In the 1920s our little village boasted three South Devon cows. The milk was entirely used for making cream, and cheese. Some of the cream sold locally to the one or two who could afford it but the rest went to make a delicious cream cheese, quite out of reach of our pocket but eagerly sought after by a few of the professional class and of course the "visitors". The cheese was hung in the dairy in muslin bags. They were about 2lbs weight when dry and mature and sold in either a half or the whole piece. The peculiar shape of the cheese was accepted as it was taken off the hook. The cows were walked through the village twice a day stopping to drink at the waste water from the communal shute and always doing a whoopsie on the road before entering their field to show their disdane for the human race. There were warble fly larva which lay just under the hide along the back of each cow. This pest has now been eradicated but used to leave the hide full of holes. On one occasion my help was needed to drive one of the cows to a neighbouring farm to visit the bull, We had to pass another farm on the way and as luck would have it their bull had been moved out of his usual place to a field adjoining the road. On passing this field our cow soon let the bull know what was going on and in a little while we saw this bull come through the hedge and was trotting along some 50 yards behind us and catching up fast. We were now not far from the intended farm and a quick shuffle of gates got us through safely. On our return, fortunately, the other bull was nowhere to be seen. My sixpence in payment was truly earned that day.
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