we were lucky to get a 7 hour flying visit by this very Senior Official who was passing through Barbados , on his way to Belize. I rushed to make all the preparations I could with technical officers and of course to arrange courtesy calls with the Governor and Chief Minister. When we arrived at CM’s office to discuss the project ,which one British Official had sarcastically dubbed “battle star gallactica” (code for way too ambitious) I had no idea that the Chief Minister had discovered that Dr. Roger Iredale was a bird lover. So if you knew C. D. you would also know that he was President, Secretary, treasurer and total membership of the local Audobon Society. His knowledge of Anguilla’s Birds was encyclopedic and for the next 20 minutes he regaled Dr. Iredale on the Navigational prowess of the yellow breasted warbler that flies all the way from the snowy wastes of Canada to nest in Anguilla. They both then went at it while I sat squirming in my chair wondering what on earth the study of ornithology had to do with our Library project. I need not have worried. When the meeting ended and they both rose to shake hands, Captain Dickie said to Dr. Iredale “thank you for coming. You know our children are really all we have and their education means everything. I hope you can help”. The meeting was over. Less than 3 weeks later full funding was approved for the Library and Teachers Resource Centre. I have often credited the success of that episode to Captain Dickie’s charm offensive that morning. He represented in that casual exchange the best of Anguilla. He was courteous and kind, welcoming and gracious while subtly staying true to the purpose of the mission by weaving our needs into his conversation.
In his private life he was as unassuming as he was in public. His marriage to his first love Janice Bradley yielded two loving and devoted children Laurie and Catherine who have guarded him so well through the years especially as his sun was setting, ably supported by their spouses. His grandchildren adored him. He was also very lucky to have been reunited with the second love of his life Lady Josephine . She had crossed his path as a young sailor and then vanished, only to reappear later and like a heroine in some romance novel light up his world again. It was good and indeed honorable to hear members and former members of the House on Wednesday thanking them for their sacrifice in sharing him.
When he left Government in 1994, he left honored and with his reputation and integrity in tact. No one could or would say that he had abused or used the state in any way for his personal benefit. And Anguilla had moved. The restless village had resolutely begun to step into modernity.
In his retirement he refrained from any criticism of succeeding governments. He had passed the baton. It was now up to a new cadre of leaders to take AXA forward to a new century and beyond. He lived a quiet and reserved retirement and as quietly left us on the 10th of May. At 90 years he had done his bit and to borrow from Henly’s majestic poem Invictus, to the end,
“It mattered not how straight the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll.
He was the master of his fate and the Captain of his soul”
Now he belongs to our island’s story.
My better half Alison reminded me this week of Paul’s letter to the Galations and his listing of the fruits of the spirit. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control. She then said “that was Emile.” This is so true. So as his spirit returns to spirit, we would do well to think on these things.
In preparing this remembrance, I tried to think of what our late father Sir Emile’s uncle would have said were he here today. They were very very close, but I could think of nothing until I recalled him reading a nautical poem of transition from this life ‘Crossing the Bar” by Alfred Lord Tennyson, over the casket of his uncle JB Owen in 1976. It seemed so appropriate for today as I conclude.
Sunset and evening star, And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar, When I put out to sea,
But such a tide as moving seems asleep, Too full for sound and foam
When that which drew from out the Boundless deep
Turns again home.
Twilight and evening bell And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell When I embark;
For though from out our bourne of time And place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.
I have learnt through the years the truth in scripture that in everything we must give thanks.
I thank God for the life of Emile , Father, Sir Emile , Capn Dickie.
May his soul rest in peace.
