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Alaistair Christie

This piece was written by Dr Christie in 1989 when he was Chairman of the W&S Society

In the spring of 1949, Hilary and I went to live in Lavender Cottage on Warborough Green.  It was rented at that time by Dr Harris of Dorchester for his Assistants, and we were there for two years.  Many of the cottages around the Green were still occupied by people who had worked o the farms.  There were few cars on the roads and petrol was still on coupons.  I kept my open Standard 8 in what is now Mrs Symonds’ house, and later at the big wood shed at The Nag’s Head.  There were no car heaters in those days.

Food was still rationed, and meat was especially scare in the towns.  Of course, we all kept hens.  We started with four, unwiselynaming our Rhode Island Reds after our red headed friends.  You could buy a sack of ‘Balanced Meal’ on surrendering so many egg coupons.  You mashed this up with boiled potato peelings and anything edible you could lay your hands on.  Kipper bones in particular had a reputation for stimulating production.  Timber was hard to come by, and when searching for material with which to build our hen house, I was lucky enough to acquire for five or ten shillings, a couple of small packing cases that had seen service transporting American rifles across the Atlantic.  Our neighbour to the east, in what was then the last house on that side kept rabbits as pets, that sometimes found their way to the table.  I was once puzzled by a large, excited family gathering outside a cottage, until I realised that a pig had been killed and relations had come from far and wide for their share.  Thew two old ladies in ‘Miss Saunders’ Cottage’ kept one hen between them, presumably taking turns to have the egg.

Fred Tyler and his mother lived in Grebe Cottage, and between us was our vegetable garden, where the modern bungalow now stands.¹  There was no mains water on the village then, nor main drains.  The Tylers only water supply came up from their well by bucket and chain.  We had the luxury of a fairly efficient electric pump.  After heavy rain however drainage could be a little uncertain.  Our bathroom was downstairs, and I can remember at least one occasion of having to paddle to reach the bath.

In addition to all the wild flowers that have now vanished, there was in those days a far greater variety of what today is referred to as ‘wild life’.  Our thatch was protected by wire netting from nesting birds, but there was always plenty of mice.  Bats were very common and difficult to eject when they flew around in our bedroom on summer nights.  There were lots of frogs.  Grass snakes which fed on them were common in the hedges.  I was once startled by one in our compost heap, presumably prospecting for a site for its eggs.  We would sometimes wonder who it was at the back door only to find it was a hedgehog overturning the milk bottles.

In spite of all the changes the charm of Warborough Green continues.  The distant Chilterns are still there, and the Allotments are still unbuilt on.  The swallows come in the spring and the redwings in the winter.  The showmen still turn up for Warborough Feast and the bonfire piles up for Bonfire Night.

Long may it continue.

¹A bungalow was built by the Bousfield family but that is since replaced with Boundary House.