Bygone Days August 2010

8/9/2019 Bygone Days August 2010

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Bygone Daysand Making dolls house

miniatures

by V Brierley

PUBS, PITS & PRISONS

TheVillage I was born in

Described in guidebooks as a village `halfway between

Huddersfield and Wakefield' and having Wakefield

Postal codes and telephone numbers but classified as

Part of Kirk lees, with a cricket club that plays in

Huddersfield Central League, people living in Flock ton,

As well as visitors, might be forgiven for being

Somewhat confused as to whether they are

Huddersfield or Wake fielders.

There is similar confusion surrounding the identity

And origin of settlement of the village. The name

`Flock ton' is of Scandinavian origin and is believed

To mean `Floki's farmstead'.This suggests that Flock ton was first settled by the

Vikings who came to this country some time in the

Tenth century. However, the suffix `ton' usually

Indicates an Anglo-Saxon settlement. The first half of

This heterogeneous group the Angles settled in

Yorkshire from the sixth century onwards (the Saxons

Made the elementary mistake of not coming to


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Yorkshire but choosing to settle in the south in places

Like Sussex and Essex).

Like many villages that had been reduced to `waste' it

Took Flock ton many years to recover but by the end of

The thirteenth century, when Edward I was on the

Throne, records show that the village was populated

And that farming was once again underway.

It was also during this time that what

Referred to as `the most significant development in

The medieval life of the Dearne Valley' took place

The arrival of the Cistercian monks from North

Yorkshire. The monks, with their iron furnaces and

Sheep breeding, encouraged economic and

Population growth in Flock ton and nearby Emley.

Unfortunately for the enterprising monks, the Black

Death struck in the fourteenth century and although it

Did not have the same devastating effect the Norman

Soldiers had had three centuries earlier, the plague did

Cause a significant setback.

Fortunately for the residents of the area, coal mining,

An industry with which the village would later become

Inextricably linked (pair of local coal seams were

Named `Flock ton Thick' and `Flock ton Thin'), hadBegun. Indeed, records show that as early as 1515

Digging of coal was underway in Flock ton and this

Continued on a small scale in the seventeenth and

Eighteenth centuries.

However, the demand for the fuel, a consequence

Of the advent of the steam engine, led to a dramatic

Growth in the industry in the nineteenth century, so


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Much so that in 1840 the village was reported to

`Abound with mines and just twenty years or so

Whilst the growth in the mining industry meant that

Employment was plentiful, life in the village during

Victorian times was hard for most people; men, women

And children often working long hours in terrible

Working conditions. Flock ton was not the only place

Where working conditions were bad and a team

Government inspectors were dispatched to assess

Working and living conditions in the industrial areas

(This was part of a wider campaign to regulate work in

Flock ton today is one of the many villages in Kirk lees

That enables commuters to combine the benefits of

Working in the city with village life

And with its two pubs, a beautiful church, a post

Office, a village shop, a fish and chip shop, a small

School and fantastic views (Emley Mast can be

seen from almost every point in Flockton and no

doubt Flock toners, given the collapse of the

Previous masts are glad to be looking down on it

From a distance) there is no doubt that Flock ton is

An idyllic village.

Flock ton has, however, not forgotten its past and thereAre reminders of the village's industrial heritage

Flock ton Working Men's Club and the street named

Manor Drive, the site of the former home of the Milnes-

Stan field family, owners of Lane End Colliery.

Anyone who wants a more enlightening journey

through Flock tons past can visit the nearby

National Coal Mining Museum (formerly Caphouse


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Colliery) where they will be able to sample what life

Was like for their antecedents; it is believed though

That any miners down this pit are likely to be fully

Clothed!

Now do you remember The headBands

MATERIALS:

KNITTING WORSTED, 4 Ply ("Tangle-Proof" Pull-Out Skeins):

I ounce of any color will make both Headbands. Knitting

Needles, I pair No. 8.

GAUGE: Garter St-4sts = 1 inch;

9 rows or 4 1/2 ridges (not stretched) = 1 inch.

Ribbed St-5 sts (not stretched) = 1 inch;

13 rows = 2 inches.


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GARTER STITCH BAND

Measure off about 10 inches of yarn and cast on 10 sts.

1st row: Knit. Repeat this row until total length is 16

inches (not stretched). Bind off. Sew short edges

together.

RIB STITCH BAND

Measure off about 1 1/2 yards of yarn and cast on 80 sts.

1st row: * K I, p 1. Repeat from * across. Repeat this

row until total length is 2 inches. Bind off in ribbing.

Sew short edges together.

Rag rug making is one of those crafts that were started by people

who wanted a finished product, but couldn't afford to buy it. It may

be considered highly desirable to improvise attractive, and useful,

things out of scrap materials now; but throughout most of the history

of rag rugs they've been seen as a sure sign of poverty. Not very

desirable at all.

Now that we're living in more democratic times the good old 'peg mat'has got a lot going for it. They look good, they're cheap to make, they'refun to make and they're based on recycling.

Their humble origins made them what they are, though, and that's whythey're so practical. Different people developed different workingmethods. None of them are right, and none of them are wrong. Mostproduce a heavy-duty mat that looks good enough to be kept for alifetime, and is tough enough that it can be.

In the days when everything that went into a rag rug had to be free, notso long ago, the backcloth was usually an old Hessian sack. There are waysto weave a rag rug without the Hessian backcloth, but most methods stillrely on it.

Hessian, still available off a roll but not often seen as a sack anymore, isthe magic ingredient in most rag rug making. It's a hard thread (jute)


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loosely woven. You can poke holes in it all day, if you're bored enough, andthey'll all close up again. The threads move aside without breaking.

To make a rag rug you only need to pull, or push, bits of old cloth into theweave of the Hessian and they'll fill up the slackness in the weave. By thetime you've finished the loose and floppy Hessian will be firm and tautand have a thick and soft cloth pile on one side of it.

How you go about putting the bits of cloth in is up to you. There are onlytwo basic essentials to remember: You have to fill the weave of theHessian and you have to protect the edge from fraying.

Inevitably there's a fiddly way to do it for free but, also inevitably,

somebody came up with a tool to make it easy. The free way is to sharpena wooden peg and use it to push short strips of cloth into the backcloth,one at a time. The easy way is using a tool to pull the bits in, in one go.The tool was invented in early Victorian times (by a Mr. Brown, an Ipswichblacksmith) and was the favourite rug-maker for about a hundred years,until re-using old materials went out of fashion after the Second WorldWar. It wasn't long, of course, before some bright spark came up withthe word 'recycling' and rag rugs were reborn. The rag rug went into achrysalis as an ugly

Bug and came out as a beautiful swan. Without genetic modification.Mr. Brown's invention is now available again, as an updated version, madeby Makings Handicrafts in Cornwall. It's now called a 'rag rugger' toavoid choosing one of the old popular names, and avoid upsetting everyonewho used one of the many others (anything from a 'badger' to a 'springclip', with names starting with most of the letters in between).

There were, of course, other methods and other tools. Most of themrequired long strips of cloth, not so easy to get out of old clothes that

have already been repaired, so they were probably started by people whowere already enthusiastic enough about the craft to use bigger pieces ofcloth that might, otherwise, have been used for something else.

One of the alternatives used a hook (it was called 'hooking' believe it ornot) and found it's way across the Atlantic to live the American dream.You can imagine the story: A tough voyage, in steerage, ending with amoving view of the Statue of Liberty; followed by a tense wait on EllisIsland before stumbling, dumbstruck but determined, onto the meanstreets of New York. Finally, hard work and frugality pay off as hooking


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is 'discovered' as the all-American craft. As you might expect, rag rughooking has been making the return trip ever since; usually-travellingfirst class.

Getting back to basics, though, short pieces of cloth make a very thickrug that is almost irresistibly tactile. Making one isn't just rewarding;it's also very relaxing.

First of all you're going to need a lot of cloth. Charity shops, jumble salesand damaged off-cuts solve that problem. Any cloth will do. If you choosethin cloth you'll need to put in more pieces, to fill up the weave of thehessian, but the rug will still be strong and practical; and much softer.

Cutting up the cloth can seem a bit daunting, but there's a trick thatmakes it quick and easy. Either cut or tear long strips, about 25mm (1")wide; thin cloth could be cut up to half as wide again. Cloth that willnaturally tear in a straight line is the obvious choice, but cut cloth willdrop a lot less threads. Cutting long strips is quite quick using a rotarycutter, along a straight edge and on a cutting mat, if you fold the clothfirst.

Of the 'tearing' materials denim makes a very solid rug; thin poly/cotton

makes a very soft one. Poly/cotton dries more quickly when it's washed;cotton doesn't give off noxious fumes if a hot cinder drops on it. Of the'cutting' materials knitted wool can be boiled, to felt it, before it's cutfor a solid rug; T-shirts make an incredibly soft rug. The craft isversatile enough that you can use anything from plastic carrier bags toleather.

Once you've got your long strips you'll need to cut them into short pieces,about 75mm (3") long. Cutting up pockets and sleeves with a pair of

scissors is, for a modern person used to instant everything, enough tomake anyone bark at the moon. Using cloth that comes in decent sizedpieces, that will make long strips, solves the problem. Just wrap a longstrip round a cutting gauge and cut along the groove, with sharp scissors,and the jobsdone. A cutting gauge is a piece of wood with a groove along one side of it.

Having put the cutting problem firmly in its place you can tackle makingthe rug; which is almost as easy. You'll need a piece of Hessian aboutlOOmm (4") bigger, each way, than the rug you intend to make, to allowfor a hem. There are various grades available, including finely woven even


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weave. The traditional backcloth was a sack that had probably beenpatched, more than once. You can go for the expensive stuff if you wantto, but the cheap stuff (lOoz sacking Hessian) will do the job well enough.Virtually all handicraft shops, and many haberdashers, will stock it.

If you're going to use a sharp stick you'll find it easier if you fix thehessian onto a frame, to keep it taut. If you're going to use a rag ruggeryou won't need a frame, you'll find yourself working against the tension,the easiest way to work is to lay it in your lap.

The general idea is to trap each bit of cloth in the weave of the hessianso that the middle, of the strip, passes under 2 to 4 strands and bothends stick up on the topside. If you take up too many strands the weave

won't tighten up enough, especially with thin cloth; if you only take up onestrand it will pull loose.

Putting the bits in won't trouble anyone smart enough to have boughtCrafts Made Easy at all. If you're reading this second-hand in a dentist'swaiting room: face it, it's going to hurt.

If you're using a rag rugger take up 2 to 4 strands in the hessian with thepoint and push it through, as far as it will go. Press the lever, to open the

jaw; grab one corner of a piece of cloth and pull it back through until bothends are the same length, on the top side. Remember to let go. Just keepon putting more and more bits in; not more than 5 strands away from eachother, in any direction, but not in the same hole again either. Work inrows if you want to, but it doesn't matter; as long as you fill it up you canwork in any way you want to. If you have difficulty seeing, or like to watchTV as you work, you can judge spacing with the tip of your finger againstthe point.

If you're using a sharpened peg, and a frame, poke a hole in the hessian;put a corner of the cloth over it and push it through far enough to grabit, with your fingers, underneath (you'll find you're working from theback) and pull it halfway through. Then poke another hole 2 to 4 strandsaway and poke a hole and push a corner on the other end, of the samestrip, through; and finish the job with your fingers again. Make sure theends underneath are, at least roughly, the same length. Put the next bitin at exactly the same distance as you would if you were using a rugger.

The rugger is, at least, four times faster, you work from the top and youdon't need a frame; but the result is exactly the same with either


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of the hems, and then work in rows, on either side, putting in one pieceless at both ends of every row. This makes a diamond. The original rowwill be the widest part. The longer crease marks the centre-line wherethe points should end up, so you can easily check it as you go along.

Now a Bit on The History of the dollshouse

Miniature homes, furnished with domestic articles and residentinhabitants, both people and animals, have been made forthousands of years. The earliest known examples were found in the

Egyptian tombs of the, created nearly five thousand years ago.These wooden models of servants, furnishings, boats, livestock andpets placed in the Pyramids almost certainly were made for religiouspurposes.

The earliest known European dollhouses were the baby houses fromthe Sixteenth Century, which were cabinet display case made up ofrooms. They showed idealized interiors complete with extremelydetailed furnishings and accessories. The cabinets were built witharchitectural details and filled with miniature household items andwere solely the playthings of adults. They were off-limits to children,

not because of safety concerns for the child but for the dollhouse.Such cabinet houses were trophy collections owned by the fewmatrons living in the cities of Holland, England and Germany whowere wealthy enough to afford them, and, fully furnished, wereworth the price of a modest full-size house's construction.

Smaller doll houses such as the Tate house, with more realisticexteriors, appeared in Europe in the 1700s.

The early European dollhouses were each unique, constructed on acustom basis by individual craftsmen. With the advent of theIndustrial Revolution, factories began mass producing toys,

including dollhouses and miniatures suitable for furnishing them.German companies noted for their dollhouses included ChristianHacker, Moritz Gottschalk, Elastolin, and Moritz Reichel. The list ofimportant English companies includes Siber & Fleming, Evans &Cartwright, and Lines Brothers (which became Tri-ang). By the endof the nineteenth century American dollhouses were being made inthe United States by The Bliss Manufacturing Company.

Germany was the producer of the most prized dollhouses and dollhouse miniatures up until World War . Notable German miniaturecompanies included Mrklin Rock and Garner and others. Their

products were not only avidly collected in Central Europe, butregularly exported to Britain and North America. Germany's


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involvement in WWI seriously impeded both production and export.New manufacturers in other countries arose.

The TynieToy Company of Providence, Rhode Island, made authentic

replicas of American antique houses and furniture in a uniform scalebeginning in about 1917. Other American companies of the earlytwentieth century were Roger Williams Toys, Tootsietoy, Schoenhut,and the Wisconsin Toy Co. Dollhouse dolls and miniatures were alsoproduced in Japan, mostly by copying original German designs.

After World War II, dollshouses became mass produced in factorieson a much larger scale with less detailed craftsmanship than everbefore. By the 1950s, the typical dollhouse sold commercially wasmade of painted sheetmetal filled with plastic furniture. Suchhouses cost little enough that the great majority of girls from the

developed western countries that were not struggling withrebuilding after World War II could own one.

The TynieToy Company of Providence, Rhode Island, made authenticreplicas of American antique houses and furniture in a uniform scalebeginning in about 1917. Other American companies of the earlytwentieth century were Roger Williams Toys, Tootsietoy, Schoenhut,and the Wisconsin Toy Co. Dollhouse dolls and miniatures were alsoproduced in Japan, mostly by copying original German designs.

After World War II, dollshouses became mass produced in factorieson a much larger scale with less detailed craftsmanship than everbefore. By the 1950s, the typical dollhouse sold commercially wasmade of painted sheetmetal filled with plastic furniture. Suchhouses cost little enough that the great majority of girls from thedeveloped western countries that were not struggling withrebuilding after World War II could own one.

As a hobby
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Things_of_a_dollhouse.JPGhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Things_of_a_dollhouse.JPG


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Dollhouse items in the scale 1:12.

Dollhouses are available in different forms. From ready-made anddecorated houses to kits to custom built houses made to thecustomer's design. Some design and build their own dollhouse.Simpler designs might consist of boxes stacked together and used

as rooms.Miniature objects used for decoration inside dollhouses includefurniture interior decorations dolls and items like books andclocks Some of these are available ready-made, but may also behomemade.There are dozens of miniature trade shows held throughout the yearby various miniature organizations, where artisans and dealersdisplay and sell miniatures. Often, how-to seminars and workshopsare part of the show features. Miniature stores also hold classes.There are Internet forums, blogs and using other online social mediaconcentrated in dollhouses and miniatures. Enthusiasts also shareimages online.

Dolls and Soft Toys

Dolls and soft toys are often regarded with sentiment asthey are a reminder of childhood days. Some dolls anddoll's houses were never made as playthings but rather ascollector's pieces for adults. They were often accuratecopies of the fashions and architecture of the time. Dolldesign itself has evolved as new materials have beendeveloped but the basic principle of creating a miniaturecompanion remains.

Wooden Dolls

In Europe the wooden toy making industry evolved from arural craft into an organised craft guild. In the 17th century

wood dolls were of the highest quality and were mostlymade from pine. Dolls were hand-carved with mortise andtenon joints, had painted faces and wore fashionableclothes.

Dutch Dolls on cards published by Thomas de la Rue

c1903


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By the 19th and 20th centuries wood dolls were consideredcheap, throw-away items. Stump dolls which had no legswere carved from a single piece of wood and painted inbright colours. A popular development in this period werethe jointed peg woodens with painted faces and feet whichwere made in sets of various sizes in the Grodener Tal

region of Austria.

Porcelain Dolls

Three types of porcelain dolls were produced; glazed china,untinted bisque and bisque. Each head was produced in amould and usually fired three times and glazed twice. Thefirst firing produce the bisque or biscuit base andsubsequent firings fused the painted decoration and glazeson the head. Each mould was used 40 or 50 times beforebeing discarded. Many German porcelain factories thatproduced household items began to manufacture bisqueheads and limbs. Thuringia was the home of manymanufacturers including Simon & Halbig, established in1869 and Armand Marseille, 1890. Large numbers of dollheads were exported and attached to bodies at a later date.Kammer & Reinhardt and Cuno and Otto Dressel used theheads to produce complete dolls for retail.

My Dolly and I', The Infants Magazine, 1879France was also a leading doll manufacturer. Jumeauproduced bisque head dolls with jointed compositionbodies. In 1899 the French companies amalgamated toform the Societe Francaise de Fabrication de Bebes etJouets in order to compete with German competition.

Fashion dolls were popular throughout the 19th century andinstead of mis-shapen cloth bodies many were made fromkid to recreate the shapely figure of a young womanwearing a corset. Porcelain heads often reflected the

fashionable hairstyles of the period but by 1870 mouldedstyles were being replaced by hair wigs. Dolls were made


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with pierced ears and bisque feet that were moulded andpainted to look like stockings and boots.

Wax Dolls

Wax was originally used to make religious effigies andvotive offerings and the skills of model makers werebrought to London in the 19th century, most notably by theMontanari and Pierotti families. The dolls head wasmodelled in wax or clay and then made into a cast from atwo or three part plaster mould. Molten wax, a blend ofcolouring, bleached beeswax and other additives were thenpoured into the mould. Manufacturers experimented witheither single layers of wax or multiple layers although thefinal thickness was normally no more than 3mm.Blown or moulded glass eyes were added and the hair,either mohair or human hair, was inserted into fine cuts orpin holes. The facial features would then be enhanced by

colouring the mouth and the whole surface of the headdusted with a fine pumice to remove the shine. Mostly theheads were shoulder heads that could be attached to thedolls body by sew-holes on the shoulder plate. The clothbodies were made from calico stuffed with hair or fibres andoften had poured wax lower limbs.

Composition Dolls

The discovery of composition materials enabled

manufacturers to mass produce dolls that were cheaperand easier to make than carved wood or bisque whichrequired firing. Pulped wood and paper-based mixturescould be pressed into moulds making it strong and durable.

Girl with her doll, taken by William H Holliday,photographer, Winchester, 1899-1907Manufacturers experimented with mixtures using a varietyof additives such as glue, flour, boiled sawdust, plaster andanything else to hand. Once dry the head would be coveredin a glutinous wash, painted in water-based, flesh colouredtones and varnished.


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My Dream Baby, made by Armand Marseille, Germany,c1925 - CRH1972.4To improve the appearance of the doll even further headswere coated with a layer of wax. However, as wax andpapier mache expand and contract at different rates thewax often cracked producing rather gruesome looking dolls.

Composition dolls are often coupled with stuffed cloth or kidbodies.

Rag Dolls

Traditionally rag dolls have been stuffed with cloth,sawdust, straw and later kapok. Many were home-made forchildren but from about the 1850s rag dolls were producedcommercially and were printed on cloth or had theirfeatures hand painted in oils. Some companies, such asSteiff and Lenci, began to experiment with stockinet and feltwhich was hot-pressed over a mould.

Pierrot doll, made by Lenci, Italy, c1920sNorah Wellings, who was originally a designer for ChadValley, used velvet to create her dolls. Often dolls weremade to represent character types such as the SevenDwarfs or as souvenirs such as the velvet sailors thatNorah Wellings created to be sold aboard passenger liners.


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you may have to resize this

Church doors


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Bull Week and Christmas Eve

It has sometimes been stated that the workmen used to join their moneytogether for the purpose of purchasing a bull, and that it was killed for Christmascheer; and the week before Christmas they worked hard in order to pay for the

bull by their extra labour. When it was killed it was divided amongst themaccording to the money they had subscribed, and then a division took place onChristmas Eve. When Christmas Day happened on Tuesday or Wednesday it

made a good long bull week, for there was no reckoning for work done untilChristmas Eve, so that they had eight, ten, or twelve days' work to reckon for if they had not "kick't arr mester a Setterday neet for a two or three shillin' tocarry in wee." It was no uncommon thing for men to work sixteen, eighteen, ortwenty hours a day in the bull week; and the blade-makers have been known tohave the heat ready to pull out of the fire as soon as the clock had struck twelveon Sunday night. But Mr. , who lived at the bottom of Broad lane, Bailey lane,put a restriction upon his men, and gave orders that no man should be permitted

to go into the shop before four o'clock in the morning, nor should work later thanten o'clock at night, in order that the premises might be closed by eleven. This

was thought by some to be a hardship. The 'prentice lads entered into the spiritof the times with as much earnestness as their masters; and it frequentlyhappened that two or three lads were laid fast asleep before or near the smithyfire on the floor, whilst their masters were laid with their hands upon their armsat the workboard in the same state nature requiring a little renovation fromthe excess of labour. When the work was finished it was called "getten t'bull byt'tail." The respectable manufacturers generally reckoned with their men in theearly part of the day, and the "little mesters" when they had "'liver'd" at the

factor's warehouse, which was generally in the evening, they having to undergothe screw before they got paid for their goods. When Christmas Day happened on

the Wednesday, it made the Market place and thereabout very busy, Tuesdaybeing the market day, and the night appearing something like a double Saturday

night to many persons. Suppose we take a view of the principal parts and noticea few circumstances, beginning with the lobby nook (the old Town Hall near theChurch gates). There you would find stalls set out to the best advantage, withLord Mayor boots and shoes well dubbined up and made as pliable as the price,varying according to quality and size. At the bottom of High street you mighthave been accommodated with a pair of "leather dicks" (breeches) for either

yourself or 'prentice lad, at Davenport's; or have gone to Ellis Grant's stall at thetop of the market within the chains. You could have found old Milly Lowther's fish

stall at the top of Pudding lane (King street), and Molly Rawson's fish stall, facingChange alley end; Old-book John selling "Week's Preparation," &c., facing up

High street; and Billy Wright mending old buckles, or matching the one that wasleft after one was lost, facing Hartshead; the old women with their meal tubs,

with their great coats and leather pockets, selling meal by the peck; and now andthen a lad saying, "Dame, will yo gie me a bit o' meal if yo pleasen?" "Aye, lad,tak thee a bit." Meal was 5d. per peck. New shoe stalls were plentifully arrangedfacing the front shops at the top of the Shambles, the dealers crying, "Now, can Isuit you with a pair, they are home-made uns come, try these on, oi thinkthey'll about fit you; they looken yore size." The gaol was thronged with visitors

until nine o'clock. There was one prisoner in each room above and below whosolicited the passers-by to "remember the poor prisoners." The one above had a

tin box supported by a string; and the other in the lower room, with his handthrough the window, held a similar box for the low court prisoners. The readerwill not suppose that the streets were brilliantly lighted; and it was with difficultya passenger could see his road from one lamp to another. When off market day,

and the shops were closed, and the stalls taken away, the little "pinkning" light of


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the oil lamps was disgraceful. At Christmas Eve the pawnbrokers were cried toget extra hands to assist in taking out the pledges; none were taken in.We will now pay a visit to the fireside of a decent working man. The beef ispurchased; the wheat for the frumenty is already creed; the yule log is laid onthe fire and reaches a good way up the chimney; the spice is bought for the plumpudding, and the grocer has given his yule candles according to the worth of his

customer; the mistletoe bough is hung up in the middle of the house (or if thatcannot be obtained, a holly bush is suspended): the Christmas ale barrel is

tapped, and when the husband comes home a "frizzle i't frying pan," and an extrapint of ale and a pipe of tobacco are allowed, and perhaps the children are

favoured with a taste of frumenty to their suppers, by way of trying how good itwill be in the morning, when "they've gotten t' Jamaica pepper," which has beenforgotten. The children sing "Christians Awake," in anticipation of hearing thesingers in the night; but they were probably so much tired when put to bed thatnothing disturbed them until their usual time of rising, when enquiry was soonmade for the frumenty, and the father and children prepared themselves fordivine service at the church or chapel, whilst the mother remained at home tomake the spice pudding and to cook the dinner. Cards were generally permitted

to be used in most of the public-houses in town; and then the propensity forgambling presented itself. Swiscoe was the most popular game; but you might be

accommodated with a game at whist or cribbage in a more social corner. Perhapsat another table were a party at brag or loo; and the bagatelle-table had plenty of

customers. Dominoes were played at "just for an odd quart amang us sens;" butthe guinea club must be paid, or you will have no chance of a draw coming off,and those who are so fortunate as to get their "chonce" think themselves in goodtrim for Christmas holidays.

The mummers on this night began performing, and the characters of St. George,

the Prince of Morocco, Slasher, the Doctor, and the Fool or Merryman, are takenby boys from twelve to sixteen years. There were other parties of smaller boys

who assumed the same characters, and were dressed in the same manner as theelder ones namely, with shirts outside, decorated over with ribbons of various

colours, and swords in their hands, except the doctor (who had a cane), and thefool (whose face was blackened, and he carried the stump of a besom), whoenters the room with

Open the door as I come in,I hope your favour I shall win;But whether I rise or whether I fall,

I'll do my endeavour to please you all.

The poor old horse was exhibited and the song was sung: the "Derby Tup" was

also sung and performed in character. The public houses generally were filled.The blind fiddler enters, and asks if "Any of you gentlemen are disposed for atune?" "Aye, sit thee down, and let's have one." When he had played a little timehe says, "Gentlemen, if you please to let me at liberty as soon as you can: yoknow it's Christmas E'en." "Cum, then, Sam lad; here's moi penny to begin wi."He goes round, and at last one says, "Here, Sam, here's tenpence hopenny forthee." "Thank yo, gentlemen."

It is now nine o'clock, when the mourning coaches (men's wives) begin to arrive,with the youngest in their arms, saying "Cum, lad, art't ommest ready for

cummin hooam; oi think it's ommost time." "Prothee sit thee down a bit, on oi'llgoa with thee. Here, oud lass, tae this chair. Here, cum, sup. Now, will yo hay a

bit a bacca?" "Way, oi ne'er mind havin a bit while e stop. Thou'll happen not belong, wit a?" "Sit thee down, lass, an oi'll goa wi thee." One mourning coachcomes after another till all the vacant seats are occupied in the room (this is not


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the card room, but the club room). At last it is proposed that as the women arethere they ought to have something better than common ale, and a tankard of"huddle me buff" (hot ale and rum) is ordered, which comes in a quart pitcher,and a glass with it. It is pronounced very good, and another is ordered, andperhaps another, till it gets near twelve o'clock, when they seem anxious todepart; but the landlord says, "Nay, concarn it, you moant go whoile you've hed

moi quart. Christmas comes but once a year." "Come, then, we're like to sit usdown ageean a bit," until

"Grace's cheeks were like the rising sun,And Ann felt warm within."

But the mourning coaches return pretty well loaded, and the owner of the coachaccompanied it, well satisfied with its appearance and behaviour.

Horse and Cart Deliveries and Street Traders

The milkman would have two large churns and one small serving churn. You had totake your jug to the cart, he would ladle a pint or half pint if required. They had spot

check milk inspections to check if the milk had been watered. There was a stiff fine if

water was found in the milk. It was said at the time that Tom Stark did not like

doctors. He broke his foot once and was walking around with a large sack tied around

it for weeks. To let you know he was in the street he would cry "Hey roo! Hey roo!"

You would hear it from inside. Kirk Goad's round was in the Newport area, Duckpool

Road etc. On his way home he'd call in St Julians pub leaving the horse outside. The

horse sometimes would get fed up, come home with the cart on his own and stop

outside the house in Cecil Terrace. His horse was kept in Forge Farm fields, Mr Lewis

was the farmer. Tom Edwards' horse was kept in the fields near the racecourse. It was

a white horse. We used to call him White Knight. Bill Sweet, one of the local ladsused to ride him at times from the bake house to the fields.

Then there were the horse drawn rag and bone merchant carts. Kids used to ask their

mums for any jam jars or rags. The man would give a couple of coppers. They'd be

smiling all the way to the sweet shop.

Onion sellers came around with a couple or more strings of onions on the handlebars

of their bicycles.

You'd very often see a chimney sweep carrying his rods and brushes on his shoulder

whilst riding his bike.

Two brothers, the "Sadlers", started their drapery business with a bicycle. They wouldcarry the cloths in a suitcase on their rounds. You could take the cloth on trial. If it

was suitable you could hire purchase for as little as a shilling (5p) a week. Eventually

they opened a shop on the corner of Station Road. They were there for years until they

moved on to Cwmbran.

The umbrella man and the knife and scissor grinder were around at least once a week.

Hence the song: "Any umbrellas any umbrellas to fix today?" He would mend them

all and go on his way. The knife grinder would pedal his bike on a stand attached to a

grindstone and sharpen away. Kids would stand around and watch his work. Still in

the 20s and 30s I must remind you again, most of these lines are written with thought

of when we were children and seeing things from a child's point of view. Any oldCaerleon 'Fly' as we were known will most likely remember similar stories.


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bit. The people of Caerleon took in evacuees from London. Children mothers as well

all would mix and help each other and enjoy doing it. One thing about Londoners -

they like their fish and chips. Food rations, everyone had a ration card. Bacon, butter,

meat, cheese, sugar, almost everything. The older men would work on their allotments

and grow a lot of food. Some people even grew tobacco to try and make their own

cigs. There were pig clubs. People would get together and keep a couple of pigs.Collect peeling and waste food to feed them. Mrs. Waters in Arthur Street had a

couple of pigs in a sty in her back garden. I remember seeing a couple of sides of

bacon hanging in her front room. Quite a few people kept chickens in their back

gardens. Christmas dinner was assured, plus plenty of eggs. You could put them in a

large container of water glass and they would keep a long time.

When the war ended the boys came home. The local football team had lost their good

players to the forces. They thought now they were coming home they would have the

players back and be top of the league again. Not so, the players were now five years

older and I'm afraid not very good.

Lodge Hill

No council houses had been built during the war. People wanted somewhere to live.

Army camps were closed. People decided to squat in them. The government then

decided to organise distribution of these camps and allowed the councils to take them

over. The gunsite on the Lodge Farm was one. 10 was spent doing each house up.

People of Caerleon were moved in at a rent of 7s 6d (37p) per week. A coal fire

oven stove was put in, water and electric and they made the best of it. The ones in the

army soldiers' wooden huts were happy they put their furniture in, polished lino on the

floor. Some had ex-officers' quarters they felt lucky. They all had their little gardens.

George Phillips used to keep chickens. Mrs Teague had a large family of lovelychildren; Mr and Mrs John Barker; my brother Edgar Turner and family; and myself

and Doreen. Our house used to be the ablutions. There was a cast iron bath round the

back we had to walk around the outside of the building to get to it. We found an old

boiler and fixed that up and my brother who was a carpenter put duckboards on the

floor. It was lovely having a bath in there with a coal fire going. Inside the house the

rooms were partitioned off with plasterboards. They didn't go right to the roof though,

if you stood on a chair you could see over them. There was a kitchen, bedroom, sitting

room and storeroom. At the time we thought it was Heaven, we wanted to stay

forever. Eventually everyone had moved on to a prefab or house and the camp closed

demolished and houses now stand there. But I'm sure if you asked some of those

people mentioned they would tell you how well everyone got on together. Sadly

there's not many of us left. But the children may remember some of the times. In

those days people knew nearly everyone by name. The memories in the books of

Caerleon should be cherished forever. Times have moved on. But still friends and

families of those days send one another Christmas cards every year. Those good old

days don't sound so good to young people today, with washing machines, fridges,

microwaves, vacuum cleaners, hot and cold water, carpets, bathrooms makes them

wonder why they were good days.

I hope you enjoy what I have put together for you to read


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Please let me know what you think

vera

Bygone Days August 2010

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Transcript of Bygone Days August 2010