‘On the (kitchen side) of the partition the family used to spend the whole day, or part of the day, ten of them perhaps, There was a coop against the partition with hens in it, and a broody hen just by it in an old cooking pot. At night time there would be a cow or two, calf or two, the ass, the dog on a chain by the wall or running about the house. In a house with a large family you would find a post bed, or maybe a bed on the floor. The old people used to spend the night in that beside the fire. Two or three dogs would stretch out at the foot of the bed, the cow or the calves below them, head to the wall, and there would be a calf or two with the run of the kitchen, or lying muzzle to the fire. The ass would be tied up on the other side of the house…and a cat with a couple of kittens maybe in the chimney niche… And beside all the other animals, you would find a pet lamb or two running about the house’
Cheek by Jowl with Chickens
Cheek by Jowl with Chickens
Cheek by Jowl with Chickens
‘On the (kitchen side) of the partition the family used to spend the whole day, or part of the day, ten of them perhaps, There was a coop against the partition with hens in it, and a broody hen just by it in an old cooking pot. At night time there would be a cow or two, calf or two, the ass, the dog on a chain by the wall or running about the house. In a house with a large family you would find a post bed, or maybe a bed on the floor. The old people used to spend the night in that beside the fire. Two or three dogs would stretch out at the foot of the bed, the cow or the calves below them, head to the wall, and there would be a calf or two with the run of the kitchen, or lying muzzle to the fire. The ass would be tied up on the other side of the house…and a cat with a couple of kittens maybe in the chimney niche… And beside all the other animals, you would find a pet lamb or two running about the house’