Ginny Was Restless Last Night
Ginny was restless last night but I was able to tether her to the mooring line and bridle….. she’s a good ole nag and works hard for her oats.
Today we’re taking a 20 tonne load of coal down the valley to Bradford. It’ll fuel some of the mills further down stream.
Down in the town, I can see smoke coming out of the mills chimneys… 34 of them at last count. I think business is booming for the mill owners. I’ve seen an influx of people here over the last twelve months, many of whom were working in the woollen mills in Brum’, but have decided to come here because the pay is a wee bit better and there are plenty of jobs for their kids.
Anyway, my first task is to get down through these locks. It’s nice to be able to stable Ginny here, above lock five, but it’s going to take me an hour to get down to lock one…… oh well, needs must!
Further downstream there is a tunnel that I’ll have to ‘leg’ my narrow boat through…. It’s nearly a mile long… and I’m telling you, ‘legging’ twenty ton of coal through that tunnel keeps me fit.
‘Mornin, Mr Samuels…how’s your wife today… is she getting any better?’ I ask the vicar as he crosses lock gate four, making his way down to the church, as he always does.
He shakes his head grimly and hurries down the hill. That can’t be good. Last week he told me that he had held eight funerals in a single day, down at St Michael’s, and all were consumption. I think his wife is ill with it too ! Somethings taking our people and it’s bad. I stay away from everyone and mind my own business…..it’s all I can do….. Ginny needs me and I need her.
‘Come on old lady…let’s be about our toil. Hey-up!’
This is ‘Fivel Locks’ in Bingley, in Yorkshire.
During the Industrial Revolution… at its height, the 1830s ish. Life expectancy in thousands of mill towns could be as low as 25/26 !
Thousands of miles of canal system were quickly overtaken by the steam train as a means of transport.