Rat A Tat Tat Tat.........
Posted: Fri 17 May, 2019 2:36 pm
In the late 1950s we were looking for a house as we were to marry in 1960. We bought a through terrace property in Burlington Place, Beeston. (Big Mistake) this was a property on four floors including two cellars, one had a complete "Yorkist" range, back door, toilet outside under the flight of steps leading to a backyard.
Apart from the fact there was no central heating we spent our time in the kitchen with the coal fire. front room we had an electric fire.
My Sunday Morning job was to go down in to the cellars and dust around the windows ect. before heading off for a few pints.
One Sunday morning i went down and was surprsed to see a pile of earth just by the sink.
I called around to bring the Father in Law down and as soon as he saw it he said "Thats Rats" he then opened the back door and showed me that the toilet below the stairs was complety dry.
It seemed that they come up from the sewers when possible. He flushed the toilet a few times but said contact the health dept. I was on the phone first thing Monday am. and the Man with the van came up and as soon as he saw this earth trail he agreed with the father in Law. He had me switch off the water, drain it away down below. He then put something down in a large trap.
The following morning i went down, hardly daring to open the door but sure enough there was
this brown / grey monster in the trap. I was on the phone as soon as the office opened and when the man arrived he said "Thats one family that won' see Daddy tonight" he wanted to me to have a close look but i was just happy for him to depart with his trophy. He flushe the Loo, putting something down each time.
Weeks went by and there was no more sightings apart from one day the Brother in Law came in and said he had just seen a rat staggering along the back street drunkenly and a neighbour had come out and killed it with a spade.
When i rang the health dept. the said they had put poison in the drain and we never had any more propblems althouth i always opened that cellar door very carefully before looking in..
Apart from the fact there was no central heating we spent our time in the kitchen with the coal fire. front room we had an electric fire.
My Sunday Morning job was to go down in to the cellars and dust around the windows ect. before heading off for a few pints.
One Sunday morning i went down and was surprsed to see a pile of earth just by the sink.
I called around to bring the Father in Law down and as soon as he saw it he said "Thats Rats" he then opened the back door and showed me that the toilet below the stairs was complety dry.
It seemed that they come up from the sewers when possible. He flushed the toilet a few times but said contact the health dept. I was on the phone first thing Monday am. and the Man with the van came up and as soon as he saw this earth trail he agreed with the father in Law. He had me switch off the water, drain it away down below. He then put something down in a large trap.
The following morning i went down, hardly daring to open the door but sure enough there was
this brown / grey monster in the trap. I was on the phone as soon as the office opened and when the man arrived he said "Thats one family that won' see Daddy tonight" he wanted to me to have a close look but i was just happy for him to depart with his trophy. He flushe the Loo, putting something down each time.
Weeks went by and there was no more sightings apart from one day the Brother in Law came in and said he had just seen a rat staggering along the back street drunkenly and a neighbour had come out and killed it with a spade.
When i rang the health dept. the said they had put poison in the drain and we never had any more propblems althouth i always opened that cellar door very carefully before looking in..