Eileen
and Brian
Rooks live
at 2 Mungo
Lodge. Eileen
was born
at Gt. Thurlow
and her
parents
and grandparents
also lived
here. Brian
comes from
Hundon but
has been
in the village
for fifty
years.
Eileen
enjoys travelling,
cooking
and knitting
and Brian
likes his
garden and
visits to
The Cock.
Now retired,
Brian has
spent his
working
life on
the land
apart from
a short
spell road-mending.
Starting
off as a
pig boy
on the estate
of Charles
Ryder at
Hundon at
the age
of fourteen,
Brian worked
seven days
a week
for ten
shillings
and sixpence.
He then
did general
farm work
and took
on the job
of ploughing
with two
horses.
Ryder then
sold the
estate to
R. A. Vestey
and Brian
received
a week's
notice as
all the
outlying
farms on
the estate
were sold
off and
he was not
wanted.
Then
came the
road mending
round all
the local
villages,
another
farm job
at Scotch
Green and
a five-year
stint with
Mr. Ullstein
at Barnardiston.
He then
returned
to the Vestey
estate to
work with
the threshing
tackle.
These were
replaced
by the combines
which made
things a
lot easier
"no
eighteen
stone sacks
of corn
to carry
on one's
shoulders".
The first
combines
had no cabs
and it was
a very dusty
job. New
combines
were purchased,
this time
with cabs,
but to Brian's
disgust
his job
was taken
from him.
When a new
manager
arrived
and wanted
Brian to
drive a
combine
Brian's
answer was
a firm no.
He said,
"I'll never
drive a
combine
agin", and
he never
did.
Both
Eileen and
Brian enjoy
living in
such an
open, friendly
and safe
area.
Brian
says the
fox visits
their property
regularly.
There are
many more
foxes about
now but
not so many
sparrows.
He has seen
lots of
changes
on the land
with the
huge machinery
now employed.
Sugar beet
is no longer
chopped
out and
sprays are
used instead.