School: Errigal Trough (roll number 15565)

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1. Buying and Selling (continued)

   

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   looked upon as mean by their fellow ostlers, if they did not purchase some little provisions. And perhaps the ass had to have shoes fitted to his hooves and Paddy or Biddy could no afford to take anything but the ready money as the father or mother gave them instructions to bring the money home. There were farmers of course who had horses, and they sold the turf also. They would get about 3/6 or 4/6 at that time for a horse load of turf, and the same conditions applied to them as to the other vendors. A 2 cwt. bags of Indian mealie those days cost 8f, 8/6 9f or 9/6 (ad valorem).
   But the provisions were much cheaper then than to day. People never bought such a large amount of tea or sugar as nowadays, as tea was not used on such large quantities by the rural inhabitants at that time.
   A quarter pound of tea and two pounds of sugar was considered a large quantity. The order generally rang like this:- 2oz tea; 1lb sugar, 1/4 or 1/2 stone of flour, 1 loaf (luxury) 1 halfpenny candle, (tallow grease at the time), and 1\2 pint or a pint of parrafin oil, 1oz of tobacco (3d). 'And please make four [?divides] of it (he would say) for if Peter or Felix would get it to divide, daddy or Mammy would only get a wee, wee bit; and you might give ma stone of Indian (Indy) meal. I have 61/2 dozen of eggs, you can count the if you don't believe me. I would have had more, but the hens are laying out in the heather over the bog and I

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. gníomhaíochtaí
      1. gníomhaíochtaí eacnamaíocha
         1. trádáil
            1. díol agus ceannach (~3,622)

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