b'cowhouse (cooouse) where cows were chained in thewere needed on threshing days to carry sacks of corn winter, and brought in from the pasture in summer atweighing sixteen stone up the steps. Sack barrows, a milking times. Between each cow was a wooden orsweeping brush, and bright steel corn shovel would concrete division known as a skel-beast. be up there too, and both corn-cake and linseed In the stables partitions were of wood, slantedcake, which were stored in large slabs and had to be upwards to the mangers with hay racks above. Theput through a hand-turned cutter to be reduced to higher boardings at the eating end stopped a horsesmaller chunks to put in scuttles for feeding. Scuttles seeing its neighbour eating. The floors at night werewere wide metal containers carried under one arm well bedded-up with straw and the horses couldwith the other arm reaching round to steady them. lie down as their halter ropes ran through a block ofIn the wagon shed, or nearby, turnips and swedes wood with a hole for the rope, so the clog slid upwere heaped up ready to be put through the tonnup and down. cutter. The buildings were separated from the fold yard bySo much activity went on during the farming year a stone pathway called a causey which went roundaround the so-called barns, especially in the winter three sides. The fourth side was mostly taken up withmonths. After the cattle were put out to graze in the large, high, solid wooden broad-doors which couldfields -tonning oot tarmethe yard was emptied be opened to allow access for stock, or for carts toof the deep manure collected through winter, and be brought in with straw, and fodder of various kindsthis was known as muck plugging, as wagons and which the cattle (bee-asts) would eat from squarecarts were filled using muckforks, plus much sweated wooden tumbrils. Along one of the sides would belabour. None too savoury a smell either! Privies were smaller houses or pens, used for calves or pigs, andemptied in the yard among the straw, rabbits were at lambing time small partitions were constructedgutted there before skinning, and hens scratched in the main straw yard and divided by bars, calledhappily midst all the muck.hurdles in some parts of the country. A lot of noise at times, toohorses harness The arched wagon-sheds made another wall,clinking, lads shouting at their charges, the rattling of stretching some distance, and above the spaces formilk buckets and cow chains, the mooing, grunting, wagons and carts was the grainary. Here the floor wascackling and crowing, the rumble of wagon wheels, kept well swept, and much grain (wheat, barley andthe clatter of farm implements drawn by horses. oats) was stored, some in hessian sacks and some,No electricity, no mechanisation, no mains water, for fodder, in heaps. This area was reached by a flightand all this activity in what are now homes for people of steps from the main stack yard, and strong menwho know little of what went on in days gone by.The Reverend George Herbert Stock, B.A.Joan Wise, the granddaughter of the Reverendwell when he arrived home.George Herbert Stock, visited Bishop Wilton with herThe background to Rev. Stocks cricket playing daughter, Caroline, at the time of the Flower Festivalwas explained in Bulletin 10he was the captain of in August 2005. She made herself known to FatherBishop Wiltons veteran cricket team whose challenge Finnemore and he introduced her to members ofwas accepted by a similar team from Sheepridge near the Local History Group. The write-up that follows isHuddersfield. So he was practising for the first match based on material supplied by Joan and Caroline. before he died from cardiac failure caused by over-The Reverend George Stock was vicar of Bishopexertion. Floral tributes at his funeral included one Wilton from 1925 until he died suddenly in 1927 at thefrom Members of the Veterans Cricket Club.age of 70. The obituary that contained the material quoted At an inquest held in Bishop Wilton, his daughter,above makes the point that, within the period of four Mrs Gladys Hollis, said that 1 : years, three vicars of Bishop Wilton have died, theher father had been over-exertingRev. G. H. Stock being the last.himself lately. He was playing cricket lastGeorge Herbert Stock was the 6th child of 12 (5 Tuesday night and had a bad fall but got upgirls and 7 boys) to be born to the Reverend James again quickly. He thought nothing of walkingStock, an Irishman who spent most of his ministry five or seven miles, and it was of no use toin Lincoln.The family were so poor that the children persuade him not to. On the Wednesdayhad to take it in turns to go to church on a Sunday prior to his death he was at Barmby Moor,because there were not enough decent clothes to and sooner than wait for the bus he walkedgo round and these clothes had to be worn in a rota.homesix milesbut said he was quiteAlthough he was clearly a bright child, it was unlikely 1 From an obituary supplied by Joan Wise, newspaper unknown.BULLETIN 13 229'