大象传媒

It was 1940 summertime, a lovely day; the tally-man had just called for his money when the air-raid warning sounded. Nobody bothered, we just went on as usual. My mother had just gone to the front door to pay the tally-man; Bunny Hall (later a well known newsagent) when all of a sudden a plane appeared swooping low. Bunny Hall shouted, "quick run!" and he fled up our passage and out into the garden to our Anderson Shelter. He was the first to jump in but my mum, my sister and me were right behind him and we all jumped on top of him! I remember looking up as I ran and I could see the swastika's on the underneath of the wings, it was that low! When the all-clear sonded we came out of the the shelter. Bunny looked a bit crumpled but like us he was thankful to be alive. We laughted for some time after that when we remembered the time we jumped on the tally-man.

Vera Carpenter (aged 86)

NB - We hadn't much money in the days before the war and if you needed anything you paid a deposit and then paid weekly. These weekly payments were collected by a tally-man.

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