So now
when my caller mentioned a truck of the manure which had come by
mistake to Evesham Station, though consigned to Evershot in Somerset,
my suspicions were confirmed, and when I innocently remarked, "I think
I remember that truck, didn't it go to Alton once in mistake for
Walton?" his countenance fell, and he wished me "good-morning" in a
hurry.
Hurdles in Worcestershire are generally made of "withy" (willow), and
it is interesting to watch the hurdle-maker at work. The poles have
first to be peeled, which can be done by unskilled labour, the pole
being fixed in an improvised upright vice made from the same material.
Then comes the skilled man, who cuts the poles into suitable lengths,
and splits the pieces into the correct widths. Next with an axe he
trims off the rough edges, shapes the ends of the rails, and pierces
the uprights with a centre-bit. Then he completes the mortise in a
moment with a chisel, the rails being laid in position as guides to
the size of the apertures. The rails are then driven home into the
mortise holes, and he skips backwards and forwards, over the hurdle
flat on the ground, as he nails the rails to the heads; two pieces, in
the form of a V reversed, connect the rails and keep them in place.
In counties where hazel is grown in the coppices, a wattled or "flake"
hurdle is the favourite, and they afford much more shelter to sheep in
the fold than the open withy hurdle, but, being more lightly made,
they require stakes and "shackles" to keep them in position.
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