The Donkey stone

[Bypassblade]

Was there anything more futile than polishing a doorstep

 

I'm all for keeping places tidy - picking up litter, sweeping up leaves, trimming hedges, painting doors and window frames, but really - polishing a doorstep?!

 

Mind you, my mum used to iron socks...............

 

That's it in a nutshell Olive, the bygone days when people really took pride in how their homes looked. I can remember mum doing the steps into the house and woe betide anyone that stood on them afterwards, people still do take pride but not to the extent our parents probably did I think the war had a lot to do with that.

[Olive]

That's it in a nutshell Olive, the bygone days when people really took pride in how their homes looked. I can remember mum doing the steps into the house and woe betide anyone that stood on them afterwards, people still do take pride but not to the extent our parents probably did I think the war had a lot to do with that.

 

Oh, I take a lot of pride in how my house looks, it's my absolute pride and joy! The windows sparkle, the garden is weeded, I've restored the windows. I won't be polishing a doorstep any time soon though:)

 

Or ironing any socks!

[cookingfat50]

I remember the donkey stone and then after that there was a craze for the "Red Cardinal",do you remember that?

 

yes i remenber red cardinal and me mum using it to put a line round the edge of the step about 2 inch wide some times she would do the whole step in red cardinal that made it a bit slippy when it rained or icey

[trastrick]

One of the reasons the steps were treated with the donkey stone was to stop the steps from being slippy when wet. .

 

Another, perhaps the main reason, was to delineate where the step edges were in the dark. Like when the old man came back from the pub. We didn't have much outside lighting in those days.

 

You still see contrasting step edges today, in subways, shopping malls, and anywhere else they have public steps. Helps with liability issues.

[raymondo1952]

I have just been sat in a cafe on the moor and overheard a group of pensioners having some sort of a discussion,i then heard one of the men say'Tha wants to ger ome and donkey stone thi step' I almost did a lol,it did take me backtho,so.....does anyone still do this?I spent many happy hours donkey stoning my nans step and anything else that didnt move.

 

Rag men use to say donkeys stone for rags if you got a penney evertime you heard that in the 50s/60s you would be a millionair:thumbsup:

[Sandy Steer]

One of the reasons the steps were treated with the donkey stone was to stop the steps from being slippy when wet. Sunday morning was black lead day at our house. We would make a huge pot of tea. We would drink the tea slowly hoping somebody else would volunteer or there would be an emergency so we wouldn't have to do the black leading. The secret formula was to use the cold left-over tea to dilute the black lead. My uncle, like a sergeant-major would inspect our work and wouldn't let us light the fire until the range was immaculate.

 

My great gran would have had forty fits if we had done work on the sabbath, Monday to Saturdays were work days - Sunday was to keep to light duties, in fact the neighbours next to us did nothing on a Sunday, they even made sandwiches on the Saturday so that Sunday really was a day of rest. We donkey stoned both the steps and the window sill. Mum had to black lead the stove every Friday. Great Gran then inspected her workand I can just remember mum in tears on occasion because it did not pass inspection.

[awoollen]

My great gran would have had forty fits if we had done work on the sabbath, Monday to Saturdays were work days - Sunday was to keep to light duties, in fact the neighbours next to us did nothing on a Sunday, they even made sandwiches on the Saturday so that Sunday really was a day of rest. We donkey stoned both the steps and the window sill. Mum had to black lead the stove every Friday. Great Gran then inspected her workand I can just remember mum in tears on occasion because it did not pass inspection.

in them days the ragman used to shout donkey stone for old rags

[flyer]

..............iron socks? I have been know to iron dust sheets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

now made me think theres hope for my wife yet:D:D:D even at a very early age could not understand why the 40s house wife who had to bake there own bread wash all cloths by hand almost a slave and lets made life a little more hard by stoneing the sill and step every morning we dont want any one to think they'er

dirty in grimmy old Sheffield:loopy:

[trastrick]

now made me think theres hope for my wife yet:D:D:D even at a very early age could not understand why the 40s house wife who had to bake there own bread wash all cloths by hand almost a slave and lets made life a little more hard by stoneing the sill and step every morning we dont want any one to think they'er

dirty in grimmy old Sheffield:loopy:

 

"We might be poor but we're not mucky"

 

Heard as another bucketful of San Izal gets poured down the steps.

[brian1941]

http://i694.photobucket.com/albums/vv309/brian1941/BathIzal001_zps5dffe486.jpg

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San Izal was just mentioned, this picture sure tells what bath nights we had.