Thursday 12th April 1962

On By Sue JenkinsIn 1962 lettersLeave a comment

Eva to the family:

Dear Alec June Susan and Carol

Many thanks for the letter and nice drawings by the children. Hope you have all recovered from your upsets, we have had a series of chilled bladder, which believe me can be very uncomfortable. I think it must be the cold winds doing it, also it is nice one day and freezing the next.

Well we have at last being too Weston and bought the wallpaper, and I think you will approve of the pattern. It is an all-over pattern in upright lines, in pale green and biscuit, with green paint to match, which seems suitable for a room facing South. We are going into the girls’ room while we do it. Do not know when we start, shall have to ask the foreman. 

I liked Susan’s letter, coming on isn’t she.

We had a very profitable Jumble Sale on Saturday, and my feet were killing me when I arrived home. We really had enough stuff for three sales, but at the finish a man comes in and takes what is left, and pays by the weight of it.

Workmen have already dumped materials in Miss Weeks old house so expect owners will be in soon, understand the owners are going to live in the house themselves. Houses are going like hotcakes down this way, people paying fantastic prices.

The Budget did us a bit of good in that we shall have more personal allowance. A bit of bad about the sweet prices, the prices are bad enough as it is, and the children do not get much for their money.

We did some gardening this afternoon I should think all the leaves of the avenue have settled in our garden. I think I have lost the Penstemon, did you have a cutting?

I think this is the lot for now,

Lots of love,

From Mum and Dad

P.s. We hope June’s mother will get the rest she badly needs when she is in the hospital, is it Hillingdon where she goes? 

Tuesday 10th April, 1917

On By Sue JenkinsIn First World WarLeave a comment

Heard my greatest friend Jim Pillar* met with a serious accident at B112. A tractor became derailed and dragged off some wagons also on to Jim’s leg. It is Blighty for him.

The following additional information is from Martin Farebrother:

If the B line was that north of the Somme, then B108 and 112 would be further west back towards Plateau.

*I have been able to establish that in fact Jim Pillar survived the war, but whether or not he and Leonard had any further contact in later years is impossible to discover.

Tuesday 10th April, 1962

On By Sue JenkinsIn 1962 lettersLeave a comment

Leonard to the family:

Dear Alec, June, Susan and Carol

Many thanks for letter received by first post this morning and for the enclosures from the girls – latter very good indeed, thank you Susan and Carol. What a week you have had with illness going around the house but we hope the worst is over now and also that the neck business will be cleared up once for all. Cannot understand though why the swelling does not decrease perhaps they will say or do something tonight when you visit hospital. Expect you know that students crowd round the patients for anything they can learn from the surgeons especially those who are qualifying for particular items. Did a lot of the school children have the germ Susan got hold of? and were a good number absent from school?

The winter has been a bad one and has encroached too much into the spring. We can do with the warmer weather right now for more reasons than one but at this moment it is as cold as February again. Last Sunday here was the limit. Late Saturday night we had a terrific hailstorm and gale-force winds from the northwest and the sea was thrown up over the wall and also into Salthouse Fields flooding latter for several hours. Then Sunday morning we had more torrential rain and the wind as strong as ever. The rain ceased for a few hours but was back with us again later in the day and the wind kept going full blast.

Our new neighbour (Bushell) put up some woodwork to act as a pergola last week but I see it is now well over to an angle of about 60 degrees and he said this morning he is taking it down and putting in a hedge like ours. Large pieces of coping were torn out of the lake wall and repairs now in hand. On top of all this day had to have a caravan rally in the Salthouse car park over the weekend.

I told you last week I was going to visit Mr Palmer on the Friday. Well I got a message that morning to say he had been removed to Southmead Hospital the previous afternoon so of course I did not see him. Now understand he is there for further tests to be made – ones that cannot be carried out at Clevedon – but Mrs Palmer thinks he will be back in Clevedon Hospital in a day or two, in fact his bed here is being kept for him. The doctors do not think there is much wrong but want to make sure but I do not think he will be having second operation for a week or two. I should say he left the matter a little too long bearing in mind his age – 72.

Whilst on the subject of hospitals we noted June’s remark on back of envelope and presume this arrangement resulted from the visit on Monday. You will be able to tell us more next letter but we hope the visit was satisfactory and at the three weeks stay commencing towards the end of May is for observation purposes only. The dates coincide with our proposed visit to you and if you would like us to alter our date to give June more freedom at that time please do not hesitate to tell us as we quite understand how do you must feel.

Note you have tickled up your joiner fellow and hope results satisfactory. Wonder if he turned up on Sunday?

You have been busy getting paper off the walls of the hall and landing then. The paper must have been shabby for you to  prefer the bare walls. Have not heard of the Dutch hoe arrangement before and note for use if necessary. This is one job I do not care to tackle but one never knows.

Yes I think I can imagine the pattern of the paper in your bedroom from description given. Sounds rather nice. We are going into Weston soon to get some for our bedroom and then the fun will commence again and of course it will be good gardening weather when I start that job.

So Stacey had something of the truth then but I’ve not heard the proposal to retire at 58 (optional). The District Offices should never have been opened up on the Western Region. This arrangement was inherited from the L.M.R. and forced on us.

Fancy Notley being on the Bluebell special same time as Beeching.

Note you will not waste Jungle Juice on Acton Yard Master. I’m looking forward to tasting it myself in a few weeks time. I still have a little of the carrot left you brought down last summer. Wonder what Don thinks about the tax on cider? Pity about the sweets though. Wish there had been a little off petrol.

Had a bit of trouble with the car recently. When depressing the clutch could hear a grinding noise which gradually wore off so as car had not been in for any attention whatsoever since last September took it down yesterday and they diagnosed a felt pad worn on the clutch which unfortunately necessitated dismantling the gearbox to get at, a long job for a small repair. Anyhow alright now and I pick car up this morning and find I have to be careful now when releasing clutch – car inclined to spring forward if released to quickly.

Any more news of your neighbours’ move to this part of the world? I’m sure they would have enjoyed the unadulterated north-west gale last weekend, especially if their proposed home is in an exposed position. Some people would not relish it but I think it blows all the cobwebs away. It’s the cold wet weather I don’t like and it is lasting much too long.

It is a twelvemonths ago today – by the day of the week – that Susan started school. I made a note of it in my gardening diary. Another twelve months and Carol will be off as well.

I like the crack about Mum’s typing efforts not being enough to get used to. Can see her making a hard job of it this week.

One of the dahlias have now thrown shoots above ground and I hope the others will follow suit quickly as I want them out of the greenhouse now for the tomatoes. Have been busy clearing the decks ready for the plants and the only work outdoors since last letter is the breaking of stone to make a hard surface between garage and the bottom hedge of lawn to give me more room to turn car when I back out of garage. It will also tidy up that corner. It is that portion of ground near the drive between two hedges. Note you have put your cacti outside on a new shelf alongside garage a bit sheltered there two. Have not yet had to get the hose pipe out of shed – wish someone would turn off the tap, it has been raining again all the afternoon and forecast promises more tomorrow.

Yes we saw the TV programme on arthritis the other week but we think Mr Newman was too old for such an operation and in any case he was not willing to try it. He is the same age as Mr Palmer. By the way has Susan broken up for the Easter holidays yet? All the children here are home and it seems a bit early as it is another fortnight to Easter.

Wednesday 11th April

Well we went to Weston this morning but it was very cold and came onto rain – as usual – so after getting the bedroom wallpaper, Walpamur and paint etc we soon turned for home reaching Devonia about midday. The afternoon improved although the foghorn in Channel was on continuously. Went down to Palmer’s just now but there is not much information about Mr Palmer. He has had one test at Southmead but was having another today.  It is still possible he will be back in the local hospital this weekend. Wonder how you got on last night at your hospital? We called in at the poor man’s Selfridge’s – Woolworths – for a cup of tea and had a general look round. Surprising the quantity of seedlings for sale considering the weather. New (foreign) potatoes were marked 8d per lb and mum brought a couple for 1/4d. They were marked 10d and 1/- elsewhere. Expect they are cheaper your way. Kept my eyes open for tomato plants but none for sale anywhere yet. Shall have to pay a visit to Weirs of Tickenham later.*

Mum must tell you about the paper and paint we brought in The Boulevard close to where we were able to park car**. I noticed this afternoon quite a lot of the seeds sown outdoors are showing through the soil so perhaps we shall get a move on now. Noted you soon put a little grass seed on the made-up lawn – expect it to showing through now. Does not take long but the birds will be pleased to see it.

It’s weedkiller I want here not grass seed. I’ve been cracking the stones again this afternoon and continuing to make good the patch mentioned earlier. Taking shape now but shall put the roller (borrowed from Steve Cummings) on it to level off. In the process was able to sift some fairly good soil for use in the frames.

Cannot report much if  any improvement in the health of the Vicar and Curate. Understand the former has now to go in hospital in Bath for a few weeks but I do not like the sound of it. To me it appears he has already developed arthritis and we’ll have a job to get rid of it. The parish has been very unfortunate since the death of the previous vicar. The stand-ins do their best but they are old men and cannot be expected to carry the parish.

Miss Weeks (opposite) has now gone into a bungalow provided for old people and it looks as if workmen will soon be busy in the house quite a lot of timber already gone in.

No more this time all our love to you both and once again many kisses for Susan and Carol.

*8d = 76p in 2022 currency, 10d = 95p, 1/- = £1.14 and 1/4d = £1.52. The current price in London is apparently 90p per kg or maybe 44p per lb which is somewhere in the range of half the 1962 cost.

**This would be Weston Decorators, of happy memory. The shop still existed into the late 20th century but has now gone, and the name is in use by another entity entirely. The extended family has a strange connection to Weston Decorators; this blog’s mother-in-law was born in a small private maternity home in a building behind it, which was later incorporated into the business premises – as a result of which Mr OnTheTrack sometimes tells people that his mother was born in the tile department of Weston Decorators.

Sunday 8th April, 1917

On By Sue JenkinsIn First World WarLeave a comment

Easter Sunday

Beautiful day, but I was on duty all day. My mates went for a long walk in afternoon, and I was on my own. Several German Taubes came over, and one dropped a bomb about 10 yards from the dug-out, right in centre of the triangle. I heard it swish through the air, and hopped inside the dug-out, but it fell into soft ground and did not explode.

Sunday 8th April, 1962

On By Sue JenkinsIn 1962 lettersLeave a comment

Alec to his parents:

Dear Mum and Dad

Thanks once again for the weekly letters, arrived Friday of this week. It is now 9:15 a.m., and we are getting some nice bright intervals after a rainy and windy night. The children are out in the garden messing about in the house they have made in the old water tank and the old kitchen table, with a rug you gave me to cut up for the car. Perhaps one day it will get cut up, but meanwhile it is getting good use.

You would not be able to do much on the garden here either. Not but there is much of it, but after the rain it should be pretty well soaked. I had an idea this lot was coming, and yesterday nipped down to the shop and bought some grass seed which I have sprinkled on top of the remade lawn. The rain in the night should have given it a good start, as well as washing it down into the cracks and crevices out of sight of the birds. So far they have not got to work on it, but I expect that when the first shoots come through they will be down on it to some purpose.

Susan is alright again now, but she had a germ which is circulating in this area. On Monday night when I got home, June was ill, and had to go straight to bed, and at 9 p.m. Carol was taken ill, and kept it going until 4 a.m. June was sufficiently recovered on Tuesday to keep an eye on things, but poor Carol had another go about 4 p.m. but was alright from then on. I went to the hospital on Tuesday afternoon, and found they were unable to tell me anything. They say they could find nothing in the analysis which would give them a lead as to what was causing all the trouble – come back next week, and in the meantime it should go down. In the meantime it has not gone down. Took the car to the station that day, and on the way back collected Susan and took her to the doctor. He said the only cure was to pack up the schools and send all the children to South America. He says he is fed up with it, everybody at the moment has got this germ in one form or another. He prescribed six shillings’ worth of medicine, and that was that. Next day, having been none too comfortable during the morning, felt a bit queer myself at about 3:30 p.m. during a meeting, so cleared off home quickly as soon as it finished. You’re right, it was my turn. Got back to work on Friday, more or less right. Roll on summer.

Your point about the suit, not well taken, 17½ stone in weight* does not represent starvation levels this end.

Rough on Mr Palmer. It would seem from your previous letters that the operation was quite satisfactory, and I assume that in itself was not too arduous for him, but the complications coupled with his age, have probably pulled him down a little. I do not suppose he will look forward to the second part with quite as much enthusiasm as the first.

After typing your letter last week, I wrote a significant one to the joiner fellow. This has produced a reply saying that he did not appreciate we were in quite so much hurry, and he has already made the cabinet at home and it only wants fixing, and he will come this weekend.** So far we have not seen him, but there is still plenty of time today. Last evening we started to strip the paper off the walls of the hall and landing. Even the bare walls are an improvement on the shabby paper. A tip for you if you have not already hit on the idea. For the purpose of scraping paper off the wall which sits high up on the stairs and otherwise out of reach, I used the Dutch hoe. It works well and there’s no damage to the wall.

Difficult to describe the pattern of the paper we have in the bedroom, but I liken it to the design of the curtains one often sees in the cinema.*** It really consists of downward hanging semicircles in vertical rows.

Stacey is not far out with his information. This week I heard that they may be retiring people at 58 with compensation. Also they are going to close down the district offices and run the whole show from the divisions. This will mean finding homes for many high-ranking officials the only qualifications that they have not got being Work Study fortunately as this is not practiced at District level. This will not prevent our having to carry a lot of dead wood for a bit so I do not suppose.

Tony Notley was on that jaunt on the Bluebell line that Beeching was on.

I would not waste my Jungle Juice on the Acton Yard Master. I am keeping a bottle of it for your visit so that we can enjoy it together. So far I have not had a bottle of it myself, only a few glasses. I have nearly finished the bottle of parsnip you gave me. I think you gave me two bottles, so there is one to come. It is very good, and certainly worth making again.

Acton Station still goes well. It has now been in for three weeks, so we shall soon be able to draw some firm conclusions on it.

You do not know the Acting Yard Master. He is ex-L.M.R. and used to A.Y.M. at Willesden. He is a bit after the Follows pattern without the language. Smallbone is the same as was on the Traffic Analysis when I went to Paddington first. I do not know what he has been doing lately. I gather that he has fallen out with practically everybody – not done what he was told – against his principles or something, and has been bypassed by most of his old staff anyway. He has an outsize chip on his shoulder – in fact to sum up – cantankerous.

Note your good wishes for Mrs Baker’s visit to hospital tomorrow and will pass them on. I am having the day off so we can make the journey in the car. No firm info on the other invalids although we understand that Uncle Will is paralysed and they are feeding him with a tube or something.

Sorry about Mr Newman, he seem to be getting worse. I should have thought what they could have done something for him. A recent programme on TV gave that impression.

So George Hunt has moved has he? We must make a note as you say about the change. I should imagine he is getting good money now.

We had a good show of snowdrops, but the effect was spoiled a little by the staggering of dates on which they came out. The first were out in early December of all times, and the last sometime in February. See earlier letters. Glad the dahlias are making a start. I must put mine out soon. Oddly enough our spring flowers are quite good especially as we did not put any in, and in fact thought we had taken all the bolt out. There are quite a few daffodils out in the front garden now. I see the syringa (mock orange) is bursting into bud now. For a while I thought it had gone. It seems as if the clematis has gone, but it is no real loss.

Yes until you mentioned it, I had not realised that Susan has been at school for nearly one year. Again as you say, how time flies.

It looks very nice out now. The heavy cloud has given way to smaller white clouds, and there is a greater expanse of blue. The clouds are moving fast however, and not to be trusted.

Glad mum got the card okay. Surprised to hear John and Eileen have another daughter. Where have all the sons got to? So Marion and Norman are expecting another are they? Is this the third? Mum’s typing is improving, only complaint is there is so little of it. No chance to get used to it so to speak.

The shelf taken down from the kitchen I have attached to the side of the garage facing the lawn bracket and we have put out all the cactus plants. I understand from a former colleague who had a large collection that to put them outdoors at this time of the year, when frosts are over, is a good thing. This way they get adequate watering at the growing time and plenty for next time.

I go to the hospital on Tuesday at 5 p.m. when I am being shown off to the students – curiosity now I suppose? I am beginning to get a little fed up with it.

Must close now then with love from us all hoping that you are both well. 

*111kg, more or less.

**Raise your hand if you’ve heard this sob story before?

***The expression Alec’s groping for is ‘swagged curtains’, which were a big deal at the time, The opulence of being able to use excessive fabric in curtains (and clothing) was a big contrast to the austerity of the War years and the period that followed immediately, and it was one way people chose to express their wealth and their individuality.