(To hear this episode, scroll to the bottom)
Alexander Watson Dunlop began writing his diary in 1881. He was studying to become a physician at the University of Glasgow but before writing the current events of his life, he recalls a story of adventure from his boyhood that he entitled “The Fenwick Escapade”. (Imagine two Scottish eleven year old boys as the cast of the movie “Stand By Me” and you will get a glimpse into this story)
His writing is introspective, descriptive, and very well done, making it interesting reading. We have enjoyed this diary from its initial pages and hope you will too.
To hear this episode:
To Read a Full Transcription of Part I of Alexander’s diary, click here:
Diary Discoveries 
This is Sally. We got an amazing comment from a listener who wanted me to share here what he wrote us about this particular episode. It’s the comment I made when Dr. Dunlop said, I was born then on the 5th of March, 1862. I cannot exactly say at what hour. It was probably during the night as most births are, because then the doctor doesn’t care much about the bulge in his coat pocket caused by the box containing the baby.“
I remember saying that I wasn’t sure of what he meant by that. Well our wonderful listener found out and it really must be shared, and I quote…..
“Sally and Jeff, I’m enjoying the diary of Dunlop. I wanted to leave a comment but wasn’t sure where to leave it….Here’s my answer to a question you raised. What is the meaning of Dunlop’s diary entry describing an 1860’s Scottish doctor traveling at night to attend a birth with a box for the baby in the pocket? I don’t imagine he was describing the modern tradition of providing a gift box of essential items to a Scottish newborn. Perhaps Dunlop’s knowledge was based upon the experiences of his own father, a doctor. My first impression while listening to your podcast was that the box was for use after the birth of a possible stillborn.
A search of the internet generally states that the infant mortality rate in 1860’s Scotland and UK was 150-200 deaths per 1,000 births, or about 15-20 percent. That’s pretty high. In the UK in 1800, one in three children did not make it to their 5th birthday. An article on the University of Glasgow website entitled, “Scottish Way of Birth and Death” states in relevant part that “A stillborn baby’s body could be disposed of without ceremony (in some cases the doctor persuaded parents to let him take it away for research purposes.)”
https://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/socialpolitical/research/research-projects/scottishwayofbirthanddeath/death/stillbirths/
So, it is this listener’s best guess that attending Scottish doctors in the 1860s (one-in-five) that the baby would be stillborn, and they had better be prepared to discreetly dispose of the baby’s body, and traveling at night avoided unnecessary looks and the need for explanation, as well as providing some privacy. Could be.”
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