100 years ago

We should all have been at Stockton-on-Forest recently, according to a programme which informed us that some wonderful feats of music were being performed by a York man, who was described as follows: “The musical marvel manfully manipulates many mysteriously made musical instruments.”

The list of “instruments” from which the manipulator extracted or upon which he perpetrated music was both amazing and amusing: “Tin whistle, violin, cornet, piccolo, zither, clarinet, pianochordia, mouth organ, mandolin, ocarina, cigar box, piano, bundle of sticks, banjo, English concertina, bicycle pump, phono fiddle, bicycle bells, walking stick, baby's feeding bottle, plant pots, banjo and mouth organ duet, band of six instruments, nameless instrument, stool, box hat, bellows.”

The report of the concert or musical evening, or whatever best described it, said that the manipulator excelled particularly on the tin whistle. The baby’s feeding bottle, it was observed, was an unusual instrument because hitherto that domestic article had been looked upon as something which was used to put a stop to “music”.

50 years ago

America, it seemed, was short of domestic helps. Most American girls in their early 20s were either married or at college, and the married ones were not particularly keen on doing the housework. So for the previous few years the gap had been filled by girls from European countries.

The Reading Employment Agency, for example, had sent an average of 60 European girls a month to America for the previous year, to work as domestic helps or as waitresses. Mr Brian Smith, one of the agency’s recruitment officers, had recently been holding interviews in York. Mr Smith said most of the applicants were in their early 20s and about 80 per cent of them settled permanently in the United States. The agency advanced the air fare and the salary started at £47 a month, plus board.

25 years ago

For a bird’s eye view of York there was nothing to beat the Central Tower of York Minster, currently open again to visitors.

The 200ft climb was well worth the effort, as visitors were rewarded with a stunning view of the towers at the west end of the Minster, and the city rooftops below. Canon John Toy said they had decided to open the tower in February rather than March to take advantage of half-term visitors to York. “We shut the tower during the winter or in very bad weather, but this year we decided to open it early to give visitors the chance to see the tower.”

He claimed most people did not mind the height. “The only bit they notice is walking along the parapet of the south transept. At the top it is caged in, though.”