- Contributed by听
- CSV Media NI
- People in story:听
- Joe Powers
- Location of story:听
- Old Park Belfast, NI
- Background to story:听
- Civilian
- Article ID:听
- A4393929
- Contributed on:听
- 07 July 2005
This story is taken from an interview with Joe Power at Our Lady鈥檚 Nursing Home, and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions. The interviewer was David Reid, and the transcription was by Bruce Logan.
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[rationing]
They were non-existent, sweets. You had to get a ration book for your rations. And you had a sweetie coupon book for your sweets. Which ...
No, it did not [go to far]. Bananas was unheard of.
[When the Americans came over in 1943] they had a surplus. Chocolate. They were [quite generous].
I can鈥檛 remember the first one. But I remember them, marches building, facing St Patrick鈥檚 chapel. They were building it there. And they were brave and generous, so they were.
They were confined to their barracks. Marshes Building was a big building back then. You coulda seen them using it for their games, baseball. They were loud. You heard them, so you did.
[Overpaid, oversexed and over here?]
That鈥檚 the way it was. They were after everybody. A girl couldn鈥檛 have been walking the streets.
We were glad they were here. Some of them would have given you a couple of bob. You were mooching off them. Just beg it off them.
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