大象传媒

This story is taken from an interview with John Luke, and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions. The interviewer was Mark Jeffers, and the transcription was by Bruce Logan.
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Petrol at that time in our station was in three grades:

Esso High Test 1/1陆 d per gallon (around 6p in today鈥檚 money)
Esso Ethyl 1/1 d per gallon
Essolene 1/ per gallon

In January 1940 petrol was rationed. When that happened all the 鈥渂rand鈥� names disappeared there was no more Esso, Shell etc. It all became 鈥減ool鈥� petrol. Every car owner had to apply for a Ration Book. For a small 10HP vehicle this was issued on a basis of 5 gallons per month, maybe 6 gallons for larger cars. Anyone who used a car for business or professional purposes had then to apply for a 鈥渟upplementary鈥� ration which was allocated according to need. Commercial vehicles had a different type of petrol issued 鈥� it was known as 鈥渓eaded鈥� petrol and was red in colour and it was an offence to use this petrol in private cars. All sorts of schemes were tried to remove the colour from this petrol such as filtering it through ladies silk stockings (there were no nylons in those days) and putting 鈥渂lack lead鈥� into it to absorb the colour. These worked to some extent, but if you were caught you were prosecuted. (Black lead, by the way, was used to polish old type stoves and ranges). There weren鈥檛 a lot of cars about; the average person could not afford to buy a car. My father managed to buy a second hand Austin 7 (1931) 鈥� it cost him 拢10 鈥� that was possibly a month鈥檚 wages.

McBurney鈥檚 Garage opened on Sundays (not the norm in those days). I worked from 10.00 am until 9.00/10.00 pm. Wages were 2/6 per week (12 陆 p today). They were then raised to 4/ = (20p today). We sold motor oil at sixpence (2陆 p) per pint. Woodbine cigarettes were tuppence (1p) for 5. If sold singly they were a halfpenny each making a profit of a ha鈥檖enny if sold that way. We also repaired bicycles and sold carbide for bicycle lamps. These lamps had a cup on the bottom into which you put the carbide. The tops held a small water container. The water when released into the carbide produced a gas which came up through a jet and was lit with a match in the reflector end of the lamp. Battery lamps were just starting to take over at that time.

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