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Alger non street (not aljernon)


harry hayes

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Thought this might be of slight interest.  The Alger - non was the trademark of my history teacher Mr W.W.Pryke.  The notes are my mothers as they had a newsagents in that street in the 1920.  They also lived for a while in Gaskell street which is very near to the Prince of Wales pub on Algies thread - as i think.

 

She describes how she delivered newspapers morning and evening for tuppence a week

 

Our shop counter was full of basins;plates; and dishes.  Cow's heart with gravy;udder; pig;s head and feet; savoury ducks with a grey veil over them; manikins; black puddings which looked like they had been polished; and sausages which had been freshly made.

 

On the shelf at the top,was bottle after bottle - a cure for everything - peppermint; Indian brandy; wind and water pills; blood and stomach pills;; back and kidney pills;; castor oil; senna pods.

 

We also sold cigarettes.  I remember all the men at Rylands were on strike and my mother would let them have one woodie and some matches for a halfpenny - they were then 2d for a packet of 5 =- the small profit paid for the matches.  She would also split a one pound bag of sugar or two ounce packet of tea; or a pennyworth of corned beef..

 

Gypsies used to come and read her hand.  She would cross their hand with a packet of tea.  She also made pop with herbs - such as ginger beer.  My father used to go into the country - round Padgate way - to collect nettles; dandelions and herbs.

 

Hope it is of some casual interest - the good old days.

 

Happy days

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A savoury duck is what is known nowadays as a faggot as in "Brain's faggots"

 

http://britishfood.about.com/od/eorecipes/r/faggots.htm

 

They do not sound very savoury but as a kid i had little choice but to tuck in and smile as if i was enjoying them. Actually the ones my gran made were very tasty, just the fact that we saw what went into them that tended to put you off a bit if you were the squeamish type like me.

 

Not heard of manikins before apart from those mechanical automatons that shops used to have advertising various products.

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