Devonshire January February 18

The Old Vet’nary
by Ken Watson
A life on the road
part 2
a friendly, family practice
In the post-war days a job for an
assistant invariably came with
accommodation and a car. In
my case the living was No.1 Bird’s
Nest Cottages, Sid Road owned
by Farmer Bob Fry of adjacent
Sidcliffe Farm and the car was
a Land Rover which, judging by
the milometer and its general
condition, must have been one
of the first off the production
line. Yet I came to be very fond
of it and it was ideal for some of
the places I had to reach.
The gear stick was about a yard
long and selecting a new gear
was said to be like stirring a
pudding, but next to it was a lever
topped by a red knob which when
depressed gave access to another
set of ultra-low gears which
were then selected by another
shorter lever which sported a
yellow knob; 8 gears in all and
very useful for cross-country work.
Comfort - there was none and the
suspension made for a bumpy ride.
In fact when the boss’s wife ran
over her time for delivery of their
first born he borrowed it back and
took her for the roughest ride he
could find. I believe it worked.
Seating in the cab was spartan,
just a cushioned bench, but with
passengers aboard it could be
very sociable. Leaving surgery on
my round I pressed the accelerator
to the floor and there it stayed so
that speed was a product of the
incline of the road. Going down
Straitway Head my ambition was
to hit 70 by the time I reached
the bottom end. The humped
back bridge by the Toll House
on Sid Road was much humpier
in those days and I regularly tried
to leave the ground at the top of
the convexity. On two occasions
I succeeded and landed with a
bone jarring crash just before
the corner.
But suddenly on the day the boss’s
wife decided she wanted it to
pursue her new found interest
in dog-cart driving and showing.
So I was shunted on to the firm’s
other car, a Morris 8. Now the
Morris 7 I though was a pretty
little car but the Morris 8 was
ugly and boring. This particular
'Wilson'
...Providing the highest standards
of professional veterinary care
OPENING TIMES
Monday - Friday: 8.30am - 6.30pm
Saturday: 8.30am - 12.30pm
Consultations by Appointment
EMERGENCY SERVICE
For out of hours veterinary attention
or advice please ring 01752 700600
PLYMOUTH
01752 700600
Burnett Road, Manadon,
Plymouth PL6 5BH
car had an unusual quirk. The
IVYBRIDGE
01752 690999
Cornwood Road, Woodlands,
Ivybridge PL21 9JJ
Part Time Clinic at Yealmpton
front passenger seat lacked any
attachment to the rest of the car.
One time I drove Farmer Bob Fry
to a cow on the top of Salcombe
Hill and as I shot away with him
in the errant seat he, plus seat,
rolled back legs in the air into the
by Richard Woodward
back of the car. Luckily he had a
sense of humour.
In those days windscreen wipers
swept only a pitifully small area
and screenwashers had neither
been thought of or deemed
necessary, so I made my own.
Wound powder came in small
plastic puffers. So when one
became empty, I filled it with
water and then, setting the
wipers a wiping, I leaned out of
the window and squirted across
the driver’s wiper.
Eventually I saved enough for a
deposit on a Triumph Herald. My
very own car, with its ingenious
forward lifting bonnet which,
having no wheel arch, meant
that it had the turning circle of a
London Taxi Cab. It was a beautiful
fun car to drive and could outrun
many more expensive cars. They
came in only one colour, British
Racing Green. From then onwards,
with the encouragement of the
Tax Man, I changed cars every
two years, through the Herald
12/50, the wonderful 6 cylinder
Triumph Vitesse range, all that
British Leyland and Ford could
continued on page 90
hubcast
.co.u k
Find out what’s on in Devon
83